Law and Order: The History of Police and Policing in Nottinghamshire

About

Tuesday 20th August 2024 | 7pm
Arnold Methodist Church

In 1809 the cotton hosiery trade which supported over half the population of Nottingham entered over 40 years of depression.  A steep rise in the price of food and subsequent wage cuts gave rise to the Luddite Riots in 1811.  Political unrest culminated in the Reform Riots of 1831 and the burning of Nottingham Castle. Crime and lawlessness increased in the early years of the nineteenth century by so much that by 1808 a public meeting was held to try and come up with a remedy, calling upon the Aldermen of the town to employ more watchmen!  Nottingham had three constables, one for each parish. In times of unrest such as the Luddite and Reform riots, special constables were also sworn in. The nightwatchmen or ‘Charlies’  as they were commonly known, were men who policed the towns by night and were privately financed by Watch Committees which were usually formed by shopkeepers and property owners.  In 1830 the Nottingham nightwatchmen were declared the most inefficient in England for a town of its size.  The present-day Nottinghamshire Constabulary is the product of four forces created between 1836 and 1840, set up despite strong opposition at a time of social and economic turmoil but were necessary in order to tackle the onset of growing crime and violence through a more organised system of policing. 

Come along and listen to this fascinating account of ‘The History of Police and Policing in Nottinghamshire’.  All are welcome.