Who Were the Real Peaky Blinders?

In 1898, a letter was published in Birmingham that showed great fear and anger. A writer named Workman complained about gangs called "peaky blinders." These young men insulted people on the street and seemed to fear no one, not even the police. This letter reflected a real worry many citizens felt about street violence during the late Victorian period. Later, television created a famous fictional version of these gang members. In reality, however, these young men did not wear caps with hidden razor blades inside them. Their true style was very different, but it was still very noticeable to everyone.

They preferred a stiff hat made of hard felt with a wide, curved brim. They shaped this brim into a sharp point that they tilted dramatically over one eye. This habit of blocking their vision with their hats is exactly what gave them their name. They were not a single, organized crime group with one boss. Instead, many separate and rival gangs across Birmingham wore this same flashy look. Fights between these groups happened often on the city streets. They also fought outside popular music halls late at night when people were leaving. The name "peaky blinder" was specific to Birmingham in the 1890s.

The public anger from Workman's letter was made even worse by a tragic event. A police officer named George Snipe was killed on duty just three days before the letter was published. On the evening of July 18, 1898, Snipe and another officer faced a group of young men outside a pub. The men had been drinking and fighting with each other. When the police arrested one man for using bad language, a big struggle began. A large crowd gathered, and someone threw a brick with great force. It hit Officer Snipe in the head and knocked off his helmet. He died from his injuries the next morning.

The local newspaper, the Mail, demanded the introduction of flogging for crimes of violence. A public meeting in St George's Ward was attended by a large number of working people. They enthusiastically applauded calls for brutal street ruffians to be flogged. The Mail commented, "Public feeling has reached a white heat." This killing started a major debate about law and order throughout the region. Newspapers demanded severe punishments for violent street crime. Local women identified the brick-thrower as a 19-year-old file-cutter named James Franklin. However, during the trial, defense witnesses said another man had actually thrown the brick. In the end, Franklin was found not guilty of the crime.

George "Cloggy" Williams went on the run as soon as he heard that PC Snipe had died. He managed to evade arrest until January 9, 1898. When he made his first appearance before the city's magistrate, reporters noted his hair. They said his light hair was "dressed in the approved 'peaky blinder' style, short at the back, and pulled down in a fringe over his forehead." His former employer testified that Williams had worked as a glass-beveller for four years. He left without drawing his wages on the day of Snipe's death. Contrary to the prevailing depiction of peaky blinders as workshy, the employer said Williams had been "very industrious." In March 1898, Williams was found guilty of manslaughter. He was sentenced to life in prison. The judge called the crime "atrocious" and said it was very close to murder.

While the specific name was new in the 1890s, the fear of youth gang violence was not new at all. Historian Barbara Weinberger notes that fights between rival youth gangs were first reported in the early 1870s. These conflicts often started as territorial fights between English and Irish street gangs. They were made worse by the anti-Irish and anti-Catholic feelings common at that time. Youthful members of Birmingham's street gangs described themselves as 'sloggers.' According to historian Philip Gooderson, the ethnic hostility that sparked gang conflict in the 1870s was later eclipsed by narrower, territorial loyalties.

Weinberger gives two main reasons for the increase in gang activity around 1873–74. First, an economic recession left many young men without jobs and with little hope for the future. Second, police campaigns against public drunkenness and street gambling created resentment in working-class neighborhoods. Young men became the most visible participants in the resulting street fights.

Members of these street gangs often called themselves 'sloggers.' According to Philip Gooderson, the ethnic conflicts of the 1870s later turned into feuds based on local territory. Most reported fights in the 1880s and 1890s involved gangs from neighboring districts across Birmingham. These fights could turn deadly. In 1893, a 20-year-old named John Metcalfe was stabbed to death during a fight outside a concert hall.

By the 1890s, Birmingham's sloggers had developed a consistent and recognizable uniform. A paint manufacturer named Arthur Matthison described the peaky blinder as someone intensely focused on his image. The outfit included bell-bottomed trousers held by a buckled belt. They wore heavy boots with hobnails, a jacket, and a brightly colored scarf. They wore the famous pointed-brim hat over one eye. Their hair was cut short except for a long, greased quiff plastered across the forehead.

Half of them worked in the iron or the brass industries, the dominant sectors of the local economy. None of them could be described as middle-class. Slogging was a working-class pastime. It reflected the respect attached to displays of fighting prowess and toughness in working-class neighborhoods. Middle-class youths had no incentive to risk injury and imprisonment. Matthison believed these youths were "the product of poverty, squalor and slum environment." However, Gooderson points out that gang activity was not limited to the worst slums. Many gang members held full-time jobs. The Birmingham Daily Mail even sent a reporter to Summer Lane. The reporter described the female companions of peaky blinders, known as 'molls.' Their style copied the men's, with elaborate hats, bright scarves, pearl buttons, and a heavy fringe of hair.

The peaky blinders faded from prominence in the years before the First World War. Gooderson says their decline was due to several factors. These included the rising popularity of football as an alternative pastime. A more effective police and judicial crackdown also helped. Like all youth fashions, their distinctive style had a limited lifespan. By the 1920s, young people looked to Hollywood movies for new trends. A peaky blinder's outfit would have seemed very old-fashioned.

Still, memories of the gangs lasted. In 1936, a newspaper column asked readers to share their memories. One person insisted the typical peaky blinder was "just an ordinary working man." Another reader, F. Atkins, clarified that their violence was mostly aimed at rival gangs and the police. He also gave a detailed description of how they shaped their iconic hats. They did this by wetting the brim and molding it by a fire. Although they had vanished from Birmingham's streets long before, the peaky blinders' unique fashion and reputation for violence secured their lasting place in the city's history.