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Women in post classical warfare

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A variety of roles were played by women in post-classical warfare. James Illston says "the field of medieval gender studies is a growing one, and nowhere is this expansion more evident than the recent increase in studies which address the roles of medieval women in times of war....this change in research has been invaluable." He provides a 20-page bibliography of dozens of recent scholarly books and articles, most of them connected to the crusades.

Contents

5th century

  • 4th-6th century: Possible time period that the legendary woman warrior Hua Mulan may have lived.
  • 451: Saint Genevieve is credited with averting Attila from Paris by rallying the people in prayer.

    • 6th century

  • 6th century: A Saxon woman is buried with a knife and a shield in Lincolnshire, England.
  • 6th century: Lady Xian personally leads her army in China.
  • 589: The royal nuns Basina, daughter of Chilperic I, and Clotilda rebel and take power in the city of Poitiers by the use of an army of criminals.

    • 7th century

  • 7th century (before 637): Life of Mo Chua of Balla. The account of his life describe him as converting two violent "Amazons" named Bee and Lithben.
  • 617-618: Princess Pingyang of China helps overthrow the Sui Dynasty by organizing an "Army of the Lady".
  • 624: Battle of Badr. Qurayshi Arab priestess Hind al-Hunnud leads her people against Muhammad in the fight. Her father, uncle, and brother are killed. Rufaida Al-Aslamia, the first Muslim nurse, attends to the wounded.
  • 625: Hind al-Hunnud is among fifteen women accompanying troops in a battle near Medina, singing songs to inspire warriors. She exults over the body of the man who killed her father, chews his liver, and makes jewelry from his skin and nails.
  • 625: Nusaybah bint Ka'ab fights in the Battle of Uhud on behalf of Muhammad after converting to Islam. Hammanah bint Jahsh also participated in the Battle of Uhud and provided water to the needy, and treated the wounded and injured. Rumaysa bint Milhan entered the battle carrying a dagger in the folds of her dress, and tended to the wounded. She also made attempts to defend Muhammad when the tide of the battle turned against him.
  • 627: Rumaysa bint Milhan participates in the Battle of the Trench carrying a dagger in her robes. When Muhammad asked her what she was doing with it, she informed him that she planned to use it to fight deserters.
  • 630s Ghazala al-Haruriyya lead troops in battle.
  • 630s: Khawlah bint al-Azwar participate actively in combat during the Battle of Adnajin dressed as a man.along with several other women, takes command of the Rashidun army at the Battle of Yarmouk against the Roman Byzantine Empire. She was nearly beaten by a Byzantine Greek when one of her female companions, Wafayra, beheaded her opponent with one blow. This act rallied the Arabs and they defeated the Greeks.
  • 632: Prophetess Sajah, a contemporary of Muhammad, led an army of 4,000 against Medina after his death, but called off the attack when she learned of the defeat of Tulayha.
  • 634: Umm Hakim single-handedly disposed of seven Byzantine soldiers with a tent pole during the Battle of Marj al-Saffar.
  • 653: Chen Shuozhen leads a peasant rebellion in China, declaring herself empress regnant of China.
  • 656: Aisha, widow of Muhammad, leads troops at the Battle of the Camel. She is defeated.
  • 690s: Dihya or Kahina, leads Berber resistance against the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb.

    • 8th century

  • 8th to 11th century (Viking Age): Sagas and historical records tell of Viking shieldmaidens like Lagertha participating in battles and raids, such as Veborg in the Battle of Brávellir in 750.
  • 722: Queen Æthelburg of Wessex destroys the town of Taunton.
  • 730: A Khazar noblewoman named Parsbit commands an army against Armenia.
  • 769: Gülnar Hatun, a semi-legendary Turkish heroine, is killed fighting the Abbasids.

    • 9th century

  • 811: After suffering great losses, Khan Krum mobilizes the women of the Bulgars, who then take part in the Battle of Pliska.
  • 816-837: Banu Khorramdin, famed for her archery, fights the Abbasid Caliphate in open warfare alongside her spouse Pāpak Khoramdin.
  • 880: Ermengard of Italy conducts the defense of Vienne until forced to surrender in September 882.

    • 10th century

  • 10th-century: According to legend, Saint Theodora of Vasta, in Arcadia of Peloponnesus, joined the army of Byzantine Empire in her father's stead dressed as a man, to spare her father from conscription, and had no brother who could take his place: when refusing to marry a woman who claimed to have been made pregnant by her, she is executed, resulting in the discovery of the biological gender of her corpse, and her status as a saint for the sacrifice she made for her father.
  • 912–922: Reign of Æthelflæd, queen of Mercia. She commanded armies, fortified towns, and defeated the Danes. She also defeated the Welsh and forced them to pay tribute to her.
  • 971: Sviatoslav I of Kiev attacked the Byzantine Empire in Bulgaria in 971. When the Varangians were defeated in the siege of Dorostolon, the victors were stunned to discover shieldmaidens among the fallen warriors.
  • 975: Adelaide-Blanche of Anjou, acting for her sons Guy and Bertrand, led an army to aid Guy (a.k.a. Guido II), Count-Bishop of le Puy, in establishing the "Peace of God" in le Puy.
  • 986: The Khitan Dowager Regent Empress Xiao Yanyan of the Khitan Liao state, regnal title Chengtian, assumes power at age 30 in 982. In 986, personally led her own army against the Song dynasty and defeated them in battle.

    • 11th century

  • Early 11th century: Freydís Eiríksdóttir, a Viking woman, sails to Vinland with Þorfinnr "Karlsefni" Þórðarson. When she faced hostile natives while pregnant, she exposed her breasts and beat her chest with a sword. This caused the natives to run away.
  • 1016: Adela of Hamaland defend the fortress Uplade in the Netherlands in the absence of her spouse, and fills out the ranks of her defense force with women dressed as soldiers.
  • 1047: Akkadevi, an Indian princess, besieges the fort of Gokage.
  • 1050: Norwegian noblewoman Bergljot Håkonsdatter raise an army to kill the king for murdering her spouse and son: she takes the king's estate, but by then the king had manage to escape her.
  • 1058–1086: Sikelgaita of Salerno, second wife of Robert Guiscard, Duke of Apulia, accompanies her husband on military campaigns, and regularly puts on full armor and rides into battle at his side.
  • 1071: Richilde, Countess of Hainaut is captured fighting in the Battle of Cassel.
  • 1072: Urraca of Zamora, Infanta of the Kingdom of Castile, defends the city of Zamora against her brother, Sancho.
  • 1087: Matilda of Tuscany personally leads a military expedition to Rome in an attempt to install Pope Victor, but the strength of the imperial counterattack soon convinced the pope to retire from the city.
  • 1090: Norman woman Isabel of Conches rides armed as a knight.
  • 1097: Florine of Burgundy participates in the first crusade with her spouse, and fell participating in actual combat by his side while their army was attacked and destroyed in Anatolia.

    • 12th century

  • 1101: Ida of Formbach-Ratelnberg leads her own army in the Crusade of 1101.
  • 1121: Urraca of León fights her half-sister, Theresa, Countess of Portugal when she refuses to surrender the city of Tui, Pontevedra.
  • 1130: Female Chinese general Liang Hongyu, wife of general Han Shizhong of the Song Dynasty, blocks the advance of the Jin army with her husband. Her drumming invigorated the Song army and rallied them to defeat the Jin.
  • 1136: Welsh princess Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd leads an army against the Normans. She is defeated and killed.
  • 1141: Matilda of Boulogne raises an army to continue the fight for the crown of England, after her husband, King Stephen is captured by the Empress Matilda.
  • 1145: Eleanor of Aquitaine accompanies her husband on the Second Crusade.
  • 1147: Fannu, an Almoravid princess, participate in the defense of the Almoravid dynasty capital's fortress in Marrakech dressed as a man during the conquest of the Almohad jihad.
  • 1150: The Swedish nobleman Jon Jarl are killed by Baltic pirates who attacks his estate Askenös after his return from the First Swedish Crusade, after which his widow, the Lady of Askanäs (her name is not preserved), flee to Hundhammar, gather an army and return to kill the murderers of her spouse.
  • 1170-1176: Aoife MacMurrough conducts battles in Ireland on behalf of her consort Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke and is sometimes known as "Red Eva".
  • 1172: Alrude Countess of Bertinoro ends a siege of Ancona by leading an army into battle and crushing imperial troops.
  • 1179: Elizabeth of Hungary, Duchess of Bohemia successfully defends Prague toward her brother-in-law Sobeslav II as regent during the absence of her spouse. She appeared herself on the battle field with clerical signs on her banner.
  • 1180–1185: Female Japanese warrior Tomoe Gozen fights in the Genpei War alongside men.
  • 1182-1199: Hōjō Masako rides with her spouse Minamoto no Yoritomo on his campaigns and was never defeated in battle.
  • 1184: Elizabeth of Hungary, Duchess of Bohemia, for the second time, successfully defends Prague toward her brother-in-law Sobeslav II as regent during the absence of her spouse.
  • September 1187: Sibylla, Queen of Jerusalem, personally leads the defense of the city of Jerusalem during the siege of Saladin.
  • 1189: Elizabeth of Hungary, Duchess of Bohemia defends Prague toward Conrad II of Bohemia but is forced to surrender and turn over the city.
  • 1191-1217: Nicola de la Haye defended loyalist interests against rebel barons in Lincoln, England.
  • 1198: Maud de Braose defends Plainscastle against Welsh attack.
  • 1199: Countess Joan of Toulouse sieges Les Cassés.
  • Late 12th-century: Umadevi, consort of King Veera Ballala II, commanded Mysore armies against the rival Chalukyas on at least two occasions, allowing Bellala to concentrate on administrative matters and thus significantly contributing to the Hoysalas' conquest of the Chalkyua at Kalyani (near present-day Bidar).

    • 13th century

  • 1201: Japanese woman Hangaku Gozen defends a fort as an archer until she is killed by an arrow.
  • 1221: A daughter of Genghis Khan, Khagan of the Mongol Empire, massacred the residents of Nishapur to avenge the death of her husband who was killed in action.
  • 1230: The regent of France, Blanche of Castile, organized and personally lead the French army to subdue a rebel in Brittany.
  • 1236-1239: Reign of Razia Sultana. She led her troops in battle.
  • 1236-1294: Female warriors attended the campaigns of the Mongols.
  • 1258: Doquz Khatun accompanies her husband Hulagu on campaigns. At the Sack of Baghdad in 1258, the Mongols massacred tens of thousands of inhabitants, but by the order of Doquz, the Christians were spared.
  • 1261–1289: Reign of Indian queen Rudrama Devi. She leads her troops in battle, and may have been killed in battle in 1289.
  • 1264: Eleanor of Provence raises troops in France for her husband during the Baron's War.
  • 1270: Eleanor of Castile accompanies her husband on his crusade. According to legend, she saved his life by sucking poison from his wound when he was injured.
  • 1271: Isabella of Aragon, Queen of France dies at Cosenza on the way back from the Crusades.
  • 1285: Mercadera, dressed as a man, wounds and capture a French knight during the French siege of the Aragonese city of Peralada.
  • 1290: Royal Armouries Ms. I.33 is written. It depicts fighters. An illustration of a woman named Walpurgis training in sword and buckler techniques is in the manuscript among others.
  • 1296: Bertha van Heukelom defends Castle IJsselstein against Hubrecht van Vianen of Culemborg
  • 1297: Joan I of Navarre, Countess of Champagne, leads an army against the Count of Bar when he invaded her domain Champagne.
  • Late 13th century: Khutulun, a relative of Kublai Khan, is described as a superb warrior and accompanies her father Khaidu on military campaigns.

    • 14th century

  • 14th century: Urduja, a Filipino princess, takes part in several battles. Many historians believe that she was mythical, however.
  • 1326: Isabella of France invades England with Roger de Mortimer, and overthrows Edward II of England, replacing him with her son Edward III of England, with her and de Mortimer acting as regents.
  • 1331: Queen Tribhuwana Wijayatunggadewi leads her army to crush a rebellion in the areas of Sadeng and Keta.
  • 1335: During the Second War of Scottish Independence Christina Bruce commanded the garrison of Kildrummy Castle and successfully held the castle against pro-Baliol forces led by David III Strathbogie.
  • 1335: The Scots defeat a company led by the Count of Namur. Amongst the Count's casualties was a female lancer who had killed her opponent, Richard Shaw, at the same moment that he had killed her. Her gender was only discovered when the bodies were being stripped of their armor at the end of the engagement. "The chronicler Bower seems to have been at least as impressed by the rarity of two mounted soldiers simultaneously transfixing one another with their lances as with the fact that one of them was a woman."
  • 1338: Agnes Randolph successfully defends her castle against a siege by England's earl of Salisbury.
  • 1341: Anna of Trebizond marches to take the throne of Trebizond at the head of an army.
  • 1342-1343: Joanna of Flanders conquers the city of Redon and defends the city of Hennebont during the Breton war.
  • 1354: Ibn Battuta reports seeing female warriors in Southeast Asia.
  • 1351–1363: Han E serves as a soldier in the Chinese army as a man under the name Han Guanbao, and is promoted to lieutenant.
  • 1351–1357: Cia Ordelaffi née Marzia degli Ubaldini an Italian noblewoman from Forlì came in help of Lodovico Ordelaffi during the battle of Dovadola (part of the Guelphs and Ghibellines war). In 1357 she took part in the defense of Cesena during the Forlivesi crusade induced by Pope Innocent VI.
  • 1358: Richardis of Schwerin defends Sönderborg Castle on Als against Valdemar IV of Denmark.
  • 1364–1405: Timur uses female archers to defend baggage trains.
  • 1387: Queen Jadwiga of Poland leads two military campaigns.
  • 1389: Frisian regent Foelke Kampana leads armies to assist her spouse Ocko Kenisna tom Brok, chief of Auricherland: after finding him dead on the battlefield, she returns to Aurich, and upon finding it taken by an enemy during her absence, she retakes it by military force.
  • 1392: Maria, Queen of Sicily, conquers Sicily and defeats the rebelling barons as the leader of an army alongside her consort.

    • 15th century

  • 15th century: Maire o Ciaragain leads Irish clans in rebellion.
  • 1419: Margaret of Bavaria defend French Burgundy against John IV, Count of Armagnac.
  • 1420: Joan of France, Duchess of Brittany, launches war against the Penthievre clan in Brittany and their strongholds one by one until she conquers the last, to free her consort, the duke, who was taken prisoner by the Penthievre.
  • 1420: Tang Saier starts a rebellion against the emperor of China and take two cities with her rebel army before she is defeated.
  • 1428: Cecília Rozgonyi commanded her own ship in battle toward the Ottoman Empire under Sigismund of Hungary at Golubac fortress.
  • 1428: Philippa of England, Queen of Denmark, successfully organized the defence of Copenhagen against the Hanseatic League, a heroic feat later recounted by Hans Christian Andersen in Godfather's Picture Book (1868).
  • 1429: Joan of Arc asserts that God has sent her to drive the English out of France, and is given a position in the French Royal army. She is supported by Yolande of Aragon, mother of Queen Marie d'Anjou (wife of King Charles VII).
  • 1430s: Jeanne des Armoises was a soldier in Italy.
  • 1430: Aldonça de Bellera defend her barony of Rialp in Catalonia against count Arnau Roger of IV Pallars.
  • 1432: Isabella, Duchess of Lorraine, leads an army to rescue her husband from the Duke of Burgundy.
  • 1433: Ida Königsmarck legendary defense her fief Kastelholm Castle on Åland in Swedish Finland during the Engelbrekt rebellion.
  • 1450s: Zaydi Yemeni chieftain Sharifa Fatima conquers San'a'.
  • 1451–1452 : Brita Tott serves as a spy in the war between Sweden and Denmark
  • 1455: Elise Eskilsdotter leads a war against the German merchant class of Bergen in Norway as revenge for the murder of her spouse, by means of her pirate fleet.
  • 1461: Alice Knyvet defends Buckingham Castle at Norfolk against Sir Gilbert of Debenhem.
  • 1467: Ólöf Loftsdóttir personally leads the war against the English on Iceland.
  • 1470: Joanna of Rožmitál leads the Czech army in war.
  • 1471: Queen Margaret of Anjou personally leads her troops in the Battle of Tewkesbury.
  • 1472: Onorata Rodiana from Cremona, Italy is mortally wounded in battle. She had disguised herself as a man to become a soldier.
  • 1472: Jeanne Hachette rips down the flag of the invading Burgundians at Beauvais, inspiring the garrison to win the fight.
  • 1474: Caterina d'Ortafà participate in the defense of Canet-en-Roussillon during the French invasion of Roussilon following the Catalonian Civil War.
  • 1480s: Mandukhai Khatun takes command of the Mongol army and defeats the Oirats.
  • 1481: Dutch noblewoman Swob Sjaarda defends her castle during a siege in the Netherlands.
  • 1482-1492: Queen Isabella I of Castile actively participates in the warfare and conquer of Granada.
  • 1487: Katarina Nipertz defends Raseborg Castle in Finland, the fief of her late spouse, against the troops of the new vassal appointed by the regent, for several weeks.
  • 1494: Ats Bonninga defends her fort in Friesland.
  • 1496: Bauck Poppema defends her fort in Friesland.
  • 1499: Caterina Sforza successfully defends Forli against a Venetian attack and become famous and nicknamed "The Tiger".

    • References

    Women in post-classical warfare Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA