Record revealed
Hoax letter signed by ‘Jack the Ripper’
This is one of hundreds of letters in police files claiming to have been written by the infamous Whitechapel Murderer – otherwise known as 'Jack the Ripper'.
Series
Royal Commission on the Police: Minutes, Evidence and Papers
Catalogue reference: HO 272
What's it about?
HO 272
Papers of the Royal Commission under the chairmanship of Sir Henry Urmston Willink on the police. They consists mainly of files of evidence, correspondence and details of meetings and visits.
Full description and record details
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Reference (The unique identifier to the record described, used to order and refer to it)
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HO 272
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Title (The name of the record)
- Royal Commission on the Police: Minutes, Evidence and Papers
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Date (When the record was created)
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1929-1963
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Description (What the record is about)
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Papers of the Royal Commission under the chairmanship of Sir Henry Urmston Willink on the police. They consists mainly of files of evidence, correspondence and details of meetings and visits.
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Held by (Who holds the record)
- The National Archives, Kew
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Legal status (A note as to whether the record being described is a Public Record or not)
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Public Record(s)
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Language (The language of the record)
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English
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Creator(s) (The creator of the record)
- Royal Commission on the Police, 1960-1962
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Physical description (The amount and form of the record)
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165 file(s)
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Access conditions (Information on conditions that restrict or affect access to the record)
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Subject to 30 year closure unless otherwise stated
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Subjects (Categories and themes found in our collection (our subject list is under development, and some records may have no subjects or fewer than expected))
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- Topics
- Policing
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Administrative / biographical background (Historical or biographical information about the creator of the record and the context of its creation)
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The Royal Commission on the Police was appointed by Royal Warrant on 25 January 1960 under the Chairmanship of Sir Henry Urmston Willink QC, MC, JP.
Its terms of reference were: To consider and make recommendations on: (1) the constitution and functions of local police authorities; (2) the status and accountability of members of police forces, including chief officers of police; (3) the relationship of the police with the public and the means of ensuring that complaints by the public against the police are effectively dealt with; (4) the broad principles which should govern the remuneration of the constable, having regard to the nature and extent of police duties and responsibilities and need to attract and retain an adequate number of recruits with the proper qualifications.
Two reports were presented to Parliament: in November 1960 an Interim Report (Cmnd. 1222) which dealt with the fourth term of reference, and in May 1962 the Final Report (Cmnd. 1728). The reports were used to formulate the Police Act 1964.
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Record URL
- https://beta.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/id/C9136/
Catalogue hierarchy
Over 27 million records
This record is held at The National Archives, Kew
1,719,919 records
Within the department: HO
Records created or inherited by the Home Office, Ministry of Home Security, and related...
You are currently looking at the series: HO 272
Royal Commission on the Police: Minutes, Evidence and Papers
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