Fu Hao

Lady Fu Hao was a queen, general and high priestess of the Shang dynasty in Eastern China during the 13th Century BCE.

Fu Hao first became known when she married the Shang king, Wu Ding, and became one of his 60 wives. Fu Hao took advantage of the semi-matriarchal slave society to ascend through the ranks of the royal household, gain a leading position in the Shang army and become Wu Ding's most favoured wife. 

As a warrior Fu Hao gained notoriety for her efforts against the Tu-Fang, who despite having been fierce rivals of the Shang for generations were completely defeated by Fu Hao in a single decisive battle. She went on to become the Shang's most powerful military leader commanding a force of 13,000 soldiers with several other generals in service to her. She led successive military campaigns against the neighboring kingdoms of the Yi, Qiang and Ba.  The last of these involved her leading the earliest recorded ambush in Chinese history. 

Like other war chiefs Fu Hao was granted a fiefdom of land from the territories she conquered, from which she derived her own income. She was also an active politician and spiritual leader, acting as an adviser to the king and performing religious rituals as a high priestess. These were unusual roles for a woman at the time and reflected the faith that Wu Ding placed in her. 

Following Fu Hao's death the Shang's military dominance weakened under attacks by the Gong, causing Wu Ding to make repeated sacrifices and prayers to Fu Hao's spirit to defend them against invasion. Over the centuries Fu Hao's accomplishments descended into myth and many historians did not believe that she had really existed until her tomb was uncovered at Yinxu in 1976. The tomb contained detailed records of her life on oracle bone, as well as an arsenal of weapons including battle-axes bearing her personal inscription. 

Yevdokiya Zavaliy

Yevdokiya Zavaliy was a Soviet nurse, soldier and marine commander who fought in World War 2.

Born in 1924, Zavaliy was raised in a small village in the Mykolaiv region of Ukraine, where she worked on a farm. She was brutally exposed to the outbreak of World War 2 when enemy planes bombed her village and in the aftermath she treated injured soldiers by ripping up bed sheets from her home to make improvised bandages. The event left such an impression on her that she persuaded the commander of a cavalry regiment to take her with them to the front line, claiming to be 18 years old when she was in fact 16. 

Zavaliy started serving with the regiment as a nurse, but during this time she learned to shoot rifles, pistols and machine guns. She also became directly involved in conflicts, taking a wound to the abdomen during the retreat at Khortytsia island and saved the life of a wounded officer by dragging him to safety. She was awarded the Order of the Red Star for her bravery, but this was only to be the first decoration she would receive.

One day an officer mistook Zavaliy for a man as she wore soldier's clothes and her head had been shaved to remove lice. The officer ordered her to join a group of soldiers headed to the front line. Zavaliy decided to go along with the mistake and two hours later she took part in a battle near Goryachy Kluch with the 6th Airborne Brigade. She continued to serve in numerous battles under her new male identity and following her capturing of a German officer in combat she was appointed to commander of a reconnaissance squad. When Soviet troops were starving near Mozdok in late 1942, Zavaliy mounted a daring night raid across a river to a German camp, where she stole ammunition and provisions before sailing away on a raft.

The following year Zavaliy was a sergeant serving in the Kuban region when her company was surrounded during a heavy firefight and the company commander was killed. Seeing her fellow soldiers faltering Zavaliy took command, shouting for the men to follow her and leading them in a furious counter-attack which broke the enemy and sent them into retreat. The battle left her seriously injured and during her treatment the doctors discovered that she was a woman. Zavaliy expected to be dismissed and return to nursing, however in light of her many achievements she was allowed to stay in the army and in October 1943 she was promoted to commander of a submachine gunner platoon. 

While the men of her platoon were initially reluctant to follow the orders of a teenage girl, Zavaliy quickly won their respect. The platoon was repeatedly deployed to the forefront of the most intense fighting, where Zavaliy led her men in daring attacks on German lines, taking part in the defense of the Caucasus, the battle for Crimea and ultimately the Soviet expansion across Eastern Europe. She became so feared by German soldiers that they nicknamed her 'Frau Black Death'. Twice she was believed to have been killed in combat but both times she returned unscathed. In her military career she was wounded a total of 4 times and received approximately 40 medals of honour.

Zavaliy was eventually discharged from the army in 1947 and traveled to Kiev where she married and had 2 children. She spent much of her life working as the manager of a grocery store but also toured many cities and army bases where she was celebrated as a military hero. She died in Kiev in 2010.

Soviet Guerrillas

Soviet guerrillas operating in Russia during World War 2. 

Janina Forbertówna

Janina Forbertówna was a Polish resistance fighter who took part in the Warsaw Uprising against Nazi occupation in 1944. Using the codename 'Jasia' she worked as a liaison officer in the communist partisan Armia Ludowa, or 'People's Army'. What became of her after the failed uprising is unknown.

Hannah Snell

Hannah Snell (1723-1792) was a famous British soldier in the 18th century.

Born in Worcester in England, Snell is said to have had a fascination with soldiers even as a child. When she was a young woman she moved to London and in 1744 married a man named James Summs. The couple had a daughter, but the child died only one year old and Summs disappeared. Hearing a rumour that Summs had been pressed into military service, Snell borrowed the clothes of her brother-in-law, James Gray, and assumed his identity to join the British army and locate Summs. 

Although she later discovered that Summs had been convicted and executed for murder, this did not prevent Snell from pursuing an adventurous military career disguised as James Gray. According to her own account she became a soldier in the 6th Regiment of Foot, where she was stationed in Carlisle during the Jacobite rebellion in Scotland. During this time she was trained in military drill and the use of firearms. However after she prevented a sergeant from raping a local girl she was sentenced to 600 lashes of the whip for 'neglect of duty'. As she endured the first 500 lashes without making a sound her commanding officer ordered that she be spared the final 100 lashes.

Snell left the regiment after this and instead decided to travel to Portsmouth where she joined the British Royal Marines and set sail to India on the Swallow. In 1748 Snell fought in the naval Battle of Pondicherry where the British attempted to capture a French colony. She reportedly killed several Frenchmen before being wounded herself. She is also known to have fought in a battle at Devicotta and was wounded a total of 12 times during her naval service, including suffering a musket shot to the groin. She operated on herself to remove the musket ball so that she wouldn't be identified as a woman by the ship's surgeon.

In 1750 Snell returned to Britain and decided to finally reveal her true identity to the other members of her unit. With the encouragement of her shipmates she petitioned the head of the British army, the Duke of Cumberland, to grant her a military pension. Remarkably, the pension was granted and she was honourably discharged from the army. Snell's exploits became popular gossip around London and she eventually sold her story to a London publisher under the title 'The Female Soldier'.

Snell retired to Wapping where she opened a pub named 'The Female Warrior'. She lived for another 40 years, married twice more and raised 2 sons. In her old age Snell began to suffer from dementia and in 1791 she was admitted to the Bedlam asylum where she died 6 months later.

Gao Guiying

Gao Guiying was a Chinese revolutionary general who fought against the Ming and Qing dynasties during the early 17th century.

Gao was raised in Mizhi City at a time when the Ming dynasty that had ruled China for nearly 3 centuries was struggling to hold onto power in the face of numerous popular rebellions. In 1627 Gao met the outlaw Li Zicheng when he was brought to the Gao family home by her brother to hide from the authorities. Li was wanted for the murder of a local gang leader who had been terrorizing Yanan. Gao and Li formed a fast bond while they practiced martial arts together, with Gao repeatedly proving herself to be a most challenging opponent for Li. The pair married and began to instruct the local population in martial arts.

Eventually the authorities learned of Li's whereabouts and he and the Gao family were forced to flee their home. They joined a group of peasant rebels among whom Gao and Li quickly rose to positions of power. In 1630 they launched a large scale revolt. The pair split as Li led a an army of peasant men while Gao trained and educated her own army formed entirely of women. She established a stronghold in Changde in the Hunan region which became known as the 'Lady's Base' and would serve as her base of operations for the next 17 years. The rebellion was an enormous success as Gao and Li carved out their own huge territories across China and declared them independent from Ming rule.

In 1644 Li's forces captured the capital of Beijing, ending the Ming dynasty and declaring himself Emperor of the new Shun Dynasty with Gao as his Empress. However Li's reign was short-lived. The break-up of China had created a new enemy in the form of the Machunian Qing dynasty, who captured Beijing just months later and killed Li. Declaring herself the greatest opponent of the Qing, Gao allied herself with her former enemies, the Ming, some of whom still clung on in Southern China. She became the supreme military commander in the fight against the Qing and was given the noble title of 'Lady of the First Degree' by the King of Nantang.

Gao led the fight against the Qing until her death in 1647. She is remembered in Chinese culture as a remarkable leader and has appeared in novels, plays, films and comics.

Florine of Burgundy

Florine of Burgundy (1083-1097) was a French princess and a famous participant in the First Crusade.

Florine was a princess of the Duchy of Burgundy, a vassal state of the Kingdom of France. As a teenager she was married to the Danish prince, Sweyn the Crusader, with whom she set out with an army of 1500 Danish horsemen to join the First Crusade. While leading their army at a fast pace across the plains of Cappadocia they were ambushed by Turkish forces which overwhelmed them.

Florine and Sweyn were forced to defend themselves in a prolonged combat for a whole day, while the entirety of their army was slain around them. Florine sustained a number of arrow wounds but the two continued fight their way to safety in the nearby mountains. However they eventually succumbed to their attackers and died in battle. Florine was 14 years old.

Florine's life was later dramatised by William Bernard McCabe in the novel Florine, Princess of Burgundy.

Al-Aqsa Suicide Bomber Unit

Three young women make up a suicide bomber unit as part of the Palestinian Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, Gaza Strip, 2004.

Violette Morris

Violette Morris (1893-1944) was a decorated French athlete, race car driver, military nurse and Nazi intelligence operative.

A wild child from a French noble family, Morris spent her teenage years in a convent where she displayed an incredible aptitude for sports. At the age of 15 she was competing at the highest levels of boxing, swimming, weightlifting, javelin, shot put and discus. She was fond of describing herself with her cheeky motto "Anything a man can do, Violette can do".

Morris married Cyprien Gouraud in 1914 just before the outbreak of the First World War. During the war she served as military nurse driving an ambulance on the front lines during the Battle of Verdun and the Battle of the Somme. She also served as a warzone motorcycle courier, wrecking her bike on the crater-filled terrain at least three times, but always completing her mission.

After the war Morris returned to sports, playing for various French Women's Football teams and winning Olympic gold medals for discus, javelin and shot put. Her life driving on the front lines had given her a passion for speed and she competed twice in the Bol d'Or driving a 750cc Benjamin Ruby cyclecar. In 1923 she became the the French national boxing champion. Morris also defied society's expectations of women in her personal life, dressing in men's clothes, smoking heavily and swearing frequently. She was publicly known to be bisexual and was photographed attending the Parisian lesbian nightclub, Le Monocle. In 1929 she had a double mastectomy, stating that her large breasts interfered with her race car driving.

Public opinion eventually turned against Morris. She was banned from entering the 1928 Olympics and was subsequently smeared in the French press. Repeatedly forbidden from entering sporting competitions, Morris became bitter toward French society and in 1935 she agreed to become a spy for Nazi Germany. She was rewarded with a personal invitation from Adolf Hitler to be an honoured guest at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. Morris provided Germany with French tank schematics and plans of France's defenses along the the Maginot Line, information which proved integral to the German invasion of France in World War 2.

Following the German occupation of France, Morris became a member of the Carlingue, the French wing of the Gestapo secret police. She operated in counter-intelligence working against British SOE forces that were supporting the French Resistance. She was so effective in infiltrating resistance networks and extracting information through torture that she became known as the 'Gestapo's Hyena'. Her notorious success eventually led to resistance forces plotting to assassinate her. On April 26th 1944 Morris was driving her sports car when she was fatally ambushed by Resistance commandos armed with machine guns. Nobody claimed her body and she was buried in a communal grave.

Polisario Soldier

A soldier of the Polisario Front holds her child and a rifle during training in the Western Sahara, December 1978. The Polisario are a Sahrawi liberation movement who fought against Moroccan control of the Western Sahara from the 1970s to early 1990s. Female soldiers were key to defending the the Tindouf refugee camps during the conflict and today the women's wing of the Polisario contains around 10,000 members.

Dihya al-Kahina

Dihya al-Kahina was a Berber queen, religious and military leader who fought against Islamic expansion in Northwest Africa during the 7th century. Her name is recorded with a number of variations, including, Daya and Dahlia. 'al-Kahina', meaning 'sorceress', was a title given to her by her Muslim opponents because the defeats she inflicted on them were deemed the result of magic.

Dihya was raised in the Aures mountains in what is now modern-day Algeria. She was daughter to the chieftain of a Jewish Berber (Amazigh) tribe, however some sources suggest she also had some Greek heritage. Little of her childhood or private life is recorded, save for some accounts saying she had a passion for desert birds, her studies of which led to early advances in North African biological science.

In the early 7th century the Berbers of Northwestern Africa were under the control of the Exarchate of Carthage, itself a division of the Byzantine Empire. However after Egypt fell to Islamic conquest the Exarchate found itself in direct conflict with the Islamic Caliphates.  The Byzantine capital of Carthage eventually fell to the armies of the Umayyad General Hasan ibn al-Nu'man, essentially wiping out Byzantine control of the area. However with their former rulers defeated, Dihya was able to rally all of the Berber tribes under her leadership and she became know as the 'Queen of the Berbers'. She mounted a campaign of resistance against the Ummayyad invaders, at first using guerrilla warfare but quickly escalating into outright conflict. Under her instruction the disorganised Berber forces quickly transitioned into a well-disciplined army.

Seeing Dihya as the most powerful opponent in the region, General Hasan marched south to engage her. Their armies met near Meskiana, where Dihya's forces defeated Hasan's so completely that he fled the area and retreated to Libya for the next few years. During this time Dihya came close to establishing a new nation state, setting up new administrative systems to support her army.

However the Berbers had become the only opponent to Islamic rule in Africa and the Caliphates devoted enormous resources toward their defeat. Hasan returned with fresh forces, this time allied with one of Dihya's own sons who had defected. The Berber forces were defeated and Dihya herself was killed in the ensuing battle. Some accounts say she poisoned herself when defeat became inevitable, while others say she died in combat with a sword in her hand. As the last voice of resistance to Islamic rule in Northwest Africa, Dihya's death marked the end of an era for the region.

Eritrean Soldiers

Eritrean soldiers during the 30-year long Eritrean War of Independence between Eritrean forces and the Ethiopian government. Women made up 30% of Eritrea's army of 100,000 soldiers and were a popular symbol of the liberation effort.

After Eritrea won its independence in 1993 women were given 30% of the seats in parliament and gained new legal rights. However some complained that they were treated more respectfully as fighters than they were as civilians.

Virginia Ghesquière

Virginia Ghesquière was a soldier in the French army during the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte during the 19th century.

While little is known of Ghesquière's early life, it is established that she joined the French army in 1806. Ghesquière elected to take her brother Jean Baptiste's place in the French army, disguising herself as a man. Accounts vary as to whether her brother died in battle and she replaced him masquerading as another brother, or if she represented herself as Jean Baptiste himself in order to enlist. Regardless, Ghesquière served in the 27th Line Regiment of the army for 6 years.

Ghesquière had a distinguished military career serving in a number of campaigns during the Napoleonic Wars. In 1807 she took part in the invasion of Portugal during the Peninsular War, serving under General Jean-Andoche Junot. Distinguished numerous times for her performance, Ghesquière was promoted to Sergeant for her bravery at the Battle of Wagram, where she saved her captain from drowning in the Danube river. She was also commended for saving the life of a colonel who had fallen from his horse after being shot.

Ghesquière was injured in battle in 1812 and the surgeon treating her wounds discovered her identity as a woman. This led to her immediate dismissal from the army. However for her contribution in the war she was awarded the French Legion of Honor medal by Napoleon himself.

Ghesquière's dismissal from the army brought her a small amount of fame and she was featured in an article of the Journal de l'Empire newspaper. There was also a song composed about her life, which referred to her as the 'jolie sergent' (pretty sergeant). Although her year of birth is unknown, Ghesquière is believed to have been over 100 years old when she died in 1854.

Women's Army Corps Members

Members of the US Women's Army Corps at Camp Shanks, New York, on February 2nd 1945. This photo was taken before the women shipped out to Europe as part of an 800-strong Black American WAC battalion serving in World War 2.

Ecaterina Teodoroiu

Ecaterina Teodoroiu (1894-1917) was a Romanian soldier who fought against German forces during the First World War.

Teodoroiu spent her teenage years as a member of the Romanian Scouts and studied at the Girl's School in Bucharest. She planned to become a school teacher, however when Romania entered World War I on the Allied side in 1916 she instead decided to serve as a nurse with the Scouts. Inspired by the patriotism of the wounded soldiers she treated and the death of her brother in action, she decided to enlist as a soldier.

Although she had to apply several times before the Romanian army eventually accepted her, Teodoroiu saw combat in October 1916 at the first Battle of Jiu as part of General Ion Dragalina's 1st Army. Some accounts say that Teodoroiu played a key part in this battle by rallying soldiers defending a bridge. Despite initially repulsing the German offensive, the 1st Army was forced back and during the retreat Teodoroiu was captured. However she managed to escape, killing at least two German soldiers in the process while sustaining only a leg wound in return. 

She continued to serve in the army, however in November 1916 she was seriously wounded by a mortar strike and had to be hospitalised. She received the Military Virtue Medal, 1st Class, for her bravery and on her return to duty was promoted to Sublocotenent (Second Lieutenant) and given command of a 25-man platoon.

Teodoroiu was killed on September 3rd 1917, during the the Battle of Mărășești, the last battle fought between Romania and Germany in the war. She was hit in the chest by a burst of machine gun fire as she led her platoon against a unit of entrenched Germans. Her last words as she died were to call out "Forward, men, I'm still with you!".

Teodoroiu was buried in Târgu Jiu where her grave is honored by a monument. She is regarded as a heroine of Romania.

Cambodian Soldier

A Cambodian soldier carries a machine gun alongside her comrades during the Vietnam War. This photo was taken on 26th August 1970 in the Prek Tamak region of Cambodia, where heavy fighting took place between Cambodian forces and the Viet Cong. Many young women served as soldiers and medics in the rapidly expanded Cambodian army during this time.

Lakshmi Bai

Lakshmi Bai was Rani (queen) of the Indian state of Jhansi during the mid-19th century and a military leader during India's First War of Independence.

Born in Varanasi sometime between 1828 and 1835, Lakshmi Bai was the member of a high-class Marathi Brahman family. She was principally raised by her father and in addition to academic studies she was trained in horse riding, shooting and fencing. In 1842 she was married to the Maharaja (king) of Jhansi, Gangadhar Rao. In 1851 she gave birth to a son named Damodar Rao, however the child died at just four months old. In 1853 the Maharaja adopted the son of a cousin to preserve his line, also naming him who Damodar Rao. The Maharaja died the next day, leaving Lakshimi Bai to rule Jhansi as regent for her new son.

However because Damodar Rao was adopted, the British East India Company claimed that Jhansi no longer had a legitimate ruler and annexed its territories, forcing Lakshmi Bai to leave the palace at Jhansi Fort. Replaced by an agent of the Company, Lakshmi Bai refused to accept the rule of the British. When the Indian Rebellion broke out in March 1857 she supported the uprising, rapidly assembling an army to reclaim Jhansi Fort and once again declared herself the regent ruler.

Initially Lakshmi Bai was not interested in fighting the British beyond maintaining order in Jhansi and her forces were principally involved in border skirmishes with other regional lords. According to some accounts she led the charge in two of these battles personally, riding on horseback armed with swords. Her armies included a significant portion of women, who she ordered should be trained how to shoot.

In early 1858 the East India Company forced her hand by invading and laying siege to the city of Jhansi for 2 weeks. Lakshmi Bai's forces resisted fiercely, hoping to hold out long enough for the army of their ally Tatya Tope to assist them. However Tope was defeated before they could reach Jhansi and the British eventually breached Jhansi's defenses. Lakshmi Bai herself escaped with a small contingent of guards. Regrouping with Tope, Lakshmi Bai then scored a significant victory by successfully assaulting the city-fortress of Gwalior, seizing it's treasury and arsenal. She then marched toward Morar to counterattack the British in defense of Gwalior. During the ensuing battle she was unhorsed while fighting a British cavalry officer and killed. Gwalior was retaken by the British 3 days later.

Following her death the British General Hugh Rose described Lakshmi Bai as "the most dangerous of all Indian leaders". She is remembered today as a heroine of India, with numerous memorials in her name. The Indian National Army's first female regiment was named after her.

IRA Fighter

An IRA fighter in West Belfast during the 1970's. Women were an active part of both Republican and Loyalist groups during the Northern Ireland conflict commonly known as 'The Troubles'. She is armed with a US-obtained ArmaLite AR-18 rifle, which were often used by the IRA and held important symbolic status.

Catherina Linck

Catherina Margaretha Linck (c.1687 - 1721) was a Prussian soldier who lived in the early 18th century. Linck spent most of their adult life presenting themselves as a man and it is a subject of discussion as to whether Linck can be best described as a transman, a lesbian woman who impersonated a man, or genderfluid.

An illegitimate child of a widow, Linck was raised in an orphanage in Halle, which they then left aged 14. They spent a number of years with a religious group known as 'Inspirants', likely a form of Quakers. Linck went on to disguise themselves as a man in order to enlist as a soldier in the army of Hanover, using the name 'Anastasius Lagrantinus Rosenstengel'. They served in the army for 3 years until they deserted in 1708. When arrested for desertion Linck declared themself to be a woman in order to avoid being hanged, which was then verified by a medical examination.

Over the next several years Linck served in a number of armed forces across Prussia, including a Polish garrison and the army of of Hesse. However these periods of service repeatedly came to an end either due to Linck deserting or being exposed as a woman. When out of the army Linck worked in the cloth trade, often alternating their dress between male and female. When presenting as a man Linck used a horn to allow them to urinate while standing and wore a strap-on dildo made of stuffed leather when having intercourse with women.

In 1717 an impoverished Linck married an 18-year old woman named Catharina Margaretha Mühlhahn, using the same alias of Anastasius. The marriage was disapproved of by Mühlhahn's mother, who ultimately tore off Linck's clothes in a violent confrontation and reported them to the authorities. Both Linck and Mühlhahn were put on trial for the crime of 'female sodomy', to which Linck pleaded guilty. However Linck also professed that their intentions toward Mühlhahn had been honourable and that Mühlhahn had not fully understood the nature of their sexual intercourse. This was accepted and Mühlhahn was given a lesser sentence of 3 years imprisonment, followed by exile.

The trial caused controversy as officials could not agree if Linck's had committed sodomy under the biblical definition, punishable by death, or a lesser crime. The case was referred to King Frederick William I, who sentenced Linck to death by beheading. This was an unusual decision for it's time and in 1721 Linck became the last person in Europe to be executed for lesbian sexual activity.

Lam Thi Dep

Lam Thi Dep was a Viet Cong soldier who fought in the Vietnam War. The above photo of her was taken in 1972 in Soc Trang Province when she was 18 years old. Large numbers of North Vietnamese women like Lam Thi Dep fought for the Viet Cong and photos like this were often taken for propaganda purposes.

She is seen carrying an American M16 rifle. US-supplied South Vietnamese garrisons often gave these weapons to the Viet Cong as a gift, in exchange for being spared from their attacks.