The Colonial Lords were a Coney Island-based street gang in Sol Yurick's novel The Warriors. They were the main rivals of the Coney Island Dominators but briefly engaged in a truce at the behest of The Delancey Thrones during the big meeting. The truce was later broken after the death of the Thrones' leader.
In the Novel[]
Little is known about The Lords outside of their actions in the novel. Their appearance is never described, nor their ethnicity. They're described as a group of "junkies and psychos" and poor fighters, and their women are described as ugly and loose. These descriptions come from the perspective of The Dominators, however, and may just be simple bias or smack talk. Most of their members live in a single housing project.
Before the start of the novel, the leader of the Delancey Thrones, Ismael Rivera, calls a meeting of all the biggest gangs in the city, enforcing a strict truce between them. The leaders of both The Dominators and The Lords agree to this. The Lords are led by a banger called "The First of the Lords." Who is described as mocking, smug and crass.
They are first seen greeting the Dominators outside a candy shop. Their leader, "The First" greets Papa Arnold, leader of Lords, in a friendly manner, but still tries to appear tough and intimidating. The delegates of the gang are described as nervous while on Lord turf, remembering the battles of the past and fearing that a flying brick, bat or firecracker could come at any time.
The First's lieutenant, Willie, insults the Dominators, but The First is quick to reprimand him. The girlfriends of several of the Lords' start trash-talking the Dominators and goading the Lords to attack them, but one of the Lords' smacks his girlfriend and tells her to be quiet. The Lords and Dominators attend the big meeting together.
When they arrive in the middle of the night in Van Cortlandt Park, they are separated from the Dominators and sent to a designated spot. Later, the meeting descends into chaos and infighting and is raided by police forces. Many gang members are injured, killed or arrested as the Dominators make their escape.
In the morning, only Junior, Dewey and Hinton are able to make it back to Coney, with Papa Arnold apparently returning separately. Though the others want to go home, Hinton expresses anger and paranoia, stating that now that most of their best fighters are gone that their rivals will strike at any time, and that they need to preemptively attack The Lords to send a message. The three raid their rivals territory, but no matter how much they scream or insult, no members come out. Hinton then defaces their clubhouse with graffiti filled with obscene drawings and insults towards their women.
It is unknown what became of the Colonial Lords. Their complete absence at the end of the book seems to imply their delegates were either lost, arrested or killed and that without them, the gang either dissolved or simply went into hiding, unable to even counter three members of their rival gang.
In Other Media[]
The Colonial Lords, due to their small role in the novel, don't have a direct equivalent in the film. The closest parallel is The Rogues, who are similar to them in that they're antagonistic to the main gang, behave psychotically and are led by leaders who are mocking and cruel. The final showdown in the film slightly mirrors the paint bombing at the end of the book, as both confrontations happen after the gangs return home and end rather abruptly. However, The Rogues are not the main rivals to The Warriors until the events of the film, and don't have territory in Coney Island.
The Destroyers from the video game are much more similar to The Lords, being a rival Coney Island gang in a feud with the main characters. The Lords' description as "junkies and psychos" fits The Destroyers to a T. Just like his book counterpart, Hinton, Rembrandt even paint-bombs the Destroyers' clubhouse. However, while the fate of The Lords is left ambiguous, The Destroyers are explicitly wiped out. Also, The Warriors are an offshoot of The Destroyers, while the Dominators have no such history with their rival gang.
Members[]
- The First of the Lords (Warlord)
- Willie (Main Lieutenant)
- Deb of the Lords (The First's Girlfiend)
- Unnamed Delegates/Soldiers
- Unnamed Girlfriends
Trivia[]
- Their leader, The First of the Lords, is named after the "First Lord of the Admiralty." A defunct position in the military of the United Kingdom.
- The First describes his lieutenant, Willie, as having "Brain Problems." Though this is likely just an insult.
- The First has a girlfriend, named "Deb." She is named when Hinton insults her in his graffiti.