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MOMENTS earlier, the posh Central London department store had been a picture of serenity.

Then suddenly there was mayhem as a gang of girls burst in through the revolving doors, scattering in all directions as they swiped jewellery and expensive clothes.

Racks and glass display cabinets were sent flying as security guards tried in vain to chase them across the marble floor.

By the time police arrived the female invaders had fled, taking thousands of pounds worth of luxury goods with them.

The girl mob’s shoplifting spree sounds like something we might read about today.

But this was 19th century Britain, when a fearsome all-female gang with a reputation for audacious shop raids was terrorising the streets of London and beyond.

The very mention of the name The Forty Elephants, a crime syndicate made up exclusively of young women, would send shivers down the spines of West End shop owners. The gang, ruled by a formidable “Queen” who was feared by other criminals, became so well known that panic would erupt in high-class stores if one of their members was even spotted outside.

Described by police as “the cleverest of thieves”, they would typically plunder thousands of pounds worth of goods in a single swoop, wearing garments with deep hidden pockets and voluminous knickers where they would stuff their loot.

Horrified shop managers would often not know they had been targeted until after the women left – usually looking far bigger.

FEROCIOUS

On other occasions, the girls would descend en masse on a department store and ransack it, entering through numerous entrances to confuse staff and pilfering whatever they wanted before fleeing.

And if the girls were ever caught police knew they would put up a ferocious struggle. One of the gang’s leaders was known to punch with a fistful of diamond rings which could put an eye out, according to her criminal record.

New research has revealed London was in the firm grip of the ruthless girl gang which, between the 1870s and the 1950s, was responsible for the biggest shoplifting racket the country has ever seen. They also dabbled in many other crimes like blackmail and kidnapping, and they thought nothing of dishing out beatings or exacting revenge on enemies with knives and metal bars.

At the height of their reign, The Forty Elephants were considered near-untouchables by police.

Their brutal activities came to light after historian Brian MacDonald spent years examining records, newspaper reports and letters for his book, Gangs of London. He says: “The girls feared no one, they were all well-built and strong and could fight as well as any man. They were also very clever, well organised, devious and daring.

“By the start of the 20th century most of London had heard of them. By then they were using high-powered cars to outrun police and their raids were getting more audacious.

“They also lived the life of glamorous movie stars, throwing wild parties and spending lavishly in pubs and restaurants. Without doubt they were the most notorious girl gang Britain’s ever seen.”

The Forty Elephants, also called The Forty Thieves, was first mentioned in newspapers in 1873, but records suggest it had existed since the late 1700s and ruled part of London’s underworld for almost 200 years.

They worked with the villainous Elephant and Castle gang, a group of male thieves and burglars, and lived within a mile of South London’s Elephant and Castle. The girls raided some of London’s biggest stores including Debenham and Freebody - later Debenhams – in Oxford Street, DH Evans, Selfridges and Whiteleys.

They always swiped the most expensive jewellery and clothes.

The group was at its most ruthless under Alice Diamond, who became Queen in 1916 at the age of 20.

She ruled with military precision and expanded the enterprise out of London because the gang was becoming too well known in the West End. It was her jewel encrusted fistful of rings which prompted police to dub her Diamond Annie in records, adding that she had a “punch to beware of”.

In 1925, she took the gang to carry out a brutal attack on a male crook she fell out with. Some were jailed for the assault, including Diamond who still led the mob from behind bars.

NICKED

One of the rare occasions one of the girls was caught stealing was in 1923, when Maggie Hughes ran out of a jeweller’s with a tray of diamond rings – straight into a policeman’s arms.

After Diamond was succeeded as Queen in the 1930s, the gang’s notoriety faded and was eventually forgotten. MacDonald says: “Until now these young women have hardly got a mention in history books. Hopefully now they will get starring roles.”

3 Gangs of London, published by Milo Books, is available from Mirror Reader Offers for £7.99 including free postage. To order call 0843 060 0022, write to: Mirror Direct, PO Box 60, Helston TR13 0QD, or go to MirrorReaderOffers.co.uk/gangs