The Problems with Policing Whitechapel (Edexcel GCSE History)

Did Whitechapel Experience More Crime than Other Areas of England in c1870-c1900? - Summary

In c1870-c1900, the government became concerned about the increasing crime rate in England. For example, the number of reported assaults in England rose from 400 in 1857 to 475 by 1877. Despite these figures, it is hard to determine the levels of crime in England and Whitechapel. This is because:

1. Crimes committed in poorer areas like Whitechapel were not reported. Gangs in East London committed many crimes in Whitechapel. People did not report them out of fear that the gang would attack them again

2. The method of reporting crime was inconsistent. A report in 1895 showed that police forces across England incorrectly reported the failure of a child to attend school as a crime. This accounted for 20,000 incorrect convictions in the crime statistics for 1895. This is one example of the many errors in police reporting during the nineteenth century

3. Other factors impacted the increase in levels of crime. For example, the population of England increased by around 50% between 1870 and 1900. A bigger population would result in a higher number of crimes committed

Historians do not have accurate data to compare the levels of crime in Whitechapel to other areas of England. Whitechapel's poverty and reputation for lawlessness indicate that it had a higher level of crime than most towns and cities in England.

Rookeries and Crime

• Rookeries created issues with law and order in Whitechapel because:

  • Criminals recruited people living in lodging houses in the rookeries

    • The criminals promised people a better life if they worked for them

    • Many people would do anything to avoid going to the workhouse or staying in the lodging houses

  • Criminals stole from people living in the rookery

    • Pickpocketing was common in the rookery as it was very hard to catch the thief

    • Criminals employed orphans or homeless children to steal

How did rookeries impact H Division?

• Rookeries made policing Whitechapel challenging for H Division

  • The overcrowded housing created narrow alleyways

    • Criminals with local knowledge could escape quickly 

    • A constable found it difficult to police all the alleyways on his beat

    • The Residuum usually had a better knowledge of the area

    • Criminals could commit their crimes undetected and hide from H Division

  • There was a large amount of people living in the rookeries of Whitechapel

    • A significant number of people could become victims of crime, especially theft

    • This increased the number of crimes that H Division had to solve or attempt to stop

    • H Division had to consider hundreds of suspects

    • This required a large number of constables and detectives to question suspects and witnesses

    • The Met made fewer arrests and prosecutions in Whitechapel

Whitechapel and the Issue of Alcohol

• Alcoholism became an increasing issue in Whitechapel

• Alcohol was easily available

  • Many poorer people drank gin as it was cheap and very strong

  • The drinking water in Whitechapel was very poor 

    • Overcrowding caused a strain on Whitechapel's sanitation

    • The water supply often became contaminated

    • Diseases such as cholera spread through the water

    • Many adults and children drank alcohol as they considered it safer and free from disease

• Many people living in Whitechapel relied upon alcohol

  • Drinking alcohol allowed people to forget about issues such as employment, money and living conditions

• Local businesses thrived off of Whitechapel's alcoholism

  • There were hundreds of pubs and gin palaces in Whitechapel

How did alcohol increase crime in Whitechapel?

How did alcohol impact H Division?

• Alcoholism meant policing Whitechapel was hard for H Division

  • Tensions between the different nationalities of Whitechapel increased due to alcohol

    • Violent attacks by the Irish community on Jewish people were common

  • The number of alcoholics in Whitechapel made it challenging for detectives to investigate crime

    • Witnesses were often drunk and unreliable

    • Drunk victims might not report a crime. If they did report a crime crime, they often could not give the police enough detail to catch the criminal

Whitechapel and the Issue of Prostitution

• Women found it challenging to find jobs in Whitechapel

  • Employers were more likely to hire men 

  • Divorced and widowed women relied upon a job for survival

    • Society looked down on divorced women and would not hire them

• Unable to get a job, many women in Whitechapel turned to prostitution

  • Prostitution was incredibly dangerous for women

    • They were often victims of rape, assault and theft

    • A lack of contraception caused backstreet abortions

      • Untrained doctors conducted this procedure

      • Many women died from infection, blood loss or shock during the operation

How did prostitution impact H Division?

• The Metropolitan Police had little sympathy for prostitutes

  • Prostitution was not illegal

  • H Division would believe a crime against a prostitute was not as serious as crimes committed against men or middle-class victims

    • The police and society believed that it was the prostitute's fault for putting herself in a dangerous position

    • Many people did not understand that many women had to become prostitutes to avoid the workhouse or death

  • The police knew that some prostitutes were criminals, committing petty crimes such as theft

• As a result, prostitution led to more issues with law and order in Whitechapel

  • The Met did not protect prostitutes

  • Society did not care about crimes committed against prostitutes

  • An increasing number of women resorted to prostitution and crime to survive

Whitechapel and the Issue of Gangs

• Multiple gangs established themselves in Whitechapel

  • One of these gangs was the Bessarabian Tigers

    • They were also known as the 'Stop At Nothing Gang'

    • Gang members were Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe

    • Their rival gang was the Odessians

• Gangs terrorised the people of Whitechapel

  • The Bessarabian Tigers and the Odessians organised protection rackets on local Jewish businesses

    • Each gang demanded that local businesses pay them protection money 

    • Any business that refused would have their stall or shop destroyed

  • Gangs fought each other for:

    • More territory

    • The management of illegal pubs or unlicensed boxing matches 

    • Pickpocketing and robberies 

How did gangs impact H Division?

• Gang violence caused issues for H Division

  • Witnesses did not report gang crime

    • People feared that a gang would attack them if they reported their crime to the police

    • As a result, the Met struggled to arrest or try gang members for their crimes

  • H Division was underfunded and understaffed

    • The Met did not have enough constables on duty to police gang activity or stop gang violence

  • Gangs often attacked policemen

    • To avoid harm, the H Division believed it was better to let the gangs fight against each other

• Gangs controlled some areas of Whitechapel

  • Areas such as Ewer Street became lawless as constables refused to police there

  • The public's fear of gangs increased, especially among Whitechapel's middle classes

The Reputation of the Police in Whitechapel

• Constables acted as social workers for the community in Whitechapel. Their role included:

  • Dealing with issues such as vagrancy and collecting poor relief

  • Ensuring that sewage and litter were properly disposed of

  • Taking children to school

• The social work of H Division caused positive and negative responses from Whitechapel's residents

How did the people of Whitechapel view the police?

• Overall, many people in Whitechapel had a negative view of H Division

  • This attitude impacted how unwilling the people were to assist the Metropolitan Police in catching 'Jack the Ripper'