The name "Scotland Yard" (translated from English as "Scottish yard") is rooted in the early Middle Ages. In the 10th century, the English king Edgar I the Peaceful (943-975) gave the King of Scotland Kenneth II (until 954-995) a piece of land next to the Palace of Westminster in London on the condition that he build a residence here, which would be considered the territory of Scotland, and begin to visit her annually as a sign of respect for the English crown. This became the tradition of all Scottish kings, unless, of course, they were at war with England. But in 1603, the English crown passed to the Scottish Stuart dynasty, and Scotland Yard lost its political significance.
The palace was decided to be divided into two parts. The first was called "Great Scotland Yard", and the second - "Medium Scotland Yard". They began to be used as government buildings.
In 1829, the first police service appeared in London, created by the Home Secretary Robert Peel (1788-1850). The residence of the London police was the same complex of buildings that several centuries ago belonged to members of the Scottish royal family. Since then, the name "Scotland Yard" has firmly stuck to the London police. The first years of the new service were especially difficult. The fact is that until 1829 there was no single police service in London. The investigation of crimes was mainly carried out by people who, as a rule, did not have the slightest idea about the intricacies of investigative work. Anyone could become a "catcher of thieves" and receive a certain payment for the capture of the criminal, if his guilt is proven. However, many did it solely for profit, personal revenge, or simply out of a thirst for adventure. Not surprisingly, the crime rate in the English capital was unusually high.
By the 1960s, with the development of modern technology and the further expansion of the London police force, it became clear that the needs of the police department had outgrown the capabilities of the headquarters on the Victoria Embankment. For this reason, New Scotland Yard moved to 10 Broadway in 1967. The building on the Victoria Embankment is now known as the Norman Shaw (North) building. Part of it is currently occupied by the Greater London Police Department.
The main search engine of the Ministry of the Interior is better known by the acronym HOLMES. In addition, the curriculum is called "Elementary", after the great detective Sherlock Holmes.
The telephone number for Scotland Yard was originally 1212. Most police departments in London also use 1212 as the last four digits of a telephone number.
Today Scotland Yard is the largest police agency in England. It employs over 40,000 people serving London and its suburbs in an area of 620 square miles with a population of over 7 million people.
The police of London Scotland Yard, once widely known in the USSR, thanks to the serial film about Sherlock Holmes, traces its history back to 1829. Initially, the headquarters of this police institution was located on Great Scotland Yard in Whitehall, and in 1890 it moved to a new building on the banks of the Thames, which became known throughout the world as New Scotland Yard. In this review, some little-known facts about the London police during the reign of Queen Victoria.
1. Scotland Yard was built by prisoners
1890
Between 1890 and 1966, two buildings known today as the Norman Shaw buildings, named after their architect, Richard Norman Shaw, served as the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police. The buildings are located on the Victoria Embankment and are designed in a Victorian Romanesque style, on a granite base with a classic red and white finish of red brick and white Portland stone. Granite was mined by inmates at Dartmoor and other prisons. They also worked on finishing the facades of buildings.
2. Underpass to the House of Commons and the House of Lords
1880
Norman Shaw's Scotland Yard North building stands on foundations that were not originally intended for him at all. In fact, it was to serve as the basis for the National Opera House, founded in December 1875 by Prince Alfred. However, there was not enough money for the construction, and it was stopped. And in 1880, the Metropolitan Police bought this land, and Scotland Yard was built on this site.
At the same time, it was decided to leave the foundation and underground passages. According to James Henry Mapleson, the opera impresario who worked on the construction of the opera house, there are underground passages connecting the Scotland Yard building with the House of Commons and the House of Lords, as well as with the railway station.
3. Mistakes in construction
1906
Despite the fact that the design of the north building of Norman Shaw was coordinated with the police, when construction was completed in 1890, it turned out that it was no longer sufficient for the increased needs of the Metropolitan Police. And only in 1906, finally, the construction of the second building, the southern one, with an extensive network of metro lines was completed. The photograph from 1898 shows the northern building, and in the middle, in the foreground, one of the stations can be seen.
4. Inspection of cabs
1862
During the Victorian era, the Scotland Yard Metropolitan Police were given the role of checking cab and omnibus drivers for licenses. In 1862, each of the drivers of four-wheeled vehicles had to get a number and pay a license fee (one shilling per day of work). Everyone who intended to become a driver filled out a special form and handed it over to Scotland Yard.
There they had to pay another five shillings for a badge and half a crown for tickets. After inspecting the vehicle and passing the exam, it was possible to get to work. But every year the vehicle had to be checked.
5. Work seven days a week
1910
In 1870 industrial workers in England were officially given the right to rest. Since 1874, the working week for them was 56 hours - 10 hours from Monday to Friday and 6 hours - on Saturday. As for the police, in the Victorian era they did not have the right to rest. And only in 1910 did they have an official day off. This law was passed through Parliament by Winston Churchill.
6. Indemnity Law
1886
In Victorian England, the policemen were deprived of the attention of the authorities, and during periods of popular unrest, they also experienced contempt for themselves from the protesters. In 1866, riots broke out in Hyde Park caused by the decision of the Foreign Secretary to ban a meeting of supporters of the Reform League, during the suppression of which 28 law enforcement officers were killed. However, the police did not wait for sympathy from the authorities.
In 1886, the Riot Compensation Act was passed. The Victorian view was that the police had a duty to stop riots. If they do not cope with this, then they must compensate for the damage caused.
7. Surveillance Department at Scotland Yard
1868
During the Victorian era, members of the Surveillance Department at Scotland Yard helped ex-convicts start an honest life. And if a person got a job, the police did not tell the employer about his past. In such departments, archives of all cases released from each prison were kept in order to trace possible contacts between them. Police officers investigating crimes used these archives to look for similarities with previous crimes.
8. Black Museum
1869
The Museum of Crime or "Black Museum" contains items that are evidence in the investigation of the most high-profile crimes. Unlike ordinary museums, for a long time only police officers visited this creepy vault, and in 2013 the museum was opened to the general public. In 1869, police officers were allowed to seize objects belonging to prisoners in order to train their officers. Then Inspector Nimes organized the first exposition. He owns the very idea of creating such a museum.
9 The Whitechapel Murders
1888
The brutal murders of 1888 in Whitechapel remained unsolved. Five women were victims of an unknown criminal named Jack the Ripper. But after that, six more, presumably his own victims, were discovered. Five of them have been identified, and the sixth, an unidentified woman, was found in the basement of the Norman Shaw north building for Scotland Yard.
10 May 30, 1884 explosion
1884
On May 30, 1884, at night, an explosion occurred at Scotland Yard, from which the buildings of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Metropolitan Police and the office of the Special Irish Branch were seriously damaged. Fortunately, only the neighbors and the taxi driver were injured by broken glass. Two more explosions thundered in other parts of the city. All these attacks are associated with the Fenians - members of the "Irish Republican Brotherhood".
For residents of the post-Soviet space, Scotland Yard is inextricably linked with the name of the legendary film detective. We have collected .
Source: listverse.com
Who has his own police. The name is often used in the media to refer to the London Police ( The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS)).
The building of the modern Scotland Yard is located in Westminster. Administrative functions are assigned to staff who are based in the Empress State Building (English), and operational management - to three Metcall centers (English).
The largest police agency in England. It employs 31,000 officers who are responsible for an area equal to 1,606 km² and a population of 7.2 million people living in and around London.
Story
The name Scotland Yard comes from its original location on Great Scotland Yard in the Whitehall area. There are also interesting versions of the origin of the name of the street (literally - "Scottish yard"). According to one of them, in the 10th century, the English king Edgar gave the Scottish king Kenneth a piece of land next to the Palace of Westminster in London. He demanded that King Kenneth build a residence there and visit it annually, thereby paying tribute to the kingdom of England on behalf of Scotland. King Kenneth built himself a palace and lived there whenever he came to England. The palace remained the possession of the Scottish kings and was considered the territory of Scotland. When Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, King James VI of Scotland became King of England and Scotland, and the palace lost its original purpose. It was divided into two parts: the first was called "Big Scotland Yard", the second - "Middle Scotland Yard". They began to be used as government buildings.
There are also versions that in the Middle Ages the street belonged to a man named Scott, and also that stagecoaches once departed from this street to Scotland.
By 1890, the strength of the London Police had grown from the original 1,000 officers to 13,000, requiring more administrative staff and a larger headquarters. In view of the further expansion of the size and responsibilities of the police, it became necessary to increase the staff even more, so in the 1940s New Scotland Yard was expanded. This building complex is currently listed as having architectural, historical or cultural significance.
A number of protective measures were added to the exterior of New Scotland Yard in 2000, including concrete barriers in front of the lower windows to protect against car bombs. In addition, a concrete wall has been added near the entrance to the building. Armed officers from the Diplomatic Guard Service (English) patrol the facade of the building along with police guards.
Who has his own police. The name is often used in the media to refer to the London Police ( The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS)).
The building of the modern Scotland Yard is located in Westminster. Administrative functions are entrusted to staff based in (English), and operational management - into three centers (English).
The largest police agency in England. It employs 31,000 officers who are responsible for an area equal to 1,606 km² and a population of 7.2 million people living in and around London.
Story [ | ]
The name Scotland Yard comes from its original location on Great Scotland Yard in the Whitehall area. There are also interesting versions of the origin of the name of the street (literally - "Scottish yard"). According to one of them, in the 10th century, the English king Edgar gave the Scottish king Kenneth a piece of land next to the Palace of Westminster in London. He demanded that King Kenneth build a residence there and visit it annually, thereby paying tribute to the kingdom of England on behalf of Scotland. King Kenneth built himself a palace and lived there whenever he came to England. The palace remained the possession of the Scottish kings and was considered the territory of Scotland. When Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, King James VI of Scotland became King of England and Scotland, and the palace lost its original purpose. It was divided into two parts: the first was called "Big Scotland Yard", the second - "Middle Scotland Yard". They began to be used as government buildings.
There are also versions that in the Middle Ages the street belonged to a man named Scott, and also that stagecoaches once departed from this street to Scotland.
By 1890, the strength of the London Police had grown from the original 1,000 officers to 13,000, requiring more administrative staff and a larger headquarters. In view of the further expansion of the size and responsibilities of the police, it became necessary to increase the staff even more, so in the 1940s New Scotland Yard was expanded. This building complex is currently listed as having architectural, historical or cultural significance.
A number of protective measures were added to the exterior of New Scotland Yard in 2000, including concrete barriers in front of the lower windows to protect against car bombs. In addition, a concrete wall has been added near the entrance to the building. Armed officers from (English) patrol the facade of the building along with police guards.
51.498611 , -0.133056New Scotland Yard, London
Scotland Yard, Scotland Yard (officially English) New Scotland Yard listen)) is the Greater London Police Headquarters ( Metropolitan Police Service), excluding the City of London, which has its own police force. The name is often used in the media to refer to the London Police ( The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS)).
The building of the modern Scotland Yard is located in Westminster. Administrative functions are assigned to staff who are based in the Empress State Building ( English), and operational management to three Metcall centers ( English).
The largest police agency in England. It employs 27,000 people who are responsible for an area equal to 787 square kilometers and a population of 6,750,000 people living in London and the surrounding area.
Story
The name Scotland Yard comes from its original location on Great Scotland Yard ( English) in the Whitehall area. The versions of the origin of the street name are also interesting. According to one of them, in the 10th century, the English king Edgar gave the Scottish king Kenneth a piece of land next to the Palace of Westminster in London. He demanded that King Kenneth build a residence there and visit it annually, thereby paying tribute to the kingdom of England on behalf of Scotland. King Kenneth built himself a palace and lived there whenever he came to England. The palace remained the possession of the Scottish kings and was considered the territory of Scotland. When Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, King James VI of Scotland became King of England and Scotland, and the palace lost its original purpose. It was divided into two parts: the first was called "Big Scotland Yard", the second - "Middle Scotland Yard". They began to be used as government buildings.
There are also versions that in the Middle Ages the street belonged to a man named Scott, and also that stagecoaches to Scotland once departed from this street.
By 1890, the strength of the London Police had grown from the original 1,000 officers to 13,000, requiring more administrative staff and a larger headquarters. In view of the further expansion of the size and responsibilities of the police, it became necessary to increase the staff even more, so in the 1940s New Scotland Yard was expanded. This building complex is currently listed as having architectural, historical or cultural significance.
A number of protective measures were added to the exterior of New Scotland Yard in 2000, including concrete barriers in front of the lower windows to protect against car bombs. In addition, a concrete wall has been added near the entrance to the building. Armed officers from the Diplomatic Guard Service ( English) patrol the facade of the building along with police guards.
Many novelists use fictional Scotland Yard detectives as heroes and heroines in their stories: George Gideon in the writings of John Creasy, Commander Adam Dalglish created by F. D. James, Inspector Richard Urey in the works of Martha Grimes are the most famous examples. Or, for example, female detective Molly Robertson-Kirk, known as Lady Molly of Scotland Yard(author - Baroness Emma Orczy). Many detective novels by Agatha Christie feature Scotland Yard detectives, especially in the Hercule Poirot series.
In the 1930s, inexpensive detective magazines were circulated using a popular brand in their title: Scotland Yard, Scotland Yard Detective Stories, or Scotland Yard International Detective. Despite the names, they were more focused on lurid US crime stories.
Scotland Yard was the name given to a series of low-budget films made in the 1961s. Each episode was a reconstruction of a real detective story.
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See what "Scotland Yard" is in other dictionaries:
Scotland Yard- (officially New Scotland Yard) the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of Greater London, excluding the City of London, which has its own police force. The name is often used in the media to refer to the London Police. The building of modern ... ... Encyclopedia of newsmakers
- [English] Scotland Yard] is the central office of the London police. Large dictionary of foreign words. Publishing house "IDDK", 2007. Scotland yard Scotland yard, Scotland yard (le), Scotland yard, m., with a capital letter (English Scotland Yard name ... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language
Scotland Yard- Police Service of the Greater London Area, subordinate to the Secretary of State for the Home Office. Performs the functions of the criminal and political police and participates in the implementation of certain counterintelligence tasks throughout England. Special department... Counterintelligence Dictionary