Name/Title
Badly worn decorated truncheon by Hebbert c1837 - 1875Entry/Object ID
978Description
Wooden badly damaged decorated truncheon, with plain multi turned handle 18 inches (46cm) in length The body is painted black with the remains of a large crown painted at the top, over a royal coat of arms in gold and red.The paintwork is heavily damaged. What is visible of the coat of arms suggests that it is the post 1837 arms of Queen Victoria. Stamped on the end of the handle is the mark, "Hebbert". A hole has been drilled in the handle to attach a sash cord wrist strap.Use
For use by a police officer as protection and as a symbol of their authority.Context
The earliest police truncheons tend to be 17-20 inches (43-51cm) long and are often highly decorated usually with a crown and sometimes with the addition of a royal coat of arms. This was because in the days before warrant or ID cards, the truncheon was the officer's badge of office and symbolised his authority from the crown for carrying out his duties. There was no single style of truncheon or design of decoration in the 19th century and individual police forces chose whatever they liked, some adopting truncheons of a reasonably standard design, made by a large supplier, and others purchasing more unique styles made by local manufacturers. As well as being a symbol of authority decorated truncheons were designed to be used in self defence and were not just ornaments.
The truncheon pictured, though damaged is of a standard generic design and decoration produced for much of the 19th century. It has a royal coat of arms, which is less common than those with a "VR" cypher. If the coat of arms is for Queen Victoria, it would date the truncheon from 1837 onwards. This example was made by the London firm of "Hebbert and Co", who were military and police, uniform and equipment suppliers, trading from various addresses across London from 1815 until 1935. The company were the first uniform contractor to supply the Metropolitan Police in 1829 and are also known to have supplied the force with decorated truncheons in the 1870s. It is possible that this is a Metropolitan Police truncheon from this period, though it is not known whether Hebbert and Co supplied truncheons to other forces outside of London. The hole and cord strap are a later modification as this would originally had a leather wrist strap.
By the 1870s the public were well used to the concept of uniformed police and the need for decorated truncheons declined. In the 1880s warrant cards were issued as a form of ID and he truncheon became less symbolic. At the same time there was a move towards smaller 14-15 inch truncheons that could be carried in a pocket sew into the trousers. By the 1890s most police forces had discontinued decoration in favour of plain truncheons of this shorter length.