History is full of brave women who have never received the recognition they deserve. These women show it pretty well! From a pirate fighting for freedom, to a woman leading a samurai army, and even a brutal 'Game of Thrones' style fighter, it's time to remember some of these women from history,
Marija Vasiljevna Oktyabrskaya - Tenkista
When Mary’s husband died fighting in World War II, she did what any grieving widow would do… She sold everything she had, bought a tank, called him a “fighting comrade,” and intended to kill as many Nazis as possible.
Mary grew up in poverty in Crimea in the early 20th century. She was one of ten children and they rarely had enough food. But Mary did not allow it to destroy her, but channeled her burden into a love of politics and the military.
She married Ilya Oktyabrsky, a military officer and the love of her life. Although they had no children, they had each other, and that was all Mary wanted. However, when Ilya was drafted into the Soviet army in World War II, Maria enthusiastically accompanied him. Eventually, Russia was attacked by Germany and brave soldiers like Ilya were needed. And then Mary got a call from a nightmare. Her beloved Ilya died.
After Ilya's death, Mary wrote to Stalin:
"My husband was killed in a fight defending his country. I want to take revenge on the fascist vermin for his death and for the death of Soviet people who were tortured by fascist barbarians. For that purpose, I invest all my money, 50,000 rubles in the National Bank to build a tank. I kindly ask you to call him "Comrade Comrade" and send me to the front as the driver of the tank in question. "
Maria underwent months of training as a tanker (which lasted far longer than the men’s training). It soon became clear that Mary could drive, shoot and fire grenades better than anyone else. And they sent her to the front.
Her first task was to help block German troops on the route to Moscow. She skillfully steered the tank across the battlefield, destroying several mortars, a machine gun nest, and enemy soldiers. And then she was hit! With the affected Comrade comrade out of action, Maria was told to stay on the spot and wait for help… Instead, she calmly got out of her tank in the middle of the war zone, repaired the tank, went back inside and went on the attack again. She was promoted to lieutenant, and continued to fight fiercely with her Comrade Comrade.
She was promoted to lieutenant, and continued to fight bravely with her Comrade Comrade. She was awarded the highest Soviet military honors. Even today, she is celebrated and remembered in Russia for her courage and heroism.
2. Samurai Tomoe Gozen
There were samurai in Japan, and they were the meanest ever! From the Middle Ages onwards, girls from samurai families could be trained as onna-bugeisha, which roughly translates as: WARRIORS. They were trained to fight (of course), as well as in math and science. These were extremely intelligent women who could also be military strategists and independently lead a group of men in a side-by-side fight.
One of the worst was Tomoe Gozen. Known for both courage and beauty, Tomoe was a 12th-century warrior who was not wise to mess with.
Tomoe fought in the Gempei War (the Great Japanese Civil War), and her fighting skills were so good that she was promoted to commander of one of the armies, by the leader and general - Lord Kiso no Yoshinaka.
She was in charge and, they won. Tomoe was always fearless. She regularly led armies of men in war, and once even led 300 samurai in the fight against 6,000 enemy soldiers. She was one of five survivors.
Jeanne De Clisson- The Lioness of Brittany
As a despised woman, Jeanne went from an average medieval noblewoman to a warrior. She dealt brutally with her enemies and soon became the most famous French warrior that everyone feared. Jeanne was married twice before marrying Oliver de Clisson in 1330. But this marriage was different because Jeanne and Oliver really loved each other, which was a rare occurrence at the time. They had several children and lived relatively nicely, until Oliver was drafted into the war sve and everything fell apart. The French and English fought for the Duchy of Brittany. Oliver chose to fight for France under Charles de Blois. All was well until Oliver was captured by the English and Charles de Blois accused Oliver of treason. When England and France finally declared a truce, France decided to celebrate it with the execution of Oliver.
Jeanne was devastated when her husband was beheaded. But she didn't want to put up with it and pretend to be a penitent widow. She wanted revenge on everyone who allowed Oliver to die. She sold everything to buy war equipment and set out to destroy the French nobility, Charles de Blois and even the French ruler - King Philip.
Her first target was the home of one of Charles de Blois' friends. She came to his castle with her children… and a small army of men. They let her in.
By morning almost everyone in the castle had been massacred and all stolen, leaving only a few survivors to testify to what they had seen.
Jeanne fled to England with her children in hopes that England would fund her revenge. Her wish came true: she got three warships which she painted black and developed red sails. Then, in the company of pirates, outlaws and followers, she sailed the canal, attacking every ship with a French flag. Jeanne fought at sea against France for thirteen years. It was rumored that if the French nobility were on board, Jeanne would pull out an ax and cut off their heads herself; just as they did to her beloved husband.She moved to England. where land was donated to her. She remarried and (surprisingly) returned to France… where she spent the rest of her life in peace.
Pirate Queen Grace OMalley
Known as the Irish pirate queen, Grace O’Malley was a woman you couldn’t mess with. From a little innocent girl, she became the queen of naval warriors, fighting for the rights of her people and defying Queen Elizabeth I.
Her father was an Irish elder, earning a living on ships carrying water and under his control for large sums of money, and sailing en route to and from exotic countries.
As a little girl, she joined her father on a ship ready for piracy. It turned out that Grace was a natural leader, and after her father’s death, she was the one who took over the family business, not her brothers.
At 15, she married a famous Irish war hero who belonged to the O’Flaherty family. Grace and her husband had three children, before he was killed in an ambush by an opposing clan.
Grace did not turn into a grieving widow. She took control of his fleet and found a new lover. By her early twenties, Grace had much of Ireland, a bunch of ships, and even more followers. She married once more, this time to a guy named Iron Richard. Grace gave birth to their child on the deck of one of her ships. Almost immediately after the birth, the ship was attacked. Of course, Grace led the attack, shooting at the enemy wrapped in a blanket.
The next big challenge came from England. Queen Elizabeth I decided to rule the Irish clans. Elizabeth used bribery and force to take away the power of Ireland's leading elders, princes and princesses. This did not stop Grace, who was able to further strengthen her empire. Queen Elizabeth I was disturbed by this and ordered her governor in Ireland to attack her home and take the children and half-brothers hostage. Of course, Grace did not give up, but sailed to England to demand that Elizabeth return her family. They met at Greenwich Palace,
Grace refused to bow to Elizabeth. After all… they were both queens. Also, she refused to hand over her dagger and fiercely blew her nose into a fine silk handkerchief, so she casually threw it into the nearest fireplace ignoring the disgusted queen's entourage.
After that, she negotiated with Elizabeth in fluent Latin. It was decided that Elizabeth's governor should leave Ireland and free Graca's family. In return, Grace had to promise not to join the Irish rebels - Grace agreed and returned to Ireland… where she joined the Irish rebels and continued to live to a ripe old age.
