In the United Kingdom, policemen were referred to as "bobbies" because the force was started by Sir Robert Peeler. As the force was starting to patrol London, when people would ask "who is that person" the respose would be "Bobby's man" and the name "bobby" became synonymous with "policeman".
Incidentally, the term "hooker" came about the same way, from General Hooker's name in the United States' Civil War.
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Answer: The English police are indeed frequently referred to as "The Old Bill". The precise origin is uncertain, and I can think of no better source for the 13 different possible origins than the website of the Metropolitan (i.e. London) Police. I've provided the link which you should see below. As an Englishman who is extremely familiar with London, I am not aware of any building in London called "the old bill". Perhaps that contributor was thinking of Big Ben, which is often erroneously believed to be the name of the bell tower above the houses of parliament in Westminster, but is actually the name of the bell in the top of the bell tower. The origin of Bobby comes from the founder of the Metropolitan Police, Sir Robert Peel, Bobby being the shortened form of Robert. At one time they were also known as Peelers, but that fell into disuse, whilst Bobby persisted. Bobby tends to be associated with a "warm and cuddly" view of the traditional uniformed police officer who was seen as the guardian of the people, whilst the "Old Bill" tends to be used more in the sense of a kind of enemy of the criminal fraternity - though has grown to such popular use that it is no longer thought of as a derogatory term - in fact a long running TV police drama is entitled "The Bill" which is a further shortening of the term.
Widespread poverty, unemployment and a lack of education caused increased crime in London. The Victorian officials launched widespread efforts to cut the crime rate but certain behaviors persisted. Working class people, usually young men committed mainly petty theft. Crimes for young women were often â??victimlessâ?? crimes like prostitution. Soliciting, drunken behavior and domestic violence were not treated as crimes since they often were committed in homes and viewed as domestic problems that should be dealt with by the family, not the police. I
The poor Victorians would live on the streets, but if they were found by the bobby's (police) they would get taken to the workhouse where they would have a cruel life, they would try to escape but if they got found escaping they would be put into a shed where everyone can see them. Trapped Forever. This is not entirely true, workhouses were cruel often, but a better alternative than living on the streets. It was mostly families that went into workhouses
No, they are called "bobbies" or peelers
The founder of the Metropolitan Police was Sir Robert Peel so his policemen were nicknamed Peelers or Bobbies.
Coppers, Cops, the fuzz, peelers, and bobbies.
Policemen were called "bobbies" in Victorian times after Sir Robert Peel, the founder of the Metropolitan Police in London in 1829. The 'bobbies' were named after his first name, Robert, and this term eventually became synonymous with police officers in the UK.
The Bow Street Runners, sometimes called Peelers or Bobbies after their founder Sir Robert Peel.
Yes, bobbies are a nickname for officers. The London police force , now called the Police Service was created in 1829 by an act introduced in the British Parliament by the then home secretary, Sir Robert Peel. The shortened version of Robert is "Bob" which gave rise to the nicknames "Bobbies" and/or "Peelers" for policemen
As home secretary Peel succeeded in reforming the criminal laws and established the London police force, whose members came to be called Peelers or Bobbies
A horse. In 1789, there were no cars, and also no police. The idea of a civilian "police" force was the invention of Sir Robert Peel, who founded the London Police. (If you have ever heard British police refered to as "Bobbies", or "peelers", that's where the term came from.)
'Peelers' or 'Bobbies' - a nickname playing off the name of Sir Robert Peele the organizer of the London Metropolitan Police Force.
A Bobby is a British policeman. The London police force was founded by Robert Peel, and policemen are therefore known as Bobbies or Peelers.
The 'Peelers' was a name given to the first organised force in London, specifically the Metropolitan Police Force, tasked with upholding civil obedience and compliance with the law, or at least some of the law. Named for Robert Peel, at the time Home Secretary, and later Prime Minister. They were more commonly called 'Bobbies' in England and 'Peelers' in Ireland. Bobbies is still a common term used today, Peelers less so.
Peel helped create the modern concept of the police force, leading to officers being known as "bobbies" (in England) and "Peelers" (in Ireland).