Bow Street Horse Patrols

The Bow Street Horse Patrols were a set of anti-highwaymen patrols organised in London, England in 1763 by Richard Ford, Sir John Fielding's successor as magistrate at Bow Street, who secured a government grant of £600 to establish the force to deal with highway robbery. It was so successful in cutting crime that when funding stopped, highwaymen soon returned. The Patrol was not re-introduced until 1805 following a campaign by Patrick Colquhoun, better-known as co-founder of the Thames River Police.

The Patrols wore a distinctive scarlet waistcoat under their blue greatcoats and were thus nicknamed "Robin Redbreasts" (though this is often misapplied to the Bow Street Runners). Like the Bow Street Foot Patrols, they were merged into the Metropolitan Police by the Metropolitan Police Act 1839.