An Unofficial History of Home Security Systems

Home security, like everything, changes dramatically with the times. In pre-Industrial Revolution Europe, feudal agricultural systems ruled the land. Since cultivating the soil or producing handicrafts in places like metal smith shops or leather tanneries were the primary methods of earning a lving, cities were superfluous. People required vast expanses of land on which to raise cows, sheep, and goats, or in which to plant crops like oats, rice, and wheat. Relatively few workers per acre were needed, and the global populations statistics were low compared to their present-day numbers. People in these days were loosely organized in town groupings and governed by smaller regional lords who reported to a more central king's court. The mere structure of the society was conducive to home security, as everyone knew one another and a stranger's presence was instant news. People, therefore, had tangible, immediate reasons to remain upstanding citizens, because they could not disappear into the anonymity of present-day times.

In terms of the particulars of feudal home security systems, they were very rudimentary by comparison to their modern-day counterparts. Some citizens carried weapons to protect themselves and their loved ones, which today many people choose not to do, or have to go through the appropriate authorities in order to obtain them. Homes of the larger vassals may have employed special security guards to keep a lookout twenty-four hours a day, or chosen strategically important geographic locations with particularly insurmountable natural landforms. High stone walls were often used to protect a central courtyard, while members of the family enjoyed a good night's sleep in the comfort of the inner chambers of the building. Guards and specially trained guard dogs were the primary home alarm systems in those days.

Then, with the move towards more densely populated cities necessitated by the Industrial Revolution, everything began to change. People flocked in record numbers to central locations to work in newly created factories in industrialized sectors. Shipbuilding (and eventually with the invention of the model-T assembly line, car- and airplane- manufacturing) required a multitude of workers in every plant. Home security did not catch up quite as quickly, as the increase in population numbers meant more interpersonal disputes and a rise in the instances of crimes such as theft, etc.

Today, fortunately, although we still move increasingly towards city living, technology has caught up with us a bit better. We now have preventative measures specifically geared towards our present-day capacities, needs, and problems. These new advances are better able to address our safety needs as twenty-first century consumers. Modern home alarm systems afford you the comfort and flexibility that a guard dog and a moat simply cannot provide. Devices like dual-action motion sensors and home monitoring cameras keep an eye out for your home, even while you are not present. Additionally, natural disaster monitors sense the presence of flooding or carbon monoxide leaks-definitely things that are different from years past. These new systems unfailingly monitor and help you thwart the underhanded intentions of technologically-savvy criminals and get a good night's sleep in the city and accommodations of your choice while you're at it.