A Brief History of the Police Badge

It’s one of the most important aspects of law enforcement uniforms, but how much do you really know about the police badge? In fact, most people don’t even know that firefighters and  EMT’s use badges as well. Since being originated, the badge has some interesting history behind it.

The Badge Origin

Surprisingly, the first idea of a badge was created long before modern law enforcement. Badges were worn as a symbol of allegiance to certain houses in medieval times. They also weren’t just worn by knights and noble families, but by servants and other house employees as well. The badge eventually became an identifier of authority within public servants, thus leading the way for police officers to distinguish their rank.

The Modern Police Badge

The police badge has become the most recognizable icon of law enforcement officials. It’s a tool to identify who the officer is, and what department they’re from. Some departments require officers to wear their badge in certain spots of their uniforms. You might see an officer wearing his or her badge on the left side of their uniform; over the officer’s heart. Other departments don’t have requirements and officers might wear theirs attached to a belt strap.

Types of Police Badges

In the medieval times, badges ranged from high-end expensive ones to more simpler ones made out of lead. Today, badges can be made from all types of materials including metal, plastic, leather, rubber, and more. 

Name plates and tie bars can also be considered as type of badges. They’re both smaller than a badge, but still have the officer’s name, rank, and what department he or she is from. Something even smaller than a nameplate or tie bar is called a collar brass. These are generally made up of letters, an abbreviation of what an officer’s rank is.

Some medieval badges were pretty elaborate, but we think that modern badges having the options of stars, sunbursts, Maltese, etc., are pretty cool too. Modern technology, like the ERP Visual Badge Builder, makes creating your badge easy and fully custom.

Civic Duty & Pride

For officers, earning the badge means more than anything that anyone else could imagine. Knowing the history behind this respected symbol helps to understand the importance of it. The badge is a symbol of civic duty and is meant to be worn with pride.