 |
| Bow Street Magistrates’ Court in London |
I’ve been fascinated with the Bow Street Runners since reading about them in the (many) Regency Romances I enjoy. Namely Lisa Kleypas’s Bow Street Runners series.
Quick Facts:
- Founded in 1749 by Henry Fielding
- Originally consisted of 6 members
- They were the private force for the Bow Street magistrates’ office
- They served writs and arrested offenders under the authority of the magistrates
- They traveled all over England to apprehend criminals
- Considered to be London’s first professional police force
- Disbanded in 1839
- The group was the basis for the guiding principles for the establishment of force to control street life and make London safer
Further Reading:
Bow Street Runners – Wikipedia
Policing in London – Old Bailey Online
Bow Street Runners, Legends and Facts – Historical Hussies
Bow Street Runners and the Marine Police – Jane Austen Centre
The Blind Beak of Bow Street by John Dashney – National Federation of the Blind (about John Fielding, Henry’s brother who took over after Henry’s death)
The First English Detectives: The Bow Street Runners and the Policing of London, 1750-1840 by J. M. Beattie – Oxford Scholarship (this is a book and this link gives you an overview of the contents of the book)
Jane Austen Society of North America - New Jersey Region 