Policing Victorian London

?Smith's book is a welcome addition to the literature on crime and police history. It is a beautifully organized, readable, and succinct account of the Metropolitan Police from 1829 to 1868.... Smith discusses the evolution of the police idea, the inner workings and leadership of the force, and the other side of policing'--detection, surveillance, aliens, and threats to security. The chief value of this study, however, is the author's emphasis upon the police in regard to public order and political policing, ' i.e., police control of, or surveillance of, dissident or disaffected citizens to protect the interests or power of the government.' Public disorder was much a part of Regency and Victorian London; and Smith, using major disturbances in Mid-Victorian Britain as his case studies, traces the development by the police (mainly through trial and error) of effective crowd control. Smith also nicely relates his work to the social history of the era. ... Recommended for undergraduate, graduate, and public libraries.?-Choice