The Forty Elephants – the forty elephants, also known as the Forty Thieves – were one criminal band sun women specialized in the body formed a London around the 1870. Their base is in the area of Elephant and Castlesouth of the Thames, from which they take their name. Thieves, scammers, high -level handbags, the Forty Elephants They are largely wives, girlfriends or sisters of members of another organization of London bandits, the notorious Elephant and Castle Mob. The two gangs, together with many others who in those years flourished in London, kept the city in hand with master’s thefts and luxury shots, which often left high society and citizens with their mouth open. The gang, led by a leader, had a internal code of rules and behaviors which guaranteed the survival of the organization until 1950. The TV series “A Thousand Blows“, created by Steven Knight (the creator of” Peaky Blinders “) and released in February 2025, sees the notorious London women’s criminal band as protagonists.
As the thieves of the Forty Elephants band acted
All women between 14 and 60 years oldwell dressed, they always wore large shawls and cloaks to conceal the booty. Among theirs modus operandi There was to enter the shops during the most turnout: some asked the shopkeeper information, the others looted hiding the goods under the clothes. Another strategy was to be hired by wealthy families as domestic and collaborators, and rob their masters.
Leveraging them femininitythey also had another method: they attracted elderly men and respectful in dark alleys, and then loudly accused of being attacked. In order not to leak the story, the victim delivered precious objects And moneyand Forty Elephant were free. At the time, women were considered to higher moral conductand it was therefore more difficult to suspect them, which is why they managed to get confused and get away with it more easily.
Forty Elephants: the code of conduct within the women’s gang
Like any self -respecting organized crime group, Forty also had theirs Code of honor and behaviorshared in the so -called Hoister’s codeThe Tarcheggio code. Among the main rules established we find the punctualityfundamental for the success of a blow, and the sobriety: The Forty Elephants never drunk before working, they had to be shiny and ready for any eventuality.
THE revenues they had to be divided and never had to be robbed a “colleague” or one of his relative or company. If one of them had been arrested, other Forty would have provided an alibi. Furthermore, they did not wear or sport never what they stole, but it resoldto then buy jewels and luxury clothes and lead a life that would allow them to infiltrate the high society, where they could be to do the good life that studying theirs closely victims.
Alice Diamond and other band members: who were the forty elephants
One of the most famous “queens” of Forty Elephants was undoubtedly Alice Diamondsucceeded the previous leader Mary Carr who had founded the Hoister code. Alice for the times was a very high woman- over 1 meter and 70- and she was very flashy. Born in a family of thieves, Alice has always dedicated himself to home thefts as a helper of men engaged in the blow. In the years of activity with Forty, Diamond will find the numerous techniques learned during childhood.
Alice’s number two was Maggie Hughesknown for her innocent face that earned her the nickname “baby-see”, and together with their work too Ada McDonaldan expert smuggler who kept the stolen goods in his house, which became famous as “the cave of Ali Baba and forty thieves”. Marie Britten Instead, it was a band’s thief who fell in love and then married a “common” mannot belonging to organized crime: this, according to the code in force under the control of Alice Diamond, was prohibited. It seems that, precisely because of this scandal, Alice infuriated himself, and sent a delegation to eliminate Marie Britten’s husband: a violent fight broke out, now known as “Lambeth’s revolt“, who earned Alice Diamond’s ruin, who was arrested and sentenced to several years of imprisonment.
The new “Queen” of Forty Elephants was Lilian Rose Kendallknown as “The bandit from the bob hair“, For its characteristic 1920s hairstyle. According to the archives of Scotland Yardthe criminal band remains in Activities until 1950and at least seventy names that have been part of it are known. Today the myth of the criminal gang remains which held in hand London for over seventy years, but not only! Two Italians opened a place to celebrate the history of the forty elephants: the 40 Elephants Pub It is a place that stands right in the old SCOTLAND YARD headquarters, in the same rooms where the Forty were questioned.
Forty Elephants are also the protagonists of the TV series “A Thousand Blows”released in February 2025, and we also find them in the novel “Death of a young man of beautiful hopes” by Jessica Fellowes.
