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In 1905 Herbert Austin set up Austin Motor Company in Longbridge in Birmingham. By 1914 it was one of the chief businesses in Britain, employing 2,000 people manufacturing cars.

But when war broke out, orders for cars dried up and Austin鈥檚 factory was harnessed to turn out munitions.

The next few years saw a surge in the size of the factory. By 1918, mainly due to the war effort there were 20,000 plus employees, the majority of which were women.

Austin disapproved of women working and in an unfinished autobiography said: 鈥淭he large number of women that drifted into the factories during and since the war has in my opinion been the cause of great national losses. These women get practically no home training. They get married, are unable to manage their homes or children properly and the result is a national fall in the physique of our man and womanhood.鈥�

He suffered his own huge personal loss early on in the war; his only son Vernon was killed in 1915.

At the end of the war the company went into administration. Austin tossed a coin to decide whether to continue with the business or give it up.

However, it went on to become one of Britain鈥檚 most successful car firms.

Location: Longbridge Technology Park, Birmingham B31 2TS
Image: Austin vehicle in Austin village at Turves Green

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