field police

noun

A police force charged with maintaining order beyond towns and other settlements, in the countryside or bush.

First used 19th c.
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Meanings

nounfield police (uncountable)
  1. TasmaniahistoricaluncountableA police force charged with maintaining order beyond towns and other settlements, in the countryside or bush.First known use 19th c.

    Arthur had established a field police in 1825, with an initial complement of 300 men.

    2017, Nick Brodie, The Vandemonian War, Hardie Grant Books, page 14
    1 more example

    He was some years under my orders when I was police-magistrate of the Oatlands district, during which period he acted successively as my assistant-clerk, constable of the field-police, leader of several roving bands in quest of the aborigines, and one of the directors of the Oatland volunteers.

    1871, Marcus Clarke, Old Tales of a Toung Country
Cite this entry
APA

field police. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/field%20police

MLA

“field police.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/field%20police. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “field police,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/field%20police.

Source: field police on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.