# What was the "high Commissioner of the Police in Scotland" in 1777? Tags: united-kingdom, law, 18th-century, government, scotland - Score: 10 - Views: 1366 - Answers: 1 - Answered: yes - Asked by: Curious Layman (2676 rep) - Asked: 2022-06-07 - Edited: 2026-04-25 - Site: history ## Question I was reading old newspapers, and came across the following notice from 1777: The relevant line appears to say that the King appointed “James Earl of March, to be first Commissioner of the Police in Scotland.” I am confident about most of the words, but less certain about “first.” It may say something else. What surprised me is the date. This notice appears to refer to a “Commissioner of the Police in Scotland” in 1777, and to say that James, Earl of March, was replacing the deceased Charles, Lord Cathcart. That seems to imply there was already a recognized police-related office in Scotland before 1777. The reason this caught my attention is that some seemingly reputable sources place the origin of organized policing in Scotland later. For example, the Glasgow Police Museum says that Glasgow’s first paid police force was created in 1779. I am also aware of the book Police in the Age of Im