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The Marine Policing Unit (MPU) is the waterborne policing unit of London's
Metropolitan Police Service The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...
, forming part of the Met Taskforce (MO7) within
Met Operations Met Operations, also known as Met Ops, is one of the four business groups which forms the Metropolitan Police Service and is responsible for providing operational support services.. It was created during the 2018-19 restructuring of the service, am ...
. Its 22 vessels are responsible for waterborne policing of the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...
in
Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness, the state of being great *Greater than, in inequality (mathematics), inequality *Greater (film), ''Greater'' (film), a 2016 American film *Greater (flamingo), the oldest flamingo on record *Greater (song), "Greate ...
and supporting the rest of the Metropolitan Police and to the
City of London Police The City of London Police is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement within the City of London, including the Middle and Inner Temples. The force responsible for law enforcement within the remainder of the London region, ou ...
when dealing with incidents in or around any waterway in London. A specialist underwater and confined-spaces search team carries out searches throughout the
Metropolitan Police District The Metropolitan Police District (MPD) is the police area which is policed by the Metropolitan Police Service in London. It currently consists of the Greater London region, excluding the City of London. The Metropolitan Police District was create ...
. The unit also has 24 officers who are trained in rope access techniques and trained to carry out searches and counter-demonstrator operations at height. In 1839 the
Marine Police Force The Thames River Police was formed in 1800 to tackle theft and looting from ships anchored in the Pool of London and in the lower reaches and docks of the Thames. It replaced the Marine Police, a police force established in 1798 by magistrate ...
was merged into the Metropolitan Police as the Thames Division. It held that name until being renamed the Marine Support Unit in 2001 and taking on its present name seven years later. The unit is still headquartered at Wapping, where a former carpenters' workshop also houses the River Police Museum, founded in 1974 and now curated by John Joslin and Rob Jeffries, two former officers with the unit.


Area of responsibility

Originally focusing on the Pool of London, since the 19th century it has had responsibility for the 47 miles of the Thames between
Hampton Court Hampton Court Palace is a Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chief ...
in the west and Dartford Creek in the east. This includes the stretch of river within the
City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...
, since the City of London Police does not have its own marine unit. Above Hampton Court,
Surrey Police Surrey Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the county of Surrey in South East England. The force is currently led by Chief Constable Gavin Stephens. Previously the force was led by Nick Ephgrave who left the force ...
have responsibility for policing but a launch is supplied by the
Environment Agency The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and enha ...
. Below Dartford Creek, responsibility lies with both
Essex Police Essex Police is a territorial police force responsible for policing the county of Essex, in the East of England. Essex Police is responsible for a population of over 1.8 million people and an area of . The chief constable is Ben-Julian Harri ...
and
Kent Police Kent Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the and approximately 1.8 million inhabitants of Kent, a county in the south east of England. History On 14 January 1857, a 222-strong 'Kent County Constabulary' was formed u ...
, who have combined forces and formed a joint marine unit, with Kent based at
Sheerness Sheerness () is a town and civil parish beside the mouth of the River Medway on the north-west corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 11,938, it is the second largest town on the island after the nearby town ...
and Essex based at
Burnham-on-Crouch Burnham-on-Crouch is a town and civil parish in the Maldon District of Essex in the East of England. It lies on the north bank of the River Crouch. It is one of Britain's leading places for yachting. The civil parish extends east of the town t ...
.


Ranks

Before 1839 the River Police held the ranks of 3rd, 2nd and 1st Inspector due to the special powers invested to Inspectors on the river by legislation regarding the boarding of vessels on the Thames. These ranks were retained when the River Police became Thames Division, uniquely among Metropolitan Police divisions and taking the place of Sergeants or Station Sergeants in the Metropolitan Police's other divisions. 3rd Class Inspectors were ranked and paid as Sergeants in the rest of force, 2nd Class Inspectors as Station Sergeants and 1st Class Inspectors as
substantive A noun () is a word that generally functions as the name of a specific object or set of objects, such as living creatures, places, actions, qualities, states of existence, or ideas.Example nouns for: * Living creatures (including people, alive, d ...
Inspectors. These ranks were replaced by normal Metropolitan Police ranks in 1903, though for many years after that date Thames Division officers are still ranked on their service sheets using these old Inspector ranks.


History


1839-1945

In 1839 the
Marine Police Force The Thames River Police was formed in 1800 to tackle theft and looting from ships anchored in the Pool of London and in the lower reaches and docks of the Thames. It replaced the Marine Police, a police force established in 1798 by magistrate ...
was merged into the
Metropolitan Police Force The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...
, retaining its Wapping base. Initially patrols continued in rowing boats, some of which remained in use until 1905. Impetus to change was provided when, on 3 September 1878, the steam collier ''Bywell Castle'' ran into the pleasure steamer in Galleons Reach, resulting in the loss of over 600 lives. The subsequent inquest and inquiry recommended that Thames Division should have steam launches, as rowing galleys had shown themselves to be inadequate for police duty, and the first two were commissioned in the mid-1880s. In 1910 the first motor vessels were introduced. Wapping and a number of ex-navy hulks were the Division's only bases until 1874, when it opened a station at Waterloo Police Pier (now
Tower Lifeboat Station The Tower Lifeboat Station is a lifeboat station on the River Thames in London, UK, operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI). It is located at Victoria Embankment on the North Bank of the Thames, next to Waterloo Bridge. The ...
). A second land station was built further east at Blackwall in 1893 using land freed up from the
General Steam Navigation Company The General Steam Navigation Company (GSN), incorporated in 1824, was London's foremost short sea shipping line for almost 150 years. It was the oldest shipping company in the world to begin business with seagoing steam vessels. Foundation ...
's cattle wharf at Coldharbour - it was a three-storey building comprising cells, accommodation and a boat-launch. In 1907 the present Wapping station was built.


1945-present

Post-war Thames Division commemorated its founders with police vessel names including the supervision launches ''John Harriott'' (1947-1963) and ''Patrick Colquhoun'' (1963-2003), and Targa duty boats in use, the ''John Harriott'' and the ''Gabriel Franks''. Due to the
decline Decline may refer to: *Decadence, involves a perceived decay in standards, morals, dignity, religious faith, or skill over time * "Decline" (song), 2017 song by Raye and Mr Eazi * ''The Decline'' (EP), an EP by NOFX *The Decline (band), Australian ...
of the docks at
Canary Wharf Canary Wharf is an area of London, England, located near the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Canary Wharf is defined by the Greater London Authority as being part of London's central business district, alongside Central Lo ...
in the late 20th century, the Blackwall River Police Station was closed in the 1970s and converted to residential properties in 1982. In November 1978, Thames Division became a specialist unit under the direct command of Assistant Commissioner "A". On 20 August 1989 the ''Marchioness'' disaster occurred when an aggregate dredger, the ''Bowbelle'', collided with a passenger vessel, the ''Marchioness'', near
Cannon Street Railway Bridge Cannon Street station, also known as London Cannon Street, is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in Travelcard zone 1 located on Cannon Street in the City of London and managed by Network Rail. It is on ...
. Four Metropolitan Police patrol boats assisted in the rescue of 87 people. Fifty-one passengers died, though, and following subsequent inquiries the government asked the
Maritime and Coastguard Agency The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is an executive agency of the United Kingdom that responsible for implementing British and international maritime law and safety policy. It works to prevent the loss of lives at sea and to prevent marine ...
, the
Port of London Authority The Port of London Authority (PLA) is a self-funding public trust established on 31 March 1909 in accordance with the Port of London Act 1908 to govern the Port of London. Its responsibility extends over the Tideway of the River Thames and its ...
and the
Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...
to work together to set up a dedicated search and rescue service for the tidal River Thames. Consequently, on 2 January 2002, the RNLI set up four lifeboat stations at
Gravesend Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, situated 21 miles (35 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross (central London) on the Bank (geography), south bank of the River Thames and opposite Tilbury in Essex. Located in the diocese of Ro ...
, Tower Pier,
Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and Full ...
and
Teddington Teddington is a suburb in south-west London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. In 2021, Teddington was named as the best place to live in London by ''The Sunday Times''. Historically in Middlesex, Teddington is situated on a long m ...
, taking over the role of primary search and rescue service on the river from Thames Division.


References


External links

* {{UK private and military police forces
Marine Policing Unit The Marine Policing Unit (MPU) is the waterborne policing unit of London's Metropolitan Police Service, forming part of the Met Taskforce (MO7) within Met Operations. Its 22 vessels are responsible for waterborne policing of the River Thames in ...
Transport on the River Thames Crime in London Port of London History of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets History of the River Thames 1798 establishments in England Port police forces of the United Kingdom