Arthur Shelby, Jr. (born 1887) was a Birmingham-based English gangster, racketeer, and illegal bookmaker who led the Peaky Blinders gang during the early 20th century. He was the older brother of Tommy Shelby, serving as the Deputy Vice-President of Shelby Company Limited under his brother.
Biography[]
Shelby in military uniform
Arthur Shelby, Jr. was born in 1887, the son of Arthur Shelby, Sr. and the older brother of Tommy Shelby, John Shelby, Finn Shelby, and Ada Thorne. The Shelby family was of paternal Irish Traveller descent and of Romani heritage through their mother. The brothers were raised in Birmingham, living at 6 Watery Lane and becoming members of the infamous Peaky Blinders gang. He and his brother served in the British Army during World War I, and Arthur fought as a sapper at Gallipoli and on the Western Front. After the war's end, Arthur became the leader of the Peaky Blinders, serving as the brawn of the gang while his brother Tommy was its brains. However, Arthur lacked authority, and, when he was arrested and interrogated by Inspector Chester Campbell as the suspected leader of the gang, he did not know about his brother's theft of an arms shipment from Belfast which was to be shipped to Libya. His trauma from the war and his poor relationship with his father led to several suicide attempts and a decline in his mental state, and Tommy came to be the new leader of the gang due to Arthur's inability to lead.