Editing Police (section)

==History==
{{See also|History of criminal justice}}

===Ancient===

==== China ====
Law enforcement in [[ancient China]] was carried out by "prefects" for thousands of years since it developed in both the [[Chu (state)|Chu]] and [[Jin (Chinese state)|Jin]] kingdoms of the [[Spring and Autumn period]]. In Jin, dozens of prefects were spread across the state, each having limited authority and employment period. They were appointed by local magistrates, who reported to higher authorities such as governors, who in turn were appointed by the emperor, and they oversaw the civil administration of their "prefecture", or jurisdiction. Under each prefect were "subprefects" who helped collectively with law enforcement in the area. Some prefects were responsible for handling investigations, much like modern police detectives. Prefects could also be women.<ref>Whittaker, Jake. "UC Davis East Asian Studies". University of California, Davis. [http://eastasian.ucdavis.edu/research.htm UCdavis.edu]. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007143652/http://eastasian.ucdavis.edu/research.htm|date=October 7, 2008}}.</ref> Local citizens could report minor judicial offenses against them such as robberies at a local prefectural office. The concept of the "prefecture system" spread to other cultures such as Korea and Japan.

==== Babylonia ====
In [[Babylonia]], law enforcement tasks were initially entrusted to individuals with military backgrounds or imperial magnates during the Old Babylonian period, but eventually, law enforcement was delegated to officers known as {{lang|akk|paqūdus}}, who were present in both cities and rural settlements. A {{lang|akk|paqūdu}} was responsible for investigating petty crimes and carrying out arrests.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.asor.org/anetoday/2015/08/policemen-in-1st-millennium-bc-babylonia/| title = ANE Today – Policemen in 1st millennium BC Babylonia| date = 19 February 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.academia.edu/4009149| title = (PDF) Police forces in first millennium BC Babylonia and beyond, in: KASKAL 10 (2013), 69–87 Academia.edu| last1 = Pirngruber| first1 = Reinhard}}</ref>

====Egypt ====
In [[ancient Egypt]] evidence of law enforcement exists as far back as the [[Old Kingdom of Egypt|Old Kingdom period]]. There are records of an office known as "Judge Commandant of the Police" dating to the [[Fourth Dynasty of Egypt|fourth dynasty]].<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Conser|first1=James A.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8olkayVkVSIC&pg=PA32|title=Law Enforcement in the United States|last2=Russell|first2=Gregory D.|last3=Gingerich|first3=Terry E.|last4=Paynich|first4=Rebecca|date=2005|publisher=Jones & Bartlett Learning|isbn=978-0-7637-8352-5|language=en}}</ref> During the [[Fifth Dynasty of Egypt|fifth dynasty]] at the end of the Old Kingdom period, warriors armed with wooden sticks were tasked with guarding public places such as markets, temples, and parks, and apprehending criminals. They are known to have made use of trained monkeys, baboons, and dogs in guard duties and catching criminals. After the Old Kingdom collapsed, ushering in the [[First Intermediate Period of Egypt|First Intermediate Period]], it is thought that the same model applied. During this period, [[Bedouins]] were hired to guard the borders and protect trade caravans. During the [[Middle Kingdom of Egypt|Middle Kingdom]] period, a professional police force was created with a specific focus on enforcing the law, as opposed to the previous informal arrangement of using warriors as police. The police force was further reformed during the [[New Kingdom of Egypt|New Kingdom]] period. Police officers served as interrogators, prosecutors, and court bailiffs, and were responsible for administering punishments handed down by judges. In addition, there were special units of police officers trained as priests who were responsible for guarding temples and tombs and preventing inappropriate behavior at festivals or improper observation of religious rites during services. Other police units were tasked with guarding caravans, guarding border crossings, protecting royal [[necropolis]]es, guarding slaves at work or during transport, patrolling the [[Nile|Nile River]], and guarding administrative buildings. By the Eighteenth Dynasty of the New Kingdom period, an elite desert-ranger police force called the [[Medjay]] was used to protect valuable areas, especially areas of pharaonic interest like capital cities, royal cemeteries, and the borders of Egypt. Though they are best known for their protection of the royal palaces and tombs in [[Thebes, Egypt|Thebes]] and the surrounding areas, the Medjay were used throughout [[Upper Egypt|Upper]] and [[Lower Egypt]]. Each regional unit had its own captain. The police forces of ancient Egypt did not guard rural communities, which often took care of their own judicial problems by appealing to village elders, but many of them had a constable to enforce state laws.<ref>{{cite web|title=Police in Ancient Egypt|url=https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1104/police-in-ancient-egypt/|website=World History Encyclopedia|access-date=2020-05-03}}</ref><ref>Gardiner, Alan H. (1947). ''Ancient Egyptian Onomastica.'' 1. Oxford University Press, pp. 82–85</ref>

==== Greece ====
In [[ancient Greece]], publicly owned slaves were used by magistrates as police. In [[Athens]], the [[Scythian Archers]] (the {{lang|grc|ῥαβδοῦχοι}} 'rod-bearers'), a group of about 300 Scythian slaves, was used to guard public meetings to keep order and for [[crowd control]], and also assisted with dealing with criminals, handling prisoners, and making arrests. Other duties associated with modern policing, such as investigating crimes, were left to the citizens themselves.<ref>{{cite book| last =Hunter| first =Virginia J.| title =Policing Athens: Social Control in the Attic Lawsuits, 420–320 B.C.| publisher =Princeton University Press| year =1994| location =Princeton, NJ| page =3| url =http://press.princeton.edu/titles/5349.html| isbn =978-1-4008-0392-7| url-status=dead| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20070421233311/http://press.princeton.edu/titles/5349.html| archive-date =2007-04-21}}</ref> Athenian police forces were supervised by the [[Areopagus]]. In [[Sparta]], the [[Ephor]]s were in charge of maintaining public order as judges, and they used Sparta's [[Hippeis]], a 300-member Royal guard of honor, as their enforcers. There were separate authorities supervising women, children, and agricultural issues. Sparta also had a secret police force called the [[crypteia]] to watch the large population of [[helots]], or slaves.<ref>{{cite book| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=qrtQGb0UwL4C&pg=PT10| title = The Spartan Hoplites | isbn = 9780761444497| last1 = Park| first1 = Louise| last2 = Love| first2 = Timothy| year = 2010| publisher = Marshall Cavendish}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url = https://greekreporter.com/2013/05/30/the-police-in-ancient-greece/| title = The Police in Ancient Greece| newspaper = Greekreporter.com| date = 30 May 2013| last1 = Tsolakidou| first1 = Stella}}</ref>

==== Rome ====
In the [[Roman Empire]], the army played a major role in providing security. Roman soldiers detached from their legions and posted among civilians carried out law enforcement tasks.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199737840.001.0001/acprof-9780199737840| title = Policing the Roman Empire: Soldiers, Administration, and Public Order| year = 2011| doi = 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199737840.001.0001| last1 = Fuhrmann| first1 = Christopher| publisher = Oxford University Press| isbn = 978-0-19-973784-0}}</ref> The [[Praetorian Guard]], an elite army unit which was primarily an Imperial bodyguard and intelligence-gathering unit, could also act as a riot police force if required. Local watchmen were hired by cities to provide some extra security. [[Lictor]]s, civil servants whose primary duty was to act as bodyguards to magistrates who held ''[[imperium]]'', could carry out arrests and inflict punishments at their magistrate's command.  Magistrates such as ''[[tresviri capitales]]'', {{lang|la|[[Procurator Fiscal|procurators fiscal]]}} and {{lang|la|[[quaestor]]s}} investigated crimes. There was no concept of public prosecution, so victims of crime or their families had to organize and manage the prosecution themselves. Under the reign of [[Augustus]], when the capital had grown to almost one million inhabitants, 14 [[Ward (country subdivision)|wards]] were created; the wards were protected by seven squads of 1,000 men called {{lang|la|[[vigiles]]}}, who acted as night watchmen and firemen. In addition to firefighting, their duties included apprehending petty criminals, capturing runaway slaves, guarding the baths at night, and stopping disturbances of the peace. As well as the city of Rome, ''vigiles'' were also stationed in the harbor cities of [[Ostia Antica|Ostia]] and [[Portus]]. Augustus also formed the [[Cohortes urbanae|Urban Cohorts]] to deal with gangs and civil disturbances in the city of Rome, and as a counterbalance to the Praetorian Guard's enormous power in the city. They were led by the [[Praefectus urbi|urban prefect]]. Urban Cohort units were later formed in [[Roman Carthage]] and [[Lugdunum]].

==== India ====
Law enforcement systems existed in the various kingdoms and empires of [[History of India|ancient India]]. The [[Apastamba Dharmasutra]] prescribes that kings should appoint officers and subordinates in the towns and villages to protect their subjects from crime. Various inscriptions and literature from ancient India suggest that a variety of roles existed for law enforcement officials such as those of a constable, thief catcher, watchman, and detective.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sharma|first=Anupam|title=Police in Ancient India|date=2004|journal=The Indian Journal of Political Science|volume=65|issue=1|pages=101–110|jstor=41855800|issn=0019-5510}}</ref> In ancient India up to medieval and early modern times, [[kotwal]]s were in charge of local law enforcement.<ref>Shah, Giriraj (1993). ''Image Makers: An Attitudinal Study of Indian Police.'' Abhinav Publications. p. 95. {{ISBN|978-81-7017-295-6}}.</ref>

==== Achaemenid (First Persian) Empire ====
The [[Achaemenid Empire]] had well-organized police forces. A police force existed in every place of importance. In the cities, each ward was under the command of a Superintendent of Police, known as a {{transliteration|fa|Kuipan}}. Police officers also acted as prosecutors and carried out punishments imposed by the courts. They were required to know the court procedure for prosecuting cases and advancing accusations.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Laws of the Ancient Persians|url=http://www.parstimes.com/law/ancient_persia_laws.html|website=www.parstimes.com|access-date=2020-05-06}}</ref>

==== Israel ====
In ancient [[History of ancient Israel and Judah|Israel and Judah]], officials with the responsibility of making declarations to the people, guarding the king's person, supervising public works, and executing the orders of the courts existed in the urban areas. They are repeatedly mentioned in the [[Hebrew Bible]], and this system lasted into the period of Roman rule. The first century Jewish historian [[Josephus]] related that every judge had two such officers under his command. [[Levite]]s were preferred for this role. Cities and towns also had night watchmen. Besides officers of the town, there were officers for every tribe. The temple in Jerusalem was protected by a special temple guard. The [[Talmud]] mentions various local officials in the Jewish communities of the Land of Israel and Babylon who supervised economic activity. Their Greek-sounding titles suggest that the roles were introduced under Hellenic influence. Most of these officials received their authority from local courts and their salaries were drawn from the town treasury. The Talmud also mentions city watchmen and mounted and armed watchmen in the suburbs.<ref>{{cite web|title=Police Laws |url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12239-police-laws|website=www.jewishencyclopedia.com|access-date=2020-05-06}}</ref>

==== Africa ====
In many regions of pre-colonial [[Africa]], particularly West and Central Africa, guild-like [[Secret society|secret societies]] emerged as law enforcement. In the absence of a court system or written legal code, they carried out police-like activities, employing varying degrees of coercion to enforce conformity and deter antisocial behavior.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Adler|first1=Philip J.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PPi5DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA221|title=World Civilizations|last2=Pouwels|first2=Randall L.|date=2016|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=978-1-337-51764-5|language=en}}</ref> In ancient [[Ethiopia]], armed retainers of the nobility enforced law in the countryside according to the will of their leaders. The [[Songhai Empire]] had officials known as ''assara-munidios'', or "enforcers", acting as police.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Dalgleish
 |first=David
 |date=April 2005
 |title=Pre-Colonial Criminal Justice In West Africa: Eurocentric Thought Versus Africentric Evidence.
 |url=http://www.umes.edu/cms300uploadedFiles/AJCJS/acjavol1no1dagleish.pdf
 |journal=African Journal of Criminology and Justice Studies
 |volume=1 |issue=1 
 |access-date=2011-06-26}}</ref>

==== The Americas ====
Pre-Columbian civilizations in the Americas also had organized law enforcement. The city-states of the [[Maya civilization]] had constables known as {{lang|myn|tupils}}.<ref>{{cite book| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=uac_DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA206| title = History of the World | isbn = 9789350419380| last1 = Malik| first1 = Dr Malti| publisher = New Saraswati House India Pvt}}</ref> In the [[Aztec Empire]], judges had officers serving under them who were empowered to perform arrests, even of dignitaries.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=kwCqDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT61| title = Life in the Aztec Empire | last1 = McKrause| first1 = Stanford}}</ref> In the [[Inca Empire]], officials called [[kuraka]] enforced the law among the households they were assigned to oversee, with inspectors known as {{lang|qu|tokoyrikoq}} ({{lit|he who sees all|lk=yes}}) also stationed throughout the provinces to keep order.<ref>{{cite book| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Yrc7BGHGJIAC&pg=PA137| title = The Rule of Empires: Those Who Built Them, Those Who Endured Them, and Why ... | isbn = 978-0-19-974619-4| last1 = Parsons| first1 = Timothy| date = 2010| publisher = Oxford University Press}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0pEVyN0PKhoC&pg=PA40|title = Daily Life in the Inca Empire|isbn = 9780313293900|last1 = Malpass|first1 = Michael Andrew|year = 1996| publisher=Greenwood Publishing }}</ref>

===Post-classical===
[[File:Jakobsweg - Pilger 1568 - Hurden IMG 5664.JPG|upright=0.9|thumb|left|The [[Santas Hermandades]] of medieval Spain were formed to protect pilgrims on the [[Camino de Santiago]].]]
In medieval [[Spain]], {{lang|osp|[[Santas Hermandades]]}}, or 'holy brotherhoods', peacekeeping associations of armed individuals, were a characteristic of municipal life, especially in [[Castile and León|Castile]]. As medieval Spanish kings often could not offer adequate protection, protective municipal leagues began to emerge in the twelfth century against [[banditry]] and other rural criminals, and against the lawless [[nobility]] or to support one or another claimant to a crown.

These organizations were intended to be temporary, but became a long-standing fixture of Spain. The first recorded case of the formation of an {{lang|osp|hermandad}} occurred when the towns and the peasantry of the north united to police the pilgrim road to [[Santiago de Compostela]] in [[Galicia (Spain)|Galicia]], and protect the pilgrims against robber knights.

Throughout the Middle Ages such alliances were frequently formed by combinations of towns to protect the roads connecting them, and were occasionally extended to political purposes. Among the most powerful was the league of North Castilian and Basque ports, the Hermandad de las marismas: [[Kingdom of Toledo (Crown of Castile)|Toledo]], [[Talavera de la Reina|Talavera]], and [[Villarreal]].

As one of their first acts after end of the [[War of the Castilian Succession]] in 1479, [[Ferdinand&nbsp;II of Aragon]] and [[Isabella&nbsp;I of Castile]] established the centrally-organized and efficient ''Holy Brotherhood'' as a national police force. They adapted an existing brotherhood to the purpose of a general police acting under officials appointed by themselves, and endowed with great powers of summary jurisdiction even in capital cases. The original brotherhoods continued to serve as modest local police-units until their final suppression in 1835.

The [[Vehmic court]]s of Germany provided some policing in the absence of strong state institutions. Such courts had a chairman who presided over a session and [[lay judge]]s who passed judgement and carried out law enforcement tasks. Among the responsibilities that lay judges had were giving formal warnings to known troublemakers, issuing warrants, and carrying out executions.

In the medieval Islamic [[Caliphate]]s, police were known as {{transliteration|ar|[[Shurta]]}}. Bodies termed {{transliteration|ar|Shurta}} existed perhaps as early as the [[Rashidun Caliphate]] during the reign of [[Uthman]]. The ''Shurta'' is known to have existed in the [[Abbasid Caliphate|Abbasid]] and [[Umayyad Caliphate]]s. Their primary roles were to act as police and [[internal security]] forces but they could also be used for other duties such as customs and tax enforcement, rubbish collection, and acting as bodyguards for governors. From the 10th century, the importance of the ''Shurta'' declined as the army assumed internal security tasks while cities became more autonomous and handled their own policing needs locally, such as by hiring watchmen. In addition, officials called {{transliteration|ar|[[muhtasib]]s}} were responsible for supervising [[bazaar]]s and economic activity in general in the medieval Islamic world.

In [[France]] during the [[Middle Ages]], there were two [[Great Officers of the Crown of France]] with police responsibilities: The [[Marshal of France]] and the [[Grand Constable of France]]. The military policing responsibilities of the Marshal of France were delegated to the Marshal's provost, whose force was known as the Marshalcy because its authority ultimately derived from the Marshal. The marshalcy dates back to the [[Hundred Years' War]], and some historians trace it back to the early 12th century. Another organisation, the [[Constabulary]] ({{langx|fro|Connétablie}}), was under the command of the [[Constable of France]]. The constabulary was regularised as a military body in 1337. Under [[Francis I of France|Francis&nbsp;I]] (reigned 1515–1547), the {{lang|fr|[[Maréchaussée]]}} was merged with the constabulary. The resulting force was also known as the {{lang|fro|Maréchaussée}}, or, formally, the Constabulary and Marshalcy of France.

In late medieval [[Italy|Italian]] cities, police forces were known as ''berovierri''. Individually, their members were known as ''birri''. Subordinate to the city's [[podestà]], the ''berovierri'' were responsible for guarding the cities and their suburbs, patrolling, and the pursuit and arrest of criminals. They were typically hired on short-term contracts, usually six months. Detailed records from medieval [[Bologna]] show that ''birri'' had a chain of command, with constables and sergeants managing lower-ranking ''birri'', that they wore uniforms, that they were housed together with other employees of the podestà together with a number of servants including cooks and stable-keepers, that their parentage and places of origin were meticulously recorded, and that most were not native to Bologna, with many coming from outside Italy.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.medievalists.net/2021/10/scotsman-cop-bologna/|title=Why Was a Scotsman Working as a 'Cop' in 15th-century Bologna?|date=17 October 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.academia.edu/93604861|title=Police forces in late medieval Italy: Bologna, 1340–1480|first=Trevor|last=Dean|date=11 September 2019|journal=Social History|volume=44|issue=2|pages=151–172|doi=10.1080/03071022.2019.1579974 |s2cid=164456140 |via=www.academia.edu|issn = 0307-1022}}</ref>

The [[England|English]] system of maintaining public order since the Norman conquest was a private system of [[tithing]]s known as the mutual pledge system. This system was introduced under [[Alfred the Great]]. Communities were divided into groups of ten families called tithings, each of which was overseen by a chief tithingman. Every household head was responsible for the good behavior of his own family and the good behavior of other members of his tithing. Every male aged 12 and over was required to participate in a tithing. Members of tithings were responsible for raising "hue and cry" upon witnessing or learning of a crime, and the men of his tithing were responsible for capturing the criminal. The person the tithing captured would then be brought before the chief tithingman, who would determine guilt or innocence and punishment. All members of the criminal's tithing would be responsible for paying the fine. A group of ten tithings was known as a "hundred" and every hundred was overseen by an official known as a [[reeve (England)|reeve]]. Hundreds ensured that if a criminal escaped to a neighboring village, he could be captured and returned to his village. If a criminal was not apprehended, then the entire hundred could be fined. The hundreds were governed by administrative divisions known as [[shire]]s, the rough equivalent of a modern [[county]], which were overseen by an official known as a shire-reeve, from which the term [[sheriff]] evolved. The shire-reeve had the power of {{lang|la|[[posse comitatus]]}}, meaning he could gather the men of his shire to pursue a criminal.<ref>{{cite book| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=aCGtxnozpqkC&pg=PA7| title = Introduction to Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice | isbn = 9781111138905| last1 = Hess| first1 = Kären M.| last2 = Orthmann| first2 = Christine Hess| date = 2012| publisher = Cengage Learning }}</ref> Following the Norman conquest of England in 1066, the tithing system was tightened with the [[frankpledge]] system. By the end of the 13th century, the office of constable developed. Constables had the same responsibilities as chief tithingmen and additionally as royal officers. The constable was elected by his [[parish (administrative division)|parish]] every year. Eventually, constables became the first 'police' official to be tax-supported. In urban areas, [[watchman (law enforcement)|watchmen]] were tasked with keeping order and enforcing nighttime curfew. Watchmen guarded the town gates at night, patrolled the streets, arrested those on the streets at night without good reason, and also acted as firefighters. Eventually the office of [[justice of the peace]] was established, with a justice of the peace overseeing constables.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://courses.lumenlearning.com/atd-bmcc-criminaljustice/chapter/section-4-1-early-history-of-policing/| title = Section 4.1: Early History of Policing {{!}} Criminal Justice<!-- Bot generated title -->}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Dobrin|first=Adam|date=July 2017|title=Volunteer police: History, benefits, costs and current descriptions|journal=Security Journal|volume=30|issue=3|pages=717–733|doi=10.1057/sj.2015.18|s2cid=152660408|issn=0955-1662}}</ref> There was also a system of investigative "[[jury|juries]]".

The [[Assize of Arms of 1252]], which required the appointment of constables to summon men to arms, quell [[breach of the peace|breaches of the peace]], and to deliver offenders to the sheriff or reeve, is cited as one of the earliest antecedents of the English police.<ref name="police1889">{{cite book | title= Police! | last1= Clarkson | first1= Charles Tempest | last2= Richardson | first2= J. Hall | year= 1889 | pages= 1–2 | publisher= Garland Pub. | isbn= 9780824062163 | oclc= 60726408 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=660XAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA1 }}</ref> The [[Statute of Winchester]] of 1285 is also cited as the primary legislation regulating the policing of the country between the [[Norman conquest of England|Norman Conquest]] and the [[Metropolitan Police Act 1829]].<ref name="police1889" /><ref>{{cite book | title= A History of Police in England and Wales | first= Thomas Alan | last= Critchley | year= 1978 | quote= The Statute of Winchester was the only general public measure of any consequence enacted to regulate the policing of the country between the Norman Conquest and the Metropolitan Police Act, 1829…}}</ref>

From about 1500, private watchmen were funded by private individuals and organisations to carry out police functions. They were later nicknamed 'Charlies', probably after the reigning monarch King Charles&nbsp;II. [[Thief-taker]]s were also rewarded for catching thieves and returning the stolen property. They were private individuals usually hired by crime victims.

The earliest English use of the word ''police'' seems to have been the term ''Polles'' mentioned in the book ''The Second Part of the Institutes of the Lawes of England'' published in 1642.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_1IzAAAAIAAJ&q=police&pg=PA77 |title=The second part of the Institutes of the lawes of England: Containing the exposition of many ancient, and other statutes; whereof you may see the particulars in a table following…|last=Coke|first=Sir Edward |publisher=Printed by M. Flesher and R. Young, for E.D., R.M., W.L. and D.P.|year=1642|page=77|access-date=2012-07-11}}</ref>

===Early modern===
The first example of a statutory police force in the world was probably the [[High Constables of Edinburgh]], formed in 1611 to police the streets of [[Edinburgh]], then part of the [[Kingdom of Scotland]]. The constables, of whom half were merchants and half were craftsmen, were charged with enforcing 16 regulations relating to curfews, weapons, and theft.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.edinburghhighconstables.org.uk/history.html|title=Edinburgh High Constables – History|website=www.edinburghhighconstables.org.uk}}</ref> At that time, maintenance of public order in Scotland was mainly done by clan chiefs and feudal lords. The first centrally organised and uniformed police force was created by the government of [[King Louis&nbsp;XIV]] in 1667 to police the city of [[Paris]], then the largest city in Europe. The royal edict, registered by the {{lang|fr|[[Parlement]]}} of Paris on March 15, 1667, created the office of {{lang|fr|[[lieutenant général de police]]}} ("lieutenant general of police"), who was to be the head of the new Paris police force, and defined the task of the police as "ensuring the peace and quiet of the public and of private individuals, purging the city of what may cause disturbances, procuring abundance, and having each and everyone live according to their station and their duties".

[[File:Gabriel-Nicolas de la Reynie.jpg|thumb|right|[[Gabriel Nicolas de la Reynie]], founder of the [[Prefecture of Police]], the first uniformed police force in the world]]
This office was first held by [[Gabriel Nicolas de la Reynie]], who had 44 {{lang|fr|commissaires de police}} ('police commissioners') under his authority. In 1709, these commissioners were assisted by {{lang|fr|inspecteurs de police}} ('police inspectors'). The city of Paris was divided into 16 districts policed by the {{lang|fr|commissaires}}, each assigned to a particular district and assisted by a growing bureaucracy. The scheme of the Paris police force was extended to the rest of France by a royal edict of October 1699, resulting in the creation of lieutenants general of police in all large French cities and towns.

After the [[French Revolution]], [[Napoléon I]] reorganized the police in Paris and other cities with more than 5,000 inhabitants on February 17, 1800, as the [[Prefecture of Police]]. On March 12, 1829, a government decree created the first uniformed police in [[France]], known as {{lang|fr|sergents de ville}} ('city sergeants'), which the Paris Prefecture of Police's website claims were the first uniformed policemen in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prefecture-police-paris.interieur.gouv.fr/documentation/bicentenaire/theme_expo4.htm |title=Bicentenaire: theme expo4 |publisher=prefecture-police-paris.interieur.gouv.fr |access-date=2009-06-21 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080506215949/http://www.prefecture-police-paris.interieur.gouv.fr/documentation/bicentenaire/theme_expo4.htm |archive-date = May 6, 2008}}</ref>

In feudal Japan, [[samurai]] warriors were charged with enforcing the law among commoners. Some Samurai acted as magistrates called {{transliteration|ja|[[Machi-bugyō]]}}, who acted as judges, prosecutors, and as chief of police. Beneath them were other Samurai serving as {{transliteration|ja|yoriki}}, or assistant magistrates, who conducted criminal investigations, and beneath them were Samurai serving as {{transliteration|ja|dōshin}}, who were responsible for patrolling the streets, keeping the peace, and making arrests when necessary. The {{transliteration|ja|yoriki}} were responsible for managing the {{transliteration|ja|dōshin}}. {{transliteration|ja|Yoriki}} and {{transliteration|ja|dōshin}} were typically drawn from low-ranking samurai families. Assisting the {{transliteration|ja|dōshin}} were the {{transliteration|ja|komono}}, non-Samurai {{transliteration|ja|[[chōnin]]}} who went on patrol with them and provided assistance, the {{transliteration|ja|okappiki}}, non-Samurai from the lowest outcast class, often former criminals, who worked for them as informers and spies, and {{transliteration|ja|gōyokiki}} or {{transliteration|ja|meakashi}}, chōnin, often former criminals, who were hired by local residents and merchants to work as police assistants in a particular neighborhood. This system typically did not apply to the Samurai themselves. Samurai clans were expected to resolve disputes among each other through negotiation, or when that failed through duels. Only rarely did Samurai bring their disputes to a magistrate or answer to police.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://crimereads.com/crime-and-punishment-in-shogun-japan/| title = Crime and Punishment in Shogun Japan| date = 13 August 2018}}</ref><ref>Cunningham, Don (2004). Taiho-jutsu: law and order in the age of the samurai. Tuttle Martial Arts, Tuttle Publishing. pp. 93–100. {{ISBN|978-0-8048-3536-7}}, pp. 51–54</ref><ref>Botsman, Dani (2005). ''Punishment and Power in the Making of Modern Japan''. Princeton University Press. {{ISBN|9780691114910}}, p. 94</ref>

In [[Joseon]]-era Korea, the [[Podocheong]] emerged as a police force with the power to arrest and punish criminals. Established in 1469 as a temporary organization, its role solidified into a permanent one.

In [[Sweden]], local governments were responsible for law and order by way of a royal decree issued by [[Magnus III of Sweden|Magnus&nbsp;III]] in the 13th century. The cities financed and organized groups of watchmen who patrolled the streets. In the late 1500s in Stockholm, patrol duties were in large part taken over by a special corps of salaried [[city guard]]s. The city guard was organized, uniformed and armed like a military unit and was responsible for interventions against various crimes and the arrest of suspected criminals. These guards were assisted by the military, fire patrolmen, and a civilian unit that did not wear a uniform, but instead wore a small badge around the neck. The civilian unit monitored compliance with city ordinances relating to e.g. sanitation issues, traffic and taxes. In rural areas, the King's bailiffs were responsible for law and order until the establishment of counties in the 1630s.<ref>Furuhagen, Björn (2009). "Från fjärdingsman till närpolis – en kortfattad svensk polishistoria". Växjö Studies in Policing (in Swedish). Växjö: Växjö Universitet. {{ISSN|1654-6776}}</ref><ref>Bergsten, Magnus; Furuhagen, Björn (2 March 2002). "[https://popularhistoria.se/samhalle/brott-straff/ordning-pa-stan Ordning på stan] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210714124821/https://popularhistoria.se/samhalle/brott-straff/ordning-pa-stan |date=14 July 2021 }}". sv:Populär Historia (in Swedish). Retrieved 17 August 2015.</ref>

Up to the early 18th century, the level of state involvement in law enforcement in Britain was low. Although some law enforcement officials existed in the form of constables and watchmen, there was no organized police force. A professional police force like the one already present in France would have been ill-suited to Britain, which saw examples such as the French one as a threat to the people's liberty and balanced constitution in favor of an arbitrary and tyrannical government. Law enforcement was mostly up to the private citizens, who had the right and duty to prosecute crimes in which they were involved or in which they were not. At the cry of 'murder!' or 'stop thief!' everyone was entitled and obliged to join the pursuit. Once the criminal had been apprehended, the parish constables and night watchmen, who were the only public figures provided by the state and who were typically part-time and local, would make the arrest.<ref>Tim Hichcock & Robert Shoemaker (2006) ''Tales From the Hanging Court'', Bloomsbury. p. 1 {{ISBN|978-0-340-91375-8}}</ref> As a result, the state set a reward to encourage citizens to arrest and prosecute offenders. The first of such rewards was established in 1692 of the amount of £40 for the conviction of a [[highwayman]] and in the following years it was extended to burglars, coiners and other forms of offense. The reward was to be increased in 1720 when, after the end of the [[War of the Spanish Succession]] and the consequent rise of criminal offenses, the government offered £100 for the conviction of a highwayman. Although the offer of such a reward was conceived as an incentive for the victims of an offense to proceed to the prosecution and to bring criminals to justice, the efforts of the government also increased the number of private thief-takers. Thief-takers became infamously known not so much for what they were supposed to do, catching real criminals and prosecuting them, as for "setting themselves up as intermediaries between victims and their attackers, extracting payments for the return of stolen goods and using the threat of prosecution to keep offenders in thrall". Some of them, such as [[Jonathan Wild]], became infamous at the time for staging robberies in order to receive the reward.<ref>J. M. Beattie (2012) ''The First English Detectives. The Bow Street Runners and the Policing of London'', 1750–1840. Oxford University Press. p. 7 {{ISBN|978-0-19-969516-4}}</ref><ref>[https://www.oldbaileyonline.org/browse.jsp?id=t17250513-55-person321&div=t17250513-55#highlight "Central Criminal Court".] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415171118/https://www.oldbaileyonline.org/browse.jsp?id=t17250513-55-person321&div=t17250513-55#highlight |date=15 April 2021 }} Oldbaileyonline.org.</ref>

In 1737, [[George II of Great Britain|George II]] began paying some London and Middlesex watchmen with tax monies, beginning the shift to government control. In 1749, Judge [[Henry Fielding]] began organizing a force of quasi-professional constables known as the [[Bow Street Runners]]. The Bow Street Runners are considered to have been Britain's first dedicated police force. They represented a formalization and regularization of existing policing methods, similar to the unofficial 'thief-takers'. What made them different was their formal attachment to the Bow Street magistrates' office, and payment by the magistrate with funds from the central government. They worked out of Fielding's office and court at No. 4 Bow Street, and did not patrol but served [[writ]]s and arrested offenders on the authority of the magistrates, travelling nationwide to apprehend criminals. Fielding wanted to regulate and legalize law enforcement activities due to the high rate of corruption and mistaken or malicious arrests seen with the system that depended mainly on private citizens and state rewards for law enforcement. Henry Fielding's work was carried on by his brother, Justice [[John Fielding]], who succeeded him as magistrate in the Bow Street office. Under John Fielding, the institution of the Bow Street Runners gained more and more recognition from the government, although the force was only funded intermittently in the years that followed. In 1763, the Bow Street Horse Patrol was established to combat highway robbery, funded by a government grant. The Bow Street Runners served as the guiding principle for the way that policing developed over the next 80 years. Bow Street was a manifestation of the move towards increasing professionalisation and state control of street life, beginning in London.

The [[Macdaniel affair]], a 1754 British political scandal in which a group of thief-takers was found to be falsely prosecuting innocent men in order to collect reward money from [[Bounty (reward)|bounties]],<ref>Delmas-Marty, Mireille; J. R. Spencer (2002) [1995]. "European Criminal Procedures (pdf)" (PDF). Presses Universitaires de France / Cambridge University Press.</ref> added further impetus for a publicly salaried police force that did not depend on rewards. Nonetheless, In 1828, there were [[private police|privately financed police]] units in no fewer than 45 parishes within a 10-mile radius of London.

The word ''police'' was [[Loanword|borrowed]] from French into the English language in the 18th century, but for a long time it applied only to French and continental European police forces. The word, and the concept of police itself, were "disliked as a symbol of foreign oppression".<ref>{{cite EB1911|wstitle= Police |volume= 21 |last= Griffiths |first= Arthur George Frederick| pages = 979&ndash;980; lines three and four |quote=The word was adopted in English in the 18th century and was disliked as a symbol of foreign oppression }}</ref> Before the 19th century, the first use of the word ''police'' recorded in government documents in the United Kingdom was the appointment of Commissioners of Police for Scotland in 1714 and the creation of the [[Marine Police Force|Marine Police]] in 1798.

===Modern===
====Scotland and Ireland====
Following early police forces established in 1779 and 1788 in [[Glasgow]], [[Scotland]], the Glasgow authorities successfully petitioned the government to pass the [[Glasgow Police Act 1800|Glasgow Police Act]] establishing the [[City of Glasgow Police]] in 1800.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.policemuseum.org.uk/glasgow-police-history/pre-1800|title=Pre 1800 – Glasgow Police Museum|website=[[Glasgow Police Museum]]}}</ref> Other Scottish towns soon followed suit and set up their own police forces through acts of parliament.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scotia-news.com/issue5/ISSUE05a.htm |title=Glasgow Police |work=Scotia-news.com |access-date=2009-06-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090716173010/http://www.scotia-news.com/issue5/ISSUE05a.htm |archive-date=July 16, 2009 }}</ref> In [[Ireland]], the [[Irish Constabulary Act 1822]] marked the beginning of the [[Royal Irish Constabulary]]. The act established a force in each barony with [[chief constable]]s and inspectors general under the control of the civil administration at [[Dublin Castle]]. By 1841 this force numbered over 8,600 men.

====London====
[[File:Patrick Colquhoun.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.8|[[Patrick Colquhoun]], founder of the [[Thames River Police]]]]
In 1797, [[Patrick Colquhoun]] was able to persuade the [[West Indies]] merchants who operated at the [[Pool of London]] on the [[River Thames]] to establish a police force at the docks to prevent rampant theft that was causing annual estimated losses of £500,000 worth of cargo in imports alone.<ref name="paterson">Dick Paterson, [http://www.thamespolicemuseum.org.uk/h_police_1.html Origins of the Thames Police] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171006164158/http://www.thamespolicemuseum.org.uk/h_police_1.html |date=6 October 2017 }}, ''Thames Police Museum''. Retrieved 4 February 2007.</ref> The idea of a police, as it then existed in [[France]], was considered as a potentially undesirable foreign import. In building the case for the police in the face of England's firm anti-police sentiment, Colquhoun framed the political rationale on economic indicators to show that a police dedicated to crime prevention was "perfectly congenial to the principle of the British constitution". Moreover, he went so far as to praise the French system, which had reached "the greatest degree of perfection" in his estimation.<ref name="critchley">T.A. Critchley, ''A History of Police in England and Wales'', 2nd ed. Montclair, NJ: Patterson Smith, 38–39.</ref>
[[File:No Police!! Well Done Aberystwyth Boys 1850.jpg|thumb|left|Poster against "detested" Police posted in the town of [[Aberystwyth]], [[Wales]], April 1850]]

With the initial investment of £4,200, the new force the [[Thames River Police#Marine Police|Marine Police]] began with about 50 men charged with policing 33,000 workers in the river trades, of whom Colquhoun claimed 11,000 were known criminals and "on the game". The force was part funded by the [[London Society of West India Planters and Merchants]]. The force was a success after its first year, and his men had "established their worth by saving £122,000 worth of cargo and by the rescuing of several lives". Word of this success spread quickly, and the government passed the [[Depredations on the Thames Act 1800]] on 28 July 1800, establishing a fully funded police force the [[Thames River Police]] together with new laws including police powers; now the oldest police force in the world. Colquhoun published a book on the experiment, ''The Commerce and Policing of the River Thames''. It found receptive audiences far outside London, and inspired similar forces in other cities, notably, [[New York City]], [[Dublin]], and [[Sydney]].<ref name="paterson" />

Colquhoun's utilitarian approach to the problem – using a [[cost-benefit analysis|cost-benefit]] argument to obtain support from businesses standing to benefit – allowed him to achieve what [[Henry Fielding|Henry]] and [[John Fielding]] failed for their Bow Street detectives. Unlike the stipendiary system at Bow Street, the river police were full-time, salaried officers prohibited from taking private fees.<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-36618/police "Police: The formation of the English Police"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080621060103/http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-36618/police |date=21 June 2008 }}, Britannica.com, 2007. Retrieved 6 February 2007.</ref> His other contribution was the concept of [[preventive policing]]; his police were to act as a highly visible deterrent to crime by their permanent presence on the Thames.<ref name="critchley" />

====Metropolitan====
[[File:A "Peeler" of the Metropolitan Police Service in the 1850s.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.75|An officer of the [[Metropolitan Police Service]] in the 1850s]]
London was fast reaching a size unprecedented in world history, due to the onset of the [[Industrial Revolution]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Kathryn Costello |url=http://www.nettlesworth.durham.sch.uk/time/victorian/vindust.html |title=Industrial Revolution |publisher=Nettlesworth.durham.sch.uk |access-date=2009-05-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090501202603/http://www.nettlesworth.durham.sch.uk/time/victorian/vindust.html |archive-date=May 1, 2009 }}</ref> It became clear that the locally maintained system of volunteer constables and "watchmen" was ineffective, both in detecting and preventing crime. A parliamentary committee was appointed to investigate the system of policing in [[London]]. Upon [[Robert Peel|Sir Robert Peel]] being appointed as [[Home Secretary]] in 1822, he established a second and more effective committee, and acted upon its findings.

[[Royal assent]] to the [[Metropolitan Police Act 1829]] was given<ref name="ndad">{{cite web |url=http://www.ndad.nationalarchives.gov.uk/AH/1/detail.html |title=The National Archives &#124; NDAD &#124; Metropolitan Police |publisher=Ndad.nationalarchives.gov.uk |access-date=2009-05-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081122044922/http://www.ndad.nationalarchives.gov.uk/AH/1/detail.html |archive-date=2008-11-22 }}</ref> and the [[Metropolitan Police Service]] was established on September 29, 1829, in [[London]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://polis.osce.org/countries/details?item_id=73|title=Policing Profiles of Participating and Partner States|publisher=Polis |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203004148/http://polis.osce.org/countries/details?item_id=73|archive-date=2013-12-03}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=A Brief Guide to Police History  |url=http://faculty.ncwc.edu/mstevens/205/205lect04.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090908151018/http://faculty.ncwc.edu/mstevens/205/205lect04.htm |archive-date=September 8, 2009 }}</ref> Peel, widely regarded as the father of modern policing,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://criminologycareers.about.com/od/Criminology_Basics/a/The-History-Of-Modern-Policing.htm|title=The History of Modern Policing: How the Modern Police Force Evolved|author=Timothy Roufa|access-date=30 November 2013|archive-date=3 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203053215/http://criminologycareers.about.com/od/Criminology_Basics/a/The-History-Of-Modern-Policing.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> was heavily influenced by the social and legal philosophy of [[Jeremy Bentham]], who called for a strong and centralised, but politically neutral, police force for the maintenance of social order, for the protection of people from crime and to act as a visible [[Preventive police|deterrent]] to urban [[crime]] and disorder.<ref name="brodeur284">{{cite book|last=Brodeur|first=Jean-Paul|editor1=Kevin R.E. McCormick|editor2=Livy A. Visano|chapter=High Policing and Low Policing: Remarks about the Policing of Political Activities|title=Understanding Policing|publisher=Canadian Scholars' Press|year=1992|pages=[https://archive.org/details/understandingpol0000unse_o7k7/page/284 284–285, 295]|isbn=978-1-55130-005-4|ol=<!--OL-->1500609M|lccn=93178368|oclc=27072058|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/understandingpol0000unse_o7k7/page/284}}</ref> Peel decided to standardise the police force as an official paid profession, to organise it in a civilian fashion, and to make it answerable to the public.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.met.police.uk/history/timeline1829-1849.htm |title=Metropolitan Police Service – History of the Metropolitan Police Service |publisher=Met.police.uk |access-date=2009-05-08 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090426000459/http://www.met.police.uk/history/timeline1829-1849.htm |archive-date=2009-04-26 }}</ref>

[[File:Police group portrait Bury St Edmunds Suffolk England.jpg|thumb|Group portrait of policemen, [[Bury St Edmunds]], [[Suffolk]], [[England]], c. 1900|left]]
Due to public fears concerning the deployment of the military in domestic matters, Peel organised the force along civilian lines, rather than [[paramilitary]]. To appear neutral, the uniform was deliberately manufactured in blue, rather than red which was then a military colour, along with the officers being armed only with a wooden [[Baton (law enforcement)|truncheon]] and a [[Ratchet (instrument)|rattle]]<ref>Taylor, J. [http://www.constabulary.com/mystery/rattle.htm "The Victorian Police Rattle Mystery"/] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100218043036/http://www.constabulary.com/mystery/rattle.htm |date=February 18, 2010 }} ''The Constabulary'' (2003)</ref> to signal the need for assistance. Along with this, [[Police ranks of the United Kingdom|police ranks]] did not include military titles, with the exception of [[Sergeant#Police 7|Sergeant]].

To distance the new police force from the initial public view of it as a new tool of government repression, Peel publicised the so-called [[Peelian principles]], which set down basic guidelines for ethical policing:<ref>{{Cite web|last=The Committee Office, House of Commons|title=House of Commons – HC 1456 Home Affairs Committee: Written evidence submitted by the National Black Police Association (NBPA)|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201012/cmselect/cmhaff/1456/1456vw07.htm|access-date=2020-06-14|website=publications.parliament.uk|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|author=Lentz, Susan A.|author2=Chaires, Robert H.|year=2007|title=The Invention of Peel's Principles: A Study of Policing 'Textbook' History|journal=Journal of Criminal Justice|volume=35|issue=1|pages=69–79|doi=10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2006.11.016}}</ref>
* Whether the police are effective is not measured on the number of arrests but on the deterrence of crime.
* Above all else, an effective authority figure knows trust and accountability are paramount. Hence, Peel's most often quoted principle that "The police are the public and the public are the police."

[[File:Pride London 39.jpg|thumb|upright|Metropolitan Police officers in 2019. The [[custodian helmet]] has been called "an iconic symbol of British policing".<ref>{{cite news |title=Police helmets to make a return to Bucks this year |url=https://www.bucksfreepress.co.uk/news/16085763.police-helmets-make-return-bucks-year/ |access-date=15 April 2023 |work=Bucks Free Press}}</ref>]]
The Metropolitan Police Act 1829 created a modern police force by limiting the purview of the force and its powers and envisioning it as merely an organ of the judicial system. Their job was apolitical; to maintain the peace and apprehend criminals for the courts to process according to the law.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XYoJQVYwFB8C&q=bentham+on+policing|title=The Policing Web|author=Brodeur, Jean-Paul|year=2010|publisher=Oxford University Press|access-date=2013-02-07|isbn=978-0-19-981331-5}}</ref> This was very different from the "[[Continental Europe|continental]] model" of the police force that had been developed in France, where the police force worked within the parameters of the [[absolute monarchy|absolutist state]] as an extension of the authority of the monarch and functioned as part of the governing state.

In 1863, the Metropolitan Police were issued with the distinctive [[custodian helmet]], and in 1884 they switched to the use of whistles that could be heard from much further away.<ref>{{cite news |title=Just how practical is a traditional Bobby's helmet? |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-magazine-monitor-30932319 |access-date=15 April 2023 |agency=BBC}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thejanuarist.com/joseph-hudson-inventor-of-the-police-and-referee-whistles/|title=Joseph Hudson: Inventor of the Police and Referee Whistles|author=Dan Zambonini|date=October 24, 2009}}</ref> The Metropolitan Police became a model for the police forces in many countries, including the [[United States]] and most of the [[British Empire]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Terrill|first1=Richard J.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xZ3hCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA32|title=World Criminal Justice Systems: A Comparative Survey|date=2015|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1317228820|edition=revised|page=32}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Dempsey|first1=John S.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W4TCBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA7|title=An Introduction to Policing|last2=Forst|first2=Linda S.|date=2015|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=978-1305544680|edition=8th|pages=6–8}}</ref> Bobbies can still be found in many parts of the [[Commonwealth of Nations]].

====Australia====
{{Main|Law enforcement in Australia}}
[[File:South Australian Police in 1938.jpg|thumb|[[South Australia Police]] officers on [[police motorcycle]]s with sidecars in 1938]]
In [[Australia]], organized law enforcement emerged soon after British colonization began in 1788. The first law enforcement organizations were the Night Watch and Row Boat Guard, which were formed in 1789 to police [[Sydney]]. Their ranks were drawn from well-behaved convicts deported to Australia. The Night Watch was replaced by the Sydney Foot Police in 1790. In [[New South Wales]], rural law enforcement officials were appointed by local [[Justice of the peace|justices of the peace]] during the early to mid-19th century and were referred to as "bench police" or "benchers". A mounted police force was formed in 1825.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.police.nsw.gov.au/about_us/history/history_pages/significant_dates |website=NSW Police | title = 1788–1888}}</ref>

The first police force having centralised command as well as jurisdiction over an entire colony was the [[South Australia Police]], formed in 1838 under [[Henry Inman (police commander)|Henry Inman]]. However, whilst the [[New South Wales Police Force]] was established in 1862, it was made up from a large number of policing and military units operating within the then Colony of New South Wales and traces its links back to the Royal Marines. The passing of the Police Regulation Act of 1862 essentially tightly regulated and centralised all of the police forces operating throughout the Colony of New South Wales.

Each Australian state and territory maintain its own police force, while the [[Australian Federal Police]] enforces laws at the federal level. The [[New South Wales Police Force]] remains the largest police force in Australia in terms of personnel and physical resources. It is also the only police force that requires its recruits to undertake university studies at the recruit level and has the recruit pay for their own education.

====Brazil====
{{Main|Law enforcement in Brazil}}
[[File:Turquinho.jpg|thumb|A [[Federal Highway Police (Brazil)|Federal Highway Police]] motorcycle officer in 1935]]
In 1566, the first police investigator of [[Rio de Janeiro]] was recruited. By the 17th century, most [[captaincy|captaincies]] already had local units with law enforcement functions. On July 9, 1775, a [[Minas Gerais Military Police|Cavalry Regiment]] was created in the state of [[Minas Gerais]] for maintaining law and order. In 1808, the Portuguese royal family relocated to Brazil, because of the French invasion of Portugal. [[Dom João VI|King João&nbsp;VI]] established the {{lang|pt|Intendência Geral de Polícia}} ('General Police Intendancy') for investigations. He also created a [[Military Police of Rio de Janeiro State|Royal Police Guard for Rio de Janeiro]] in 1809. In 1831, after independence, each province started organizing its local "[[Military Police (Brazil)|military police]]", with order maintenance tasks. The [[Federal Railroad Police]] was created in 1852, [[Federal Highway Police (Brazil)|Federal Highway Police]], was established in 1928, and [[Federal Police of Brazil|Federal Police]] in 1967.

====Canada====
{{Main|Law enforcement in Canada}}
[[File:President Ronald Reagan, Nancy Reagan, and Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau meeting with Royal Canadian mounted police during a visit to National Arts Center in Ottawa, Canada.jpg|thumb|[[Royal Canadian Mounted Police]] officers present at a meeting between [[Ronald Reagan]], [[Nancy Reagan]], and [[Pierre Trudeau]], 1981]]
During the early days of English and French colonization, municipalities hired watchmen and constables to provide security.<ref name="wlu"/> Established in 1729, the [[Royal Newfoundland Constabulary]] (RNC) was the first policing service founded in Canada. The establishment of modern policing services in [[the Canadas]] occurred during the 1830s, modelling their services after the London Metropolitan Police, and adopting the ideas of the Peelian principles.<ref name="wlu">{{cite web|url=https://online.wlu.ca/news/2019/08/13/history-policing-canada|title=The History of Policing in Canada|date=13 August 2019|publisher=Wilfrid Laurier University|access-date=9 September 2019|website=wlu.ca}}</ref> The [[Toronto Police Service]] was established in 1834 as the first municipal police service in Canada. Prior to that, local able-bodied male citizens had been required to report for night watch duty as special constables for a fixed number of nights a year on penalty of a fine or imprisonment in a system known as "watch and ward."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.torontopolicehistory.org/cph3.htm |title=Toronto Police in 1834–1860 "Formidable Engines of Oppression"}}</ref> The [[Quebec City Police Service]] was established in 1840.<ref name="wlu" />

A national police service, the [[Dominion Police]], was founded in 1868. Initially the Dominion Police provided security for parliament, but its responsibilities quickly grew. In 1870, [[Rupert's Land]] and the [[North-Western Territory]] were incorporated into the country. In an effort to police its newly acquired territory, the Canadian government established the [[North-West Mounted Police]] in 1873 (renamed Royal North-West Mounted Police in 1904).<ref name="wlu" /> In 1920, the Dominion Police, and the Royal Northwest Mounted Police were amalgamated into the [[Royal Canadian Mounted Police]] (RCMP).<ref name="wlu" />

The RCMP provides federal law enforcement; and law enforcement in eight provinces, and all three territories. The provinces of [[Ontario]], and [[Quebec]] maintain their own provincial police forces, the [[Ontario Provincial Police]] (OPP), and the [[Sûreté du Québec]] (SQ). Policing in [[Newfoundland and Labrador]] is provided by the RCMP, and the RNC. The aforementioned services also provide municipal policing, although larger Canadian municipalities may establish their own police service.

====Lebanon====
In [[Lebanon]], the current police force was established in 1861, with creation of the [[Internal Security Forces|Gendarmerie]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.isf.gov.lb/English/LeftMenu/General+Info/History/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060602061225/http://www.isf.gov.lb/English/LeftMenu/General+Info/History/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 2, 2006 |title=Historical overview |publisher=Interior Security Forces (Lebanon) |access-date=June 26, 2007 }}</ref>

====India====
[[File:Gcp patrol car.jpg|thumb|[[Greater Chennai Police]] officers patrolling in a police car in [[Chennai]], [[India]]]]
 
Under the [[Mughal Empire]], provincial governors called [[subahdar]]s (or nazims), as well as officials known as [[faujdar]]s and thanadars were tasked with keeping law and order. [[Kotwal]]s were responsible for public order in urban areas. In addition, officials called amils, whose primary duties were tax collection, occasionally dealt with rebels. The system evolved under growing British influence that eventually culminated in the establishment of the [[British Raj]]. In 1770, the offices of faujdar and amil were abolished. They were brought back in 1774 by [[Warren Hastings]], the first [[Governor-General of Bengal|Governor of the Presidency of Fort William (Bengal)]]. In 1791, the first permanent police force was established by [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Charles Cornwallis]], the [[Commander-in-Chief, India|Commander-in-Chief of British India]] and Governor of the Presidency of Fort William.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://testbook.com/ias-preparation/police-under-british-india|title=Police Under British India: History, Administration, And Reforms!|website=Testbook}}</ref>

A single police force was established after the formation of the British Raj with the [[Government of India Act 1858]]. A uniform police bureaucracy was formed under the Police Act 1861, which established the Superior Police Services. This later evolved into the [[Indian Imperial Police]], which kept order until the [[Partition of India]] and independence in 1947. In 1948, the Indian Imperial Police was replaced by the [[Indian Police Service]].

In modern [[India]], the police are under the control of respective [[States and union territories of India|States and union territories]] and are known to be under [[State Police Services (India)|State Police Services]] (SPS). The candidates selected for the SPS are usually posted as [[Deputy Superintendent of Police]] or [[Assistant Commissioner of Police]] once their probationary period ends. On prescribed satisfactory service in the SPS, the officers are nominated to the [[Indian Police Service]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.spiritofchennai.com/careerguide/ps.htm| title = Police Service<!-- Bot generated title -->| access-date = 17 February 2015| archive-date = 9 August 2018| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180809060448/http://www.spiritofchennai.com/careerguide/ps.htm| url-status = dead}}</ref> The service color is usually dark blue and red, while the uniform color is ''Khaki''.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-toi/open-space/Why-is-the-colour-of-the-Indian-police-uniform-khaki/articleshow/1719969.cms|title=Why is the colour of the Indian police uniform khaki?|access-date=2010-05-11 | work=The Times of India|date=3 March 2007}}</ref>

====United States====
{{Main|Law enforcement in the United States}}
[[File:DRIVER GETS TICKET FOR JUMPING THE LIGHT - NARA - 546661.jpg|thumb|A [[Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia]] officer ticketing a motorist for a traffic violation, 1973]]
In [[Colonial history of the United States|Colonial America]], the county sheriff was the most important law enforcement official. For instance, the [[New York City Sheriff's Office|New York Sheriff's Office]] was founded in 1626, and the [[Albany County Sheriff's Department (New York)|Albany County Sheriff's Department]] in the 1660s. The county sheriff, who was an elected official, was responsible for enforcing laws, collecting taxes, supervising elections, and handling the legal business of the county government. Sheriffs would investigate crimes and make arrests after citizens filed complaints or provided information about a crime but did not carry out patrols or otherwise take preventive action. Villages and cities typically hired constables and marshals, who were empowered to make arrests and serve warrants. Many municipalities also formed a night watch, a group of citizen volunteers who would patrol the streets at night looking for crime and fires. Typically, constables and marshals were the main law enforcement officials available during the day while the night watch would serve during the night. Eventually, municipalities formed day watch groups. Rioting was handled by local militias.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Longley|first=Robert|title=The History of Modern Policing and How It Has Evolved|url=https://www.thoughtco.com/the-history-of-modern-policing-974587|access-date=2021-05-13|website=ThoughtCo|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.cliffsnotes.com/study-guides/criminal-justice/development-of-the-american-police/policing-colonial-america| title = Policing Colonial America}}</ref>

In the 1700s, the [[Province of Carolina]] (later [[North Carolina|North]]- and [[South Carolina]]) established [[slave patrol]]s in order to prevent slave rebellions and enslaved people from escaping.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Origins of Modern Day Policing |url=https://naacp.org/find-resources/history-explained/origins-modern-day-policing |access-date=2022-09-27 |website=naacp.org |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|title=How the U.S. Got Its Police Force|url=https://time.com/4779112/police-history-origins/|access-date=2020-06-09|magazine=Time|language=en}}</ref> By 1785 the [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]] Guard and Watch had "a distinct [[command hierarchy|chain of command]], [[uniform]]s, sole responsibility for policing, [[salary]], [[authorized use of force]], and a focus on [[crime prevention|preventing crime]]."<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Gospel or a Glock? Mennonites and the Police|author=Andy Alexis-Baker|issue=2|year=2007|journal=The Conrad Grebel Review|volume=25|url=https://uwaterloo.ca/grebel/publications/conrad-grebel-review/issues/spring-2007/gospel-or-glock-mennonites-and-police|access-date=10 June 2020|archive-date=28 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028162748/https://uwaterloo.ca/grebel/publications/conrad-grebel-review/issues/spring-2007/gospel-or-glock-mennonites-and-police|url-status=dead}}</ref>
 
In 1751 moves towards a municipal police service in [[Philadelphia]] were made when the city's night watchmen and constables began receiving wages and a Board of Wardens was created to oversee the night watch.<ref>[https://philadelphiaencyclopedia.org/essays/police-department-philadelphia/ Police Department (Philadelphia)]</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ppdonline.org/hq_history.php |title=Department History |publisher=Philadelphia Police Department |access-date=February 24, 2010 |url-status=usurped |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080517082302/http://www.ppdonline.org/hq_history.php |archive-date = May 17, 2008}}</ref> 

In 1789 the [[United States Marshals Service]] was established, followed by other federal services such as the [[United States Park Police|U.S. Parks Police]] (1791)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/uspp/ |title=The history of the Park Police |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |access-date=February 24, 2010}}</ref> and [[United States Mint Police|U.S. Mint Police]] (1792).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usmint.gov/about_the_mint/mint_police/ |title=United States Mint Police |publisher=[[United States Mint]] |access-date=February 24, 2010 |archive-date=10 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170410180915/https://www.usmint.gov/about_the_mint/mint_police/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Municipal police services were created in [[Richmond, Virginia]] in 1807,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ci.richmond.va.us/Police/HistoryPoliceDepartment.aspx |title=History of the Richmond Police Department |publisher=City of Richmond |access-date=February 24, 2010 |archive-date=29 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929180144/http://www.ci.richmond.va.us/Police/HistoryPoliceDepartment.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Boston]] in 1838,<ref name="bpd">{{cite web|url=http://www.cityofboston.gov/police/about/history.asp |title=A Brief History of The B.P.D. |publisher=City of Boston |access-date=February 24, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304222909/http://www.cityofboston.gov/police/about/history.asp |archive-date=March 4, 2012 }}</ref> and [[New York City]] in 1845.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/New+York+City+Police+Department |title=New York City Police Department |newspaper=New York Daily News |access-date=February 24, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100118042703/http://www.nydailynews.com/topics/New%20York%20City%20Police%20Department |archive-date=January 18, 2010 }}</ref> The [[United States Secret Service]] was founded in 1865 and was for some time the main investigative body for the federal government.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.secretservice.gov/history.shtml |title=Secret Service History |publisher=[[United States Secret Service]] |access-date=February 24, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100219142622/http://www.secretservice.gov/history.shtml |archive-date=February 19, 2010 }}</ref>
[[File:FBI-NYPD Joint Terrorist Task Force.jpg|thumb|Members of the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]]–[[New York City Police Department|NYPD]] [[Joint Terrorism Task Force]] carrying evidence as part of an investigation in the early 2000s]]

Modern policing influenced by the British model of policing established in 1829 based on the [[Peelian principles]] began emerging in the United States in the mid-19th century, replacing previous law enforcement systems based primarily on night watch organizations.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Dempsey|first1=John S.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W4TCBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA7|title=An Introduction to Policing|last2=Forst|first2=Linda S.|date=2015|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=978-1305544680|edition= 8|pages=6–8}}</ref> Cities began establishing organized, publicly funded, full-time professional police services. In [[Boston]], a day police consisting of six officers under the command of the city marshal was established in 1838 to supplement the city's night watch. This paved the way for the establishment of the [[Boston Police Department]] in 1854.<ref name="bpd"/><ref>[http://www.cityofboston.gov/police/about/history.asp A Brief History of The B.P.D.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304222909/http://www.cityofboston.gov/police/about/history.asp |date=2012-03-04 }} City of Boston, Police Department (accessed 3 December 2009)</ref> In [[New York City]], law enforcement up to the 1840s was handled by a night watch as well as city marshals, municipal police officers, and constables. In 1845, the [[New York City Police Department]] was established.<ref>{{cite book |title=American Metropolis: A History of New York City |url=https://archive.org/details/americanmetropol00lank |url-access=registration |author=Lankevich, George L. |publisher=NYU Press |year=1998 |isbn=0-8147-5186-5 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/americanmetropol00lank/page/84 84–85]}}</ref> In [[Philadelphia]], the first police officers to patrol the city in daytime were employed in 1833 as a supplement to the night watch system, leading to the establishment of the [[Philadelphia Police Department]] in 1854.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C8E5DQAAQBAJ|first1=Joseph F.|last1=Spillane|first2=David B.|last2=Wolcott|title=A History of Modern American Criminal Justice|publisher=Sage|year=2013|page=13|isbn=978-1-4129-8134-7}}</ref>

In the [[American Old West]], law enforcement was carried out by local sheriffs, rangers, constables, and federal marshals. There were also town marshals responsible for serving civil and criminal warrants, maintaining the jails, and carrying out arrests for petty crime.<ref>{{cite book| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=R_mRcTRYcvsC&pg=PA180| title = The Old West in Fact and Film: History Versus Hollywood | isbn = 9780786493111| last1 = Agnew| first1 = Jeremy| date = 2012| publisher = McFarland}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.legendsofamerica.com/old-west-lawmen/| title = Lawmen of the Old West – Legends of America<!-- Bot generated title -->}}</ref>

In addition to federal, state, and local forces, some [[Special district (United States)|special districts]] have been formed to provide extra police protection in designated areas. These districts may be known as neighborhood improvement districts, crime prevention districts, or security districts.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/govs/go/index.html |title=Lists & Structure of Governments |work=Census.gov |access-date=2012-07-11}}</ref>

In 2022, San Francisco supervisors approved a policy allowing municipal police ([[San Francisco Police Department]]) to use robots for various law enforcement and emergency operations, permitting their employment as a deadly force option in cases where the "risk of life to members of the public or officers is imminent and outweighs any other force option available to SFPD."<ref>{{Cite web|title=Law Enforcement Equipment Policy|url=https://sfgov.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=11449771&GUID=9FC57C5A-6E68-4485-A989-632C3837B909|access-date=December 16, 2022}}</ref> This policy has been criticized by groups such as the [[Electronic Frontier Foundation]] and the [[ACLU]], who have argued that "killer robots will not make San Francisco better" and "police might even bring armed robots to a protest."<ref>{{Cite web|title=Red Alert: The SFPD Want the Power to Kill with Robots|url=https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/11/red-alert-sfpd-want-power-kill-robots|date=November 28, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Killer robots will not make San Francisco safer...|url=https://twitter.com/ACLU_NorCal/status/1597378672503054336|date=November 28, 2022}}</ref>