Formed in 1829, the Metropolitan Police took over from the medieval system of parish constables. Taking in areas within 15 miles of Charing Cross, it also subsumed the 18th-century Bow Street Runners and River Police in 1839 – the latter became Thames Division, some of whose pension registers can be accessed if you visit the Thames River Police Museum in Wapping (thamespolicemuseum.org.uk/museum). Between 1860 and 1934 Met officers could also be found in the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, and at the naval dockyards in Chatham, Devonport, Pembroke and Portsmouth, while Rosyth on the Firth of Forth was added in 1916.
Regular officers were supplemented by Special Constables, and by War Reserve Constables in the Second
