1-150-469 - The Cartoon Collector/Heritage-Images

'Ruffianly Policeman', 1866. 'About to Perpetrate a Brutal and Dastardly Assault on the People.' A member of the police force, a slight and rather genteel looking man, with blood streaming from a wound in his head, about to launch 'a brutal and dastardly attack' on the mass of armed ruffians with his truncheon. This shows the potential inadequacy of the force in the face of a mass uprising. The cartoon relates to the great riot in Hyde Park during July 1866. The Reform League had planned to hold a political demonstration in the park, however, Mr Walpole, the new Home Secretary, had banned the demonstration on the premise that the park should be devoted to the 'quiet recreation of the people'. However, some of the crowd broke down railings in Park Lane in order to gain admittance to Hyde Park and a battle ensued between the rougher elements of the working class and the police. From Punch, or the London Charivari, August 11, 1866.