17. The early 20th century provided a heyday for organized female crime in Britain
On January 22, 1901, Queen Victoria died, bringing an end to the Victorian Age. But Victorian mores and prudery did not immediately die, indeed, in many ways the prim snobbery of the upper classes increased during the Edwardian Age which ensued. Social reformers began to study the problem of crime endemic in the slums and rookeries of British cities, expressing the view that those stricken with abject poverty were forced into life as criminals. Dickens and other popular writers had left vivid descriptions of Britain’s criminal justice system, in many ways romanticizing its victims. The poor were seen as victimized by professional criminals, as had been Oliver Twist and Jack Dawkins, turned into thieves by Fagin and Bill Sykes. Increasing cries for reform, and for cleaning up the slums, appeared in British newspapers and in public discussions.
With that moralizing backdrop, organized criminal gangs carved out territories in London, Manchester, Liverpool, Bristol, Birmingham, and other British communities. Each ruled its own turf, often ruthlessly, using the time-honored methods of bribery and extortion to keep the police at bay. Charles McDonald, known as Wag, and his brother Wal ran the Elephant and Castle Gang in London, which controlled bookmakers, burglars, extortion rackets, payroll robberies, and other similar pursuits in London. Allied with a like gang in Birmingham, the Elephant and Castle Gang grew throughout the region prior to World War I and continued to grow during the interwar years. Another brother, Bert McDonald, took part in some gang activities but concentrated his efforts working with his girlfriend, Alice Diamond, who gained control of the 40 Elephants. Alice brought the activities of the 40 Elephants to new levels of crime, an all-female gang of fearsome dimensions.
