The early European settlers in Australia in the late 18th century brought with them a conception of the role of the constable but no model for a police force. In the mid-19th century, preference for a formal police force gained in popularity, influenced by English and Irish models, but also reflecting the political realities of colonial government and by circumstances less impacted by political and social conflict than in Britain. The new police in Australia were formed about the time formal policing became established in England. Centralized police forces controlled from State capitals and eventually through a single commissioner defined the structure for the new policing. The resistance of indigenous people to being controlled by a centralized police force far removed from their local communities profoundly shaped Australian policing. To this day relations between indigenous people and police in Australia are antagonistic. In two colonies, Victoria and New South Wales, gold rushes were significant in determining the political decision to establish a centralized police model. In others, the responsibility for managing and regulating the gold fields and the associated bullion trade was a primary responsibility of the colonial police. Problems of instability and mobility, fueled by rumors of new gold discoveries, added to the difficulties of policing a population without social roots where they settled. All of these factors influenced the need to have a police force that could operate throughout a colony without having to deal with the impediments of jurisdictional disputes. 56 notes