THE HISTORY OF CONSTABLES   FROM 438 A.D. TO 1800

A BRIEF HISTORY OF CONSTABLES IN THE ENGLISH SPEAKING WORLD
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Fifteen centuries ago, in 438 A.D. the Roman Emperor Theodosius appointed the chief of his royal stables comes stabuli -- "Master of the Stable."  This is the origin of the word “constable” in the English language.[1]   The office of constable was introduced into British common law following the Norman invasion of the British Isle in 1066 A.D.  The constable was responsible for keeping the militia and armaments of the king, and those of the individual villages, in a state of preparedness for the protection of the village communities throughout England.  The office eventually became an integral arm of the military throughout Britain.  During the reign of King Stephen, (1135-1154) the office of Lord High Constable was established, and those who filled this position became the King's representatives in all matters dealing with the military affairs of the realm.[2]     

Authority for local law-enforcement derived primarily from the Statute of Winchester (1285), which, although essentially a codification of much earlier measures, encompassed instructions on the communities' obligations regarding the possession of weapons and maintenance of the king's peace.[3] As a precaution against violent assaults, robberies and other unlawful acts, there were provisions concerning watch keeping. The statute specifically gave the power to constables and watchmen to arrest suspicious strangers, who were to be kept under guard until further investigation by the eyre justices or, as was the norm by the fourteenth century, at gaol delivery. Two constables in each hundred (a subdivison of counties), who were responsible to the county keepers of the peace, were entrusted with the inspection of arms and on two occasions each year were to check that the watchmen were armed according to their competence.[4]  They held the titles of capitales constabularii et custodes pacis—“constable of hundreds and keepers of peace.”[5]           

The enforcement responsibilities accorded constables and bailiffs after the Black Death brought their duties into the economic sphere.  The Ordinance (1349) and Statute of Labourers (1351) appointed them to control the movement, conduct and service arrangements of labourers and servants within their jurisdiction. Workers who left the village could be arrested.[6]  (In nineteenth century Toronto, there remained a category of offence known as “Deserting Employment” applicable to apprentices and servants.)     

From the medieval epoch until the nineteenth century, the primary proactive system of organized policing in the English speaking world, aside from the modern professional “thief takers” in London, was the watch and ward—patrols, usually at night, composed of citizens under the supervision of the High Constable, a county-level appointment. Under the concept of the watch and ward, also known as the parish watch, every citizen was compelled under penalty of law, to serve as a volunteer night sentry or watchman a certain number of days a year.  Refusing a High Constable's call to report for watch and ward was punishable by fines and/or imprisonment. 

Until the 1830's, this is the way the 'police' functioned in most of the English-speaking world, including a small colonial town in Upper Canada called York.

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 CRIME & PUNISHMENT IN CANADA:
 A HISTORY OF JUSTICE AND POLICING 1500 - 2000
Peter Vronsky ©2002-2004