Aycliffe Angels was the name given to the workers of ROF Aycliffe; a World War II Munitions factory in County Durham.
Origins of the nameThe name comes from William Joyce, known as Lord Haw Haw who was an American traitor working for the Nazis during World War II.
Joyce broadcast Nazi propaganda over medium and short wave radio to Britain and the United States.
In numerous broadcasts he had said “The little angels of Aycliffe won’t get away with it,” and promising that the Luftwaffe would bomb them into submission.
17,000 Women came from the surrounding towns and villages to work at the factory filling shells and bullets and assembling detonators and fuses for the war effort.
By its nature the work was very dangerous and many workers were killed and injured during the manufacturing process; however due to the secrecy surrounding the factory and its workers, many incidents went unrecorded and unreported in the news and their efforts went unrecognised.
In 2000, the Northern Echo launched a campaign to have their work officially recognised, this led to a memorial service which was attended by Prime Minister and local MP Tony Blair and the Queen.
A permanent memorial was also placed in Newton Aycliffe town centre commemorating their efforts.
More about Aycliffe’s history can be found at Great Aycliffe Town Council’s new website: http://www.great-aycliffe.gov.uk/info/about-aycliffe/the-newton-aycliffe-story.html