Tilly Devine

Miss Tilly Devine

By Michelle Munro

During the early part of the twentieth century, women were quite limited in their choice of a career. Most ended up domestic servants, jobs that ensured grueling work and little pay. It is not surprising that many turned to prostitution as a means of a better life. It paid well and allowed women to work out of their homes. But it was still a very dangerous line of work. Prostitutes needed protection, which often led them into the world of gangs, drugs, and violence. Tilly Devine mastered the arts of prostitution and manipulation and used her talents to become known as “the Bordello Queen.”

Matilda Mary Twiss was born in London, England in 1900. At the age of seventeen she married “Big” Jim Devine, an Australian soldier. His service over, Jim returned home to Australia in 1919. Tilly arrived a year later aboard a war-bride ship. They settled in Sydney where Tilly, beautiful and with a craving for the good life, began her journey into prostitution. With her husband as her protector, she started walking the streets.

In 1921, a soliciting law went into effect in an effort to crack down on prostitutes. Cunning enough to find every loophole, Tilly and Jim purchased a Cadillac to conduct their business out of. Jim drove the vehicle while Tilly took care of business in the back seat. Five years later, Tilly purchased her first brothel located on Palmer Street in East Sydney. Within a short period of time she purchased many more houses on the street essentially turning the road into her turf. Girls were easy to find. For a fixed return per client, they were provided with protection, room and board. It was a completely different scene than the harsh reality of the streets.

During this time, Tilly also discovered the world of cocaine. She turned on many of her girls, ensuring a constant demand. She also convinced the girls to introduce their clients to the drug. Eventually it turned into a cycle where both girls and clients were indebted to Tilly. The worse their addictions were, the more money for the madam.

Unfortunately for Tilly, she was not the only woman with aspirations of ruling Sydney. Kate Leigh also ran bordellos as well as local gangs. She was not about to give up her share of the pie to someone twenty years her younger. The rivalry grew until both women had their own gangs for the mere purposes of protecting themselves and harassing the other. Tilly’s gang would attack Kate’s girls, and then Kate’s gang would return the gesture. The cycle had begun.

The feud continued and gave fire to the Darlinghurst razor gang wars. 1927 pistol licensing laws meant heavy jail time if caught carrying a concealed weapon. To avoid jail, many gang members turned to razors as their new weapon of choice.

In 1929, Frankie Green, one of Tilly’s men, brawled with Gregory Gaffney, one of Kate’s, over prostitute Nellie Cameron. It intensified until Frankie was shot in the stomach. Near death, Frankie stumbled to the Devine home. Later the rest of the rival gang decided to storm the house and finish Frankie off, but instead were met on the porch by a rifle-bearing Jim. He shot and killed Gregory in the middle of the street and wounded a few others, including Kate’s lover. Jim was later acquitted of murder, supposedly because of Tilly’s “friendship” with high-ranking policemen. On August 9 of this year, the rival gangs met on Kellett Street, traditional turf of Kate’s, in Kings Cross were a violent fight broke out. For an hour blood was spilled through the use of guns, razors, bottles and bats. When it was over, many had to be hospitalized.

Intent on stopping the violence in the streets, Consorting Laws came into effect in 1930. Now all the police needed was to see a person talking to someone with a criminal record in order to arrest him. This law did not seem to affects Tilly’s brothels. They flourished right on through the decade. By WWII, Tilly had become one of the wealthiest women in Sydney.

But the world of the underground was changing. Heroin and mobs brought in more danger and competition. By the 1950’s both empires were falling apart. The Taxation Department began bearing down on Tilly, forcing her to sell off her assets. By 1959 she owned just one house on Palmer Street. The dynasty was finished. Over the course of her career, Tilly had gained great wealth, survived shoot-outs, and, along with Kate, dominated the underworld in a way that has not been seen by a woman before or since.

The later years brought a softer side to Tilly. She got completely out of the prostitution business and when Kate died in 1964, Tilly showed up to pay her respects. By the time she died in 1970, Tilly Devine, the untouchable madam, had been largely forgotten. Only a few people came to her funeral. She left an estate of $11,000, a far cry from the days of her glory.