A History of the Dublin Metropolitan Police and its Colonial Legacy (World Histories of Crime, Culture and Violence)

This book illuminates the neglected history of the Dublin Metropolitan Police – a history that has been long overshadowed by existing historiography, which has traditionally been preoccupied with the more radical aspects of Irish history. It explores the origins of the institution and highlights the Dublin Metropolitan Police’s profound influence on the colonial forces, as its legacy reached some of the furthest outposts of the British Empire. In doing so Anastasia Dukova provides much needed nuance and complexity to our understanding of Ireland as a whole, and Dublin in particular, demonstrating that it was far more than a lawless place ravaged by political and sectarian violence. Simultaneously, the book tells the story of the bobby on the beat, the policeman who made the organisation; his work and day, the conditions of service and how they affected or bettered his lot at home and abroad. Endorsement 7 Acknowledgements 8 Contents 9 Abbreviations 11 List of Figures 12 List of Table 14 Part 1: 1780–1880 15 Chapter 1: Police Organisation: Enlightened Thought, Theories and Context 16 Notes 32 CHAPTER 2: Peeling a Charley: Evolution of Public Opinion 38 Caricatures 40 Contemporary Narratives 42 Charles Ryan 43 James Henry 43 Lady Gregory 46 Street Ballads 47 Bold Jack O’Donahoe 48 The Ballad of Kelly’s Gang 49 Are You There Moriarity? 49 The Peeler and the Goat 51 Notes 53 CHAPTER 3: The Dublin Police in the Making 56 Before the DMP 56 The First Dublin Police Acts 58 Early Magistracy 61 The DMP 64 Rules and Regulations 64 Duties 70 Notes 74 CHAPTER 4: Policing a Capital City 81 ‘Loose and Idle’ 82 Crime 87 Assaults 88 Assaults on Police 91 Drunk and Disorderly 94 The Fenian Rising 95 Battle of Ridgeway 100 Notes 102 Part 2: 1880–1925 108 CHAPTER 5: ‘To Thrive Is an Impossibility Now’: Policing Recession and Public Unrest 109 The Strike 110 Recession 113 Public Unrest 117 Toronto Street Car Lockout, 1886 117 Brisbane General Strike, 1912 119 Dublin Lockout, 1913 122 Crime 125 Notes 128 CHAPTER 6: The DMP in Transition 133 Phoenix Park Murders 136 Dynamite Outrages 141 London 141 Dublin 142 The Final Days of the DMP 144 The Civic Guard and an Garda Síochána 147 Notes 152 CHAPTER 7: The Colonial Beat 159 Irish Links 160 Structure and Organisation 165 Queensland 166 Toronto 172 The Beat 175 Notes 184 Chapter 8: Growth of Anonymity, Urban Crime and Policing 190 Urban Policing 191 Urban Crime 197 False Pretences 200 Embezzlement 203 Criminal Poverty 205 Notes 208 Conclusion 212 Notes 215 Primary Sources 216 Manuscripts 216 Ireland 216 Australia 217 Canada 218 England 218 Ireland 218 Australia 219 Canada 220 England 220 Parliamentary Papers 221 Statistical Returns and Reports 223 Newspapers 225 Electronic Resources 226 Bibliography 227 Secondary Sources 227 Unpublished 233 Index 234 Front Matter....Pages i-xvii Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Police Organisation: Enlightened Thought, Theories and Context....Pages 3-24 Peeling a Charley: Evolution of Public Opinion....Pages 25-42 The Dublin Police in the Making....Pages 43-67 Policing a Capital City....Pages 69-95 Front Matter....Pages 97-97 ‘To Thrive Is an Impossibility Now’: Policing Recession and Public Unrest....Pages 99-122 The DMP in Transition....Pages 123-148 The Colonial Beat....Pages 149-179 Growth of Anonymity, Urban Crime and Policing....Pages 181-202 Back Matter....Pages 203-235 Anastasia Dukova. Includes Primary Sources, Bibliographical References (pages 207-225) And Index.