History of the Metropolitan Police Service by the end of the 19th century. During the 1860s, the flintlock pistols that had been purchased in 1829 were decommissioned from service, being superseded by 622 Beaumont–Adams revolvers firing the .450 cartridge which were loaned from the army stores at the Tower of London following the Clerkenwell bombing. In 1883, a ballot was carried out to gather information on officers' views on whether they wished to be armed, and 4,430 out of 6,325 officers serving on outer divisions requested to be issued with revolvers. The now obsolete Adams revolver was returned to stores for emergencies, and the Bulldog 'Metropolitan
Greater London Authority Act 1999 Greater London Authority Act 1999 The Greater London Authority Act 1999 (c. 29) is the Act of Parliament that established the Greater London Authority, the London Assembly and the Mayor of London. The Act was brought in after a referendum, held under the Greater London Authority (Referendum) Act 1998, had resulted in a 'yes' vote. Apart from the main provisions creating the authority and transferring powers to it, it also created a Metropolitan Police Authority for the Metropolitan Police Service, and consequently altered the borders of the Metropolitan Police District to be coterminous with Greater London (excluding the City). It