Saturday, February 5, 2011
Do you know why police officers are referred to as “Bobbies” in Britain and “Peelers” in Ireland? Sir Robert Peel is the man responsible for those monikers. Peel was
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Do you know why police officers are referred to as “Bobbies” in Britain and “Peelers” in Ireland? Sir Robert Peel is the man responsible for those monikers. Peel was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from December 10, 1834 to April 8, 1835 and from August 30, 1841 to June 29, 1846, and he founded the British Conservative Party. Today is the 223rd anniversary of his birth. He was born the son of an affluent textile manufacturer on February 5, 1788 at Bury, Lancashire, England.
Robert Peel entered politics at a young age and became a Member of Parliament for the Irish borough of Cashel, Tipperary when he was only 21. In 1813, as Chief Secretary in Dublin, he proposed the establishment of a special police force later to be known as “Peelers.” He was a rising star in the Tory Party when he was appointed to the cabinet as Home Secretary in January of 1822. As Home Secretary, Peel introduced several major reforms to 