ABSTRACT
The character of police forces depended on the character of Chief Constables. This chapter explores leadership in Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester, examining successes and failures in building relationships with their men, as well as the transition from military leadership to chiefs promoted from within. Policemen depended on Chief Constables to build morale, and to advocate for them internally and externally. From around 1900, police views on who would make a good Chief Constables shifted away from the military and Royal Irish Constabulary models in favour of policemen who had walked a beat since outsiders could not understand the realities of policing. This transition paralleled policemen becoming better educated, enabling more qualified constables to aspire to the highest ranks and to insist that a Chief Constable be a policeman and not a Clerk. This change took decades, with old and new leaders serving simultaneously. This allows for a close comparison of police leadership, with growing demands that they be experienced policemen, accessible to all ranks, and police advocates with government. By the 1940s, career policemen became the new standard.
