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Whitechapel, c1870–c1900: Crime, Policing and the Inner City

The organisation of policing in Whitechapel

  • 3 things to know
  • Paper 1

Overview

H Division at Leman Street and its strength, the beat constable, his beat and equipment, patrolling the rookeries, local hostility, dark and foggy streets, drink, prostitution, protection rackets, the Bessarabian Tigers, the Odessians and the Blind Beggar Gang, Bloody Sunday in 1887, radical clubs and the Goulston Street message.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

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Key term

What kinds of crime and vice did the police face in Whitechapel in 1888?

Key term

Which division of the Metropolitan Police covered Whitechapel, and where was its station?

Key term

How long did a constable normally take to walk his beat, and why did that matter?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    Which division of the Metropolitan Police covered Whitechapel, and where was its station?

    Model answer

    H Division, whose headquarters stood in Leman Street.

  2. 2

    Roughly how strong was H Division, and how many people did it have to police?

    Model answer

    About 500 officers of all ranks for a district holding something like 176,000 people.

  3. 3

    What was the main job of a beat constable?

    Model answer

    To walk a fixed route steadily so that his visible presence would deter crime, checking doors and moving on drunks and loiterers as he went.

  4. 4

    How long did a constable normally take to walk his beat, and why did that matter?

    Model answer

    Around half an hour, which meant a criminal who watched him pass knew roughly how long he had before the constable came back.

  5. 5

    What did a constable carry on duty?

    Model answer

    A truncheon, a bullseye lantern and a whistle to call for help, wearing a heavy blue tunic and a reinforced helmet.

  6. 6

    Why were the rookeries so difficult for officers to patrol?

    Model answer

    The courts and alleys were narrow, dark and interconnected, so constables entered in pairs and still risked being cornered or losing a suspect in seconds.

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