Dave Wilkinson

Another small specialist force which existed between 1893 and 1993, the Manchester Ship Canal Police.

The final issue helmet and badge are illustrated together with a couple of photos taken in the 1970's of force members. (Photo credits Manchester Ship Canal Company).

Dave. 

43 minutes ago, I_♥_Police said:

Really lovely caps and pictures. Theres something strange about looking at police caps without the sillitoe tartan (spelling?). Do the Constable/Sergeant version have ventilation holes around the band inside or is that just the way the pic looks? I appreciate that the badges dont have the crown now HK is no longer under 'UK rule' for want of a better term but is the caps any different would you say?

Yes, the Sgt./Const. cap does indeed have vent holes behind the mesh band. Immediately, following the change to Chinese rule the caps remained the same. Indeed, the whole force were provided with new cap badges in advance of the handover. I have some photos of their men on the streets and actually taking the old Crowned badge out of their cap on the stroke of midnight and replacing it with the new non-crowned version. If you get a chance look on "YouTube" at the Governor (Chris Patten) leaving Government House for the last time. Very evocative with the RHKP hauling down the Governor's flag and him being presented with it prior to him driving out. Some excellent drill by the police.

I suspect that the caps worn are still made in HK and looking at current photos they don't seem to have changed but without seeing one close up I'm not sure.

Dave.   

24 minutes ago, I_♥_Police said:

 

Awesome looking helmets and interesting that they are from such a small specialist force. Are they used much when around the port for example and do this force do much foot patrol of the docks or have you got to wear a hard-hat? This is your old force isnt it Dave in fact?

Those two City caps look absolutely amazing! How great that you can actually trace that cap back to that Commissioner for certain rather than worrying that it might have been cobbled together. What a gem. Did he give you that himself as very interested in the story behind this? Theres pictures on the net of the city commissioner in the early 2000s, cant think of his name, wearing his cap and tunic too and the buttons and insignia look absolutely great.

 

As an interesting aside, theres pictures of Commissioner Mark Bowron in a reflective jacket with his commissioner insignia sewn straight onto the epaulettes of the yellow jackets which is not something I've seen before in this way.

PoD Police are still very active. They have a "Twitter" page which  is updated most days. Helmets were originally re-introduced to comply with H&S legislation in the port and to avoid wearing plastic hard hats. However, these days they seem to wear caps. How they are able to avoid contravening current H&S I don't know. Yes, it was the last force I was in before retirement.

A good few years ago, I bought a large collection of City of London items from a collector who was packing in. The Commissioners cap came with it together with some other items belonging to Mr. Owen. He apparently had more than one cap. I knew Mike Bowron when he was an ACC in Kent. A really nice guy. After he retired from the City of London he moved to Jersey as their Chief of Police. Although he's retired from there now he still lives on the Island. His wife was a Det.Con. with the BTP.  

Glad the updates to this thread are of interest.

Dave.

The British Colony of Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997, it being the largest of Britain's remaining overseas possessions.

Below is an example of the cap worn by the RHKP Commissioner and also a Constable's summer issue cap. These are the last patterns used prior to the end of Colonial rule.

Both caps were manufactured in Hong Kong.

Dave.  

A couple of helmets from the Dover Harbour Board Police. The force was formed in 1933, at which time the DHB terminated its policing contract with the Dover Watch Committee and replaced members of the Dover Borough Police with its own men.

The first helmet was worn from circa. 1933 through to the early 1960's at which time helmets were replaced by caps. In November 1985, helmets were re-introduced and the pattern shown was worn through to 1989 when the badge changed in design. The force was re-named Port of Dover Police on 1st January 1997, with a new style helmet and badge.

Dave. 

Owen Kelly QPM., was Commissioner of Police for the City of London between 1985 and 1993. Below is shown his cap and a photo of Mr. Kelly wearing it. (Photo credit the City of London Police).

Also shown is an example of the cap worn by Superintending ranks in the City of London Police.

The force is the only one in the UK to wear red and white cap bands and gold coloured buttons etc on their tunic jackets. They are also the remaining force to still use duty armlets (red and white) on their tunics.

Dave.   

The Royal Grenada Police force is no longer a colonial police force in the true sense of the words. The island achieved independence in 1974, but (at the time of writing)  HM King Charles is still head of state as indeed was HM Queen Elizabeth before him. Since the earliest of times the badges have remained essentially the same save for the change of Crown and cipher, as can be seen in the framed display of insignia. 

I show here a ceremonial helmet which was worn by the Chief of Police (now known as the Commissioner) during the 1950's.

Dave.  

A Chief Constable's cap this time. This cap belonged to Major Lionel Westropp Peel-Yates KPM., who was Chief Constable of Dorset between 19th April 1924 and 28th February 1955. He was previously a District Inspector in the Royal Irish/Royal Ulster Constabulary. He was a direct descendent of Sir Robert Peel, founder of the London Metropolitan Police in 1829.

One of the photos shows Major Peel-Yates wearing the cap. (Photo credit Dorset Constabulary).

Dave.  

The 1953 Coronation saw large numbers of police officers from all forces in England & Wales being sent to London to assist the Metropolitan Police (See "Policing the Coronation of HM Queen Elizabeth II on Tuesday 2nd June 1953").

Several forces equipped their men with "Home Office" pattern helmets for the occasion. These were designed to "fit in" with the style of helmet worn by the Met. Police and were described as "Mutual Aid Helmets", stocks of which were specifically held in store for such occasions.

The forces concerned normally wore versions which would, if worn in London, have caused their men to be somewhat conspicuous. The badges used also followed the basic star pattern design as worn by the Met.

The forces that I'm aware of who issued their men with these helmets are Liverpool, Manchester, Salford and Stockport. The photos below show the Liverpool helmet. Made by Christy's of Stockport, the helmet has the date 1948 stamped into the leather headband. The Watch Committee minutes for 1948 show that 400 such helmets and badge were purchased and held in store. After the Coronation, the helmets were recovered from the men and were returned to the clothing stores. Its been suggested that they were also worn by the Liverpool contingent that attended the funeral of the late King George VI, although I found no written evidence of that fact.  

Dave.

On the subject of white helmets, we could not forget the Brighton Borough Police, who for many years were well known for their day time white summer helmets. They were introduced for daytime summer wear in 1933 and ceased six years later. They were re-introduced and worn between 1952 and the demise of the force in 1967.

Below is the white helmet and the night time and winter counterpart.

Dave.   

38 minutes ago, I_♥_Police said:

 

Great pictures and thanks for posting. You almost wouldnt believe it unless seen. The bobby and an enemy soldier, complete polar opposites. Very interested to hear about the Isle of Man harbours police, never knew about this at all. Do you know if IoM still issue one for winter one for summer, the summer being white? theres something which naturally interests you in seeing a white helmet as its hardly something you see much on the mainland.

The Isle of Man Constabulary used to issue two patterns of helmet. One for winter (black) and one for summer (white). However, for about the last 15 years they have worn the white one all year round.

Thank you for your continued interest. It is much appreciated.

Dave.

Some very handsome badges here Graf. Thank you for sharing.

Dave.

We move to the Channel Islands, specifically the Island of Jersey. Many will be aware that between Monday 1st July 1940 and 9th May 1945, Jersey together with Guernsey and other islands in that Bailiwick were occupied by German Armed Forces.

Despite the German occupation the British police force on Jersey and its neighbouring islands was allowed to continue operating largely without interference.

Here we look at the helmet which was worn during that period alongside a photo of a Jersey Constable talking to a German officer in St. Helier shortly after the occupation.

Dave.   

The Isle of Man Harbours Department did, up until circa. 1995, maintain its own small police force under the control of an Inspector.

This helmet is the last version to be issued and was worn during the winter months. A similar one but with a white finish was worn during the summer.

Dave.

An interesting and unusual helmet as worn by Sergeants' and Constables' of the Preston County Borough Police. This is the last issue helmet and badge as worn in the final years of Preston's existence. the force ceased to exist on the 31st of March 1969. At the time of its demise it had a strength of 283.

The helmet badge was the first in the UK to include coloured enamelling as part of its finish.

Of cork construction and manufactured by Hobson & Sons Ltd., the helmet is of a pattern seldom found to-day.

Dave. 

As we approach the day of HM King Charles III Coronation on Saturday 6th May 2023, it may be interesting to look briefly at the policing arrangements which were made just over 70 years ago when the late Queen Elizabeth was Crowned.

I'm fortunate enough to have a carefully preserved copy of Metropolitan Police Operation Order No:-413, which sets out in minute detail the policing arrangements for that day. The order is in A4 book form and consists of 106 pages of closely typed text. It contains 75 subject paragraphs and 6 appendices. The main order was issued on the 18th May 1953 and there was a 9 page addendum issued on the 27th May 1953. Examination of the order shows that it does not give the exact number of Met. officers that were deployed. It would take me several hours of calculations to reach an exact figure. That said, I would estimate that some 12,500 members of the regular Met. force were deployed assisted by the Met. Special Constabulary. In addition, the provincial police forces of England & Wales provided 5,544 (exact figures) men and women as mutual aid on the day.

Unfortunately, the order is far too long for me to reproduce in full here. However, what I have done is to show below the details of the mutual aid which was provided from the provincial forces. The numbers range from the Cardiganshire Constabulary providing a Sergeant and 6 Constables' to the Lancashire Constabulary providing a Chief Superintendent, a Chief Inspector, 11 Inspectors', 22 Sergeants', 225 Constables' and 2 Detectives'.  Getting those mutual aid detachments to London, accommodating them overnight, feeding them, briefing them, transporting them to their dispositions and then arranging their return to their home force areas was a truly mammoth task, all of which is set out in the order. 

Representatives of the police forces of the then British colonies and protectorates did attend, however they did not perform any policing function but marched as a body in the subsequent procession. This included a representative contingent of Scottish police and members of the Royal Ulster Constabulary.

It is interesting that mutual aid was not provided by any of the Scottish police forces nor the RUC. It's possible that there were legal reasons, touching upon jurisdiction which caused their exclusion. That said, the Scottish forces and the RUC did receive an allocation of Coronation medals. 

On the subject of the 1953 Coronation medal. I am fortunate enough to have a complete copy of the medal roll of police recipients. Should any forum member want me to "look up" details on their behalf, please ask and I will be happy to oblige.

Dave.    

11 hours ago, Graf said:

A fantastic threat, probably one of the best on here with the amount of rare badges so thank you very much.

I agree Keep the good work Dave

 

 

Thank you Graf for your continued interest and your kind and encouraging comments.

Best wishes, Dave.

10 hours ago, John F. said:

Dave,

 

Thanks for the reply. The diplomatic corps didn't even cross my mind, thanks for giving me a start point.  I was thinking it might have been some sort of Royal family regalia. 

 

Cheers!

John,

You are very welcome. I hope you are eventually able to get to the bottom of it with some further research.

Dave.

They look like "Gorgets", which are worn on the lapel/collar of a tunic. Possibly off a uniform worn by a member of the diplomatic corps. That's a pure guess on my part and no doubt someone will correct me if I'm wrong. The buttons feature the Royal Arms (UK).

Dave.

40 minutes ago, I_♥_Police said:

A fantastic threat, probably one of the best on here with the amount of rare badges so thank you very much.

 

I read somewhere, although it may not be true, that during the 70s and 80s the SPG were issued with a shorter helmet of a more robust construction before the time that such helmets become common place. As in they had an early version of the reinforced helmets when everyone elses where still cork on the inside as such with just a head band. Is this something you have ever heard of Dave?

thread sorry not threat* typo

No, that's not something that I'd heard of. That said, it may not have been widely publicised. In any event I'm sure that if a helmet of such "squatter" design had been issued I feel certain that examples would have survived and surfaced before now. 

I'm glad you enjoyed the thread and found it informative!

Regards, Dave.

Just to round off the information on Metpol. insignia etc. If you have been following the series you will have seen mentioned and indeed illustrated the ceremonial helmet plates which were worn by Inspectorate ranks with their No:- 1 uniforms. 

Below are illustrations of the actual helmet that was worn. As can be seen it differed in design and manufacture from that worn by Sergeants' and Constables'. It is covered with a much finer material. The edging is in a silk fabric. The band is wider and more finely detailed and at the reverse it is adorned with a large black ornamental "rose". The two piece Inspectors helmet badge is affixed to the front.

Inside the leather headband is also of a finer design. This particular example is in near "mint" condition and came complete with the Chief Inspector's No:- 1 dress tunic, braided trousers and leather sword belt. The actual swords ceased to be carried by senior officers many years ago although the belt continued to be worn as part of the uniform.

As already stated elsewhere, No:-1 uniforms were worn for the last time on Remembrance Day 1971 and were thereafter discontinued.

Dave.

1 hour ago, bigjarofwasps said:

It certainly is a very interesting subject!

 

I assume the same situation, played out with regards the allocation of silver jubilee medals? 
 

One thing that does seem unusual, is the fact that with 2 weeks to go, the powers that be would have us believe that no medal or indeed ribbon has been confirmed, surely something like this would have been created/decided upon years ago??
 

Also why there is such uncertainty as to the criteria, again it’s not like they didn’t know this event would happen at some point?

 

 

 

 

Yes, the same criteria was indeed applied to the 1977 Jubilee Medal allocation. Again, the allocation was calculated on the basis of the authorised establishment of the force. At that time Merseyside Police had an establishment of about 4,500.

As with the 1953 coronation medals, the Chief Constable decided who got one. Most of the recipients had joined a constituent Merseyside force either in 1952, just before or just after 1952. Shown below is a list of those who got the medal. Interestingly, it also includes civilian staff.

Dave. 

1 hour ago, Megan said:

To put a bit of background to this... Coronation Medals have generally been limited to those involved in the ceremony, Jubilee medlas have been more widely distributed - especially since the UK Golden Jubilee Medal was issued to all service personnel with 5 years of service on the anniversary of the accession, widened to include emergency serivice personnel for succeeding jubilees.

 

In 1953, police forces in England & Wales each provided a mutual aid contingent to assist the Metropolitan Police in respect of the policing of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth. The Liverpool City Police mutual aid contingent consisted of 181 members of the City Police.

The allocation of Coronation medals given to the Chief Constable of Liverpool for distribution to his men was 118 medals. The allocation to each force was based upon the authorised establishment of the force, NOT on the number of men sent to assist in policing the Coronation.

Each Chief Constable decided who would get a medal. Attendance at the Coronation was not a deciding factor. I have a complete list of the Liverpool men who were awarded the 1953 Coronation medal and of the 181 who actually went to London, only 25 received a medal.

So, certainly in respect of Liverpool Police, the majority of the awarded medals went to individuals who had no connection with the ceremony itself. Even if the Chief Constable had wanted to give each man that went to London a medal, he'd have been unable to do so simply because the allocation did not allow him to, and I suspect that was the case in respect of all of the police forces involved.

Dave.

1 hour ago, NickLangley said:

The experimental chest shield looks as if it came out of a Christmas cracker. Did they actually use Dymo tape for the serial number?

Nick,

Yes, they used "Dymo" tape. The badge as seen is exactly as it was issued. It is made by "Firmin" (marked on the reverse) and is in anodized aluminium. Cheap and nasty! As they were only on trial, it may well be that had they been adopted the manufacturing process may have been improved upon including the method of numbering. 

Dave.

11 hours ago, Graf said:

Thank you again very informative again I am 'glued" to the thread

Thanks again Graf. I'm glad the effort was appreciated.

Dave.