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Crime Statistics Urban Vs. Rural
Although naturally assumed that crime was higher in urban areas than rural areas, to what extent is this assumption true? Rural areas were not as safe as one might think when urbanisation was occurring. Due to the geography of rural areas, they were more isolated and unpoliced. Even when organised police forces began to form in the early 19th century, many rural roads remained completely unpoliced. As a result and particularly due to the vast array of wealth and goods being transported, highway robberies became a common occurrence, with often nothing to protect goods from potential robbers.
A Highway Man Holds up a Coach, Wikimedia Commons.
There was also the fact that roads had been improved and were more frequently used. Just as urban environments made it easy for criminals to remain anonymous, rural areas were so sparsely populated it was also difficult to get caught. As a substitute for the police, local parish constables dealt with disorderly behaviour and petty crimes, but these would have difficulty dealing with serious crimes such as highway robbery.
Increase in Crime Due to Urbanisation
What is certain is that the crime rate certainly rose during the period of industrialisation, particularly in towns and cities. The difficulty for historians is to determine whether this was due to more crimes being reported or that crime had increased. Police forces often didn’t want to report crimes as a high crime rate would make them look rather poor and ineffective, while the poorest in society often had a distrust or a dislike of the police, and were less likely to report a crime. This is even taking into consideration the fact that crime rates were often higher in poorer communities.
Illustration of Scotland Yard, Metropolitan Police Force, 1880s. Wikimedia Commons.
It is therefore difficult to compare urban and rural crime rates, due to more crime being reported. What can be determined is the variety of crime was certainly different when comparing urban and rural areas. This can be attributed to the changing nature of crime, which was now largely committed against person, property or authority. Ultimately, rural communities lacked the population or opportunity for large-scale crime waves, such as those which had occurred in the cities.
Did you know? The Metropolitan Police reported most thefts as “lost property” well into the 1930s, as this made the crime rate appear lower.
Types of Crime in Urban Areas
Crime against the person generally involved fatal offences such as murder or manslaughter and non-fatal offences such as assault or battery. Crime against property includes theft, arson, vandalism, smuggling and fraud. Crimes against authority meanwhile became increasingly common. This generally included rioting, sabotage and treason. Authority included the government, police and religious institutions. Urbanisation produced areas concentrated with a high number of individuals.
People demanded change in large numbers with many resorting to sabotage and rioting to get across their point. In urban industrialised communities, groups such as the Luddites destroyed industrial machinery to discourage mechanisation.
Luddites
An organisation of English textile workers who destroyed textile machinery that was replacing their skilled craftwork.
Perhaps the most extreme example can be found in Scotland, the “Radical War” in 1820. Sometimes characterised as the “Scottish Insurrection”, this event involved mass unrest and strikes, with workers demanding radical reform. This is particularly representative of the time, as its root causes were industrialisation and the economic downturn in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars.
Luddites Destroying Machinery in a Factory, Wikimedia Commons.
As the last armed uprising on Scottish soil, it was violently suppressed by soldiers (many privately hired) and the ringleaders were tried for treason, with three sentenced to death and nineteen transported to Australia. The whole incident is symptomatic of the demands for radical change urbanisation and industrialisation had created, but also the necessity for a professional police force in response.
Causes of Urban Crime
During periods of economic strife, urban areas would be plagued by unemployment and economic hardship. The period in the aftermath of the Napoleonic wars perhaps saw some of the more extreme incidences, before prison reform had occurred and when economic conditions were terrible. This only serves to demonstrate that the rising crime trend wasn't confined to crimes against people or property but also had political motivations demanding greater social change. Likewise, the motivations for many crimes against people and property can be attributed to the poor conditions many political movements stood against.
Overcrowding
An issue with these newly emerging overcrowded urban areas was the fact the tight living conditions would often result in criminals living side by side with ordinary hard-working people. This made it hard to police but also went against the separate system theory. This became the blueprint for new prisons at the time and theorised that if criminals were taken away from wicked influences they would be reformed. In the context of many of the overcrowded slum areas of cities like London, this was almost impossible.
Overcrowded Tenement housing in 19th Century London, Wikimedia Commons.
This resulted in certain areas being overwhelmed with crime, making it difficult for those involved in crime to turn away, but also difficult for crime to be prevented. This also created an environment where opportunistic crime was a real threat, in comparison to rural areas where such opportunities were scarce and hard to complete undetected.
Urban Crime Examples
Here are three types of urban crime:
Type | Example |
Crime against the Person | Mary Ann Cotton was a serial killer who used the deaths of her husbands and others to collect life insurance policies. Between 1865 and 1871, Cotton had lost three husbands, a friend, a lover, her mother and eleven of her children all to a mysterious stomach fever. Tests were done on one of her sons and it was discovered that he had been poisoned. Cotton was hanged in 1873. The conditions created meant that infant mortality was not unusual and that Cotton’s acts went unnoticed for quite a long period. The collection of the life insurance policies also demonstrated an economic motive. Other crimes against the person included murder, assault and sex offences. |
Crime against Property | Smuggling continued but significantly increased. Due to the tough economic conditions at the time, more goods had import duties placed upon them. Due to the conditions, it was difficult for many to pay these taxes, and they turned to urban smuggling gangs as a result. With more goods on the move due to industrialisation, this significantly intensified until import duties were lowered. Crimes against property also included burglary, theft, vandalism and extortion. |
Crime against Authority | The Chartist movement was a mass working-class movement demanding political reform that existed from 1838 until 1857. The movement assembled en masse in urban areas, using mass meetings to put pressure on politicians to introduce political change. They aimed to fight corruption and promote democracy in industrialised society and attracted widespread support. Although generally enlisting peaceful methods, some Chartists became involved in rioting. As a result, several Chartist leaders were arrested and charged with treason, resulting in their transportation to Australia. Many Chartists began to organise in Australia as a consequence. Crimes against authority generally included heresy, illegal protest, treason and rioting. |
The rate of urbanisation and emigration from rural to urban areas had never been seen on such a scale before. With cramped conditions in cities lacking infrastructure, many cities had become criminal hotbeds in areas. This undoubtedly rapidly altered the way criminals operated but also how lawmakers responded. Urbanisation and Industrialisation were the emergence of a system of crime and punishment that largely remains to this day.
Urbanisation and Rise in Crime - Key takeaways
- Crime in urban areas only served to worsen already dreadful conditions.
- Crime significantly increased due to urbanisation, but the introduction of urban crime-fighting measures helped reduce crime numbers.
- Due to the unreliability of crime statistics, it is difficult to judge urban versus rural crime rates, but the available evidence demonstrates a significantly large crime rate in urban areas.
- Industrialisation and the resulting urbanisation caused several new types of crime and punishment.
- Urban areas made it easier to commit a crime against a person or property, but also significantly enabled large-scale social and political movements to organise, which occasionally resulted in politically motivated riots, insurrections and assassinations.
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Frequently Asked Questions about Crime and Urbanization
How does urbanisation cause crime?
Urbanisation helped cause crime as urbanisation created poverty and poor social conditions leading to crime. The concentration of large amounts of people in one area also made it easier to get away with crimes and inspired other criminals.
What causes high crime rates?
High crime rates are caused by a number of factors such as poverty, overcrowding, poor policing and ineffective punishment.
Why is crime a problem in urban areas?
Crime is a problem in urban areas as it can rapidly spiral out of control if not effectively combatted. This can lead to injury, death and loss of property. This in turn can lead to economic decline and decline in quality of life.
Why did crime increase as urbanisation was happening?
As urbanisation occurred population increased leading to higher crime rates and more opportunities to commit a crime. Measures to combat crime such as a professional police force also led to more crime being reported. As urbanisation occurred most cities lacked the resources to effectively combat crime leading to a significant increase.
Is crime higher in urban or rural areas?
Crime is generally higher in urban areas due to the large population, poverty and array of wealth on display.
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