There are two main police forces that patrol London. The forces are separate, but wear similar dark navy blue uniforms. You can tell them a part from looking at the badge on their helmet.

Metropolitan Police	City of London Police

The Metropolitan Police force patrol London.
They wear very dark blue uniforms and white shirts, and some wear tall helmets, developed from the top hats worn by early policemen. Their dark blue uniforms are almost indistinguishable from black and earnt the police the nickname of the "boys in blue".

Metropolitan Police

The Metropolitan Police headquarters is New Scotland Yard. Its officers' duties include protecting the Queen.

The City of London has its own police force.
The City of London Police is responsible for the Square Mile - from the River Thames in the south to the Barbican Centre in the north, Holborn and Fleet Street to the west and Aldgate and Liverpool Street to the east.

The City of London police force was set up ten years after the Metropolitan force, although there has been some form of policing in the City of London since Roman times.

Police ladies' hat and mans' cap with the distinctive red and white check band

The City of London Police officers have a distinctive red and white check on their caps (or ladies' hats) and a gold-coloured helmet plate and gold-coloured buttons.

City of London Police

Metropolitan Police

City of London Police

Nicknames for British Police

Two nicknames for British police, 'bobbies' and 'Peelers', come from the founder of the 'Met' Police, Sir Robert Peel.

River Police

The Metropolitan Police Marine Support patrols the River Thames in speedboats. It is responsible for policing 84 miles of the River Thames from Teddington Lock (at Ham, west London) to Erith (in the London Borough of Bexley), and 12 miles of rivers and navigable creeks in the London area.

Its floating police station is by Waterloo Bridge.

Royal Police

Buckingham Palace, the London home of the Queen, has its own police station.

Why are British policemen called Bobbies?

Policemen became to be known as " bobbies" after Robert Peel who set up the first organised police service in London, 1829. Bobby is short for Robert.

The first professional Police

Before 1829, crime was policed by the Bow Street Runners (1748-1829), the first professional police force in Britain.

Police Transport

Do the policemen of England ride horses sometimes? Yes. You can especially see policeman on horses in London.

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