Oxfordshire Constabulary was the Home Office

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

force for the county of

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, excluding the city of Oxford itself, from 1857 until 1968.

History

Oxfordshire Constabulary was established in 1857. It absorbed

Chipping Norton Borough Police Chipping Norton Borough Police was the police force responsible for policing the borough of Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire, England until 1856. It had been established in 1836 as a result of the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835. The police force ...

and

Henley Borough Police Henley Borough Police was the police force responsible for policing the borough of Henley in Oxfordshire, England until 1856. It had been established in 1836 as a result of the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835. Henley Borough Police was amalgam ...

immediately.

Banbury Borough Police Banbury Borough Police was the police force responsible for policing the borough of Banbury in Oxfordshire, England between 1836 and 1925. The force was created as a result of the Municipal Corporations Act of 1835. By 1864 there were 3 police ...

was also amalgamated into the force 69 years later in 1925. In 1965 it had an establishment of 423 and an actual strength of 297. On 1 April 1968 Oxfordshire Constabulary was amalgamated with

Buckinghamshire Constabulary Buckinghamshire Constabulary was the Home Office police force for the county of Buckinghamshire, England, until 1968. Buckinghamshire Constabulary was established 6 February 1857. At establishment it had a strength of 102 officers. In 1868, p ...

Berkshire Constabulary Berkshire Constabulary is a former Home Office police force which was responsible for policing the county of Berkshire in Southern England. Berkshire Constabulary was merged with four other adjacent police forces in 1968 to form the Thames Valley ...

Oxford City Police Oxford City Police was the police force of the City of Oxford, England. It policed the city from 1 January 1869 until 31 March 1968. It was established to succeed a "watch and ward" force that had been founded in 1835. On 1 April 1968 it and fou ...

and

Reading Borough Police Reading Borough Police was a police force for the borough of Reading in the United Kingdom. The force was created on 21 February 1836, at which time it had a strength of 30 constables, two sergeants and two inspectors. Towards the end of the 19th ...

to form

Thames Valley Constabulary Thames Valley Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the Thames Valley, covering the counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. It the largest non-metropolitan police force in England and Wales, covering a ...

Chief Constables

*1857–1888: Captain Charles Mostyn Owen *1888–1917: Lieutenant-Colonel the Hon. Edward Alexander Holmes à Court (died 1923) *1917-1920: Major Douglas Roberts (died 1920) *1921–1940: Captain Ernest Kennaway Arbuthnot *1940–1944: Colonel Sir

Eric St Johnston Sir Thomas Eric St Johnston, CBE, KStJ, QPM, TD (7 January 1911 – 17 March 1986) was Chief Inspector of Constabulary from 1967 until 1970. St Johnson was educated at Bromsgrove School and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, where he was a f ...

(afterwards Chief Constable of Durham, 1944–50) *1945–1954: Lt.-Col. Herman Rutherford (afterwards

Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Lincolnshire Police is the territorial police force covering the non-metropolitan county of Lincolnshire in the East Midlands of England. Despite the name, the force's area does not include North East Lincolnshire and North Lincolnshire, whi ...

, 1954–56) *1954-1964: James Edward Bailey (died 1964) *1964-?: David Holdsworth"Oxford Police Chief." ''Daily Telegraph'', 31 July 1964, p. 15. ''The Telegraph Historical Archive'', https://link-gale-com.rp.nla.gov.au/apps/doc/IO0706775042/GDCS?u=nla&sid=GDCS&xid=d5e21c47. Accessed 2 Dec. 2019. *''1968 : Merged with other forces to form

Thames Valley Police Thames Valley Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the Thames Valley, covering the counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. It the largest non-metropolitan police force in England and Wales, covering a ...

Footnotes

References

* Defunct police forces of England

Constabulary Constabulary may have several definitions: *A civil, non-paramilitary (police) force consisting of police officers called constables. This is the usual definition in the United Kingdom, in which all county police forces once bore the title (and som ...

Government agencies established in 1857 1968 disestablishments in England 1857 establishments in England {{UK-law-enforcement-agency-stub

History

Chief Constables

See also

Footnotes

References