History of the Metropolitan Police Service been headed by a Commissioner, rather than a Chief Constable which is the highest rank in police forces outside London. The first Commissioners to hold the post were Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Charles Rowan and Sir Richard Mayne. When Sir Charles Rowan died, leaving Sir Richard Mayne as the surviving Commissioner, Captain William Hay was drafted in to jointly run the force with Mayne. However, because the two Commissioners did not agree on methods of running the force, since 1855 it was decided that only one Commissioner would run the force. Metropolitan Police patrols took to the streets on 29 September 1829,
Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia the U.S. state of Maryland to patrol Washington County. After the formation of the Metropolitan Police Board, which was to govern the new police department, Lincoln sent a member of the board to study the New York City Police Department and its structure, itself modeled on the London Metropolitan Police Service. The Metropolitan Police Board unanimously chose one of its members, William Benning Webb who was commissioned as a Major in the army, to serve as the first Chief of Police, the formal title being "Major and Superintendent". The Police Board initially divided the District into 10 precincts. The First