Amazing Women In History

Queen Anna of Denmark, Theater Pioneer & Patron of the Arts

August 3, 2016 by Miranda Garno Nesler Leave a Comment

Queen Anna of Denmark, Theater Pioneer & Patron of the Arts

Following the death of queen Elizabeth I, Queen Anna of Denmark became England’s first queen consort in over 40 years. As the wife of reigning King James I, Anna’s royal position differed vastly from Elizabeth’s. Anna after all did not have governing powers, and her position as James’ “wife” (femme covert) folded her legal identity […]

Filed Under: Leaders & Rulers, Performers Tagged With: 16th century women, 17th century women, english women, patron of the arts, queens, women actors, women of the nobility

Gertrude Bell, Al Khatun: Queen of the Desert

March 18, 2014 by Elizabeth Chandler 1 Comment

Gertrude Bell, Al Khatun: Queen of the Desert

British-born Gertrude Bell, also referred to as the female Lawrence of Arabia, was an adventurer, spy, archaeologist and powerful political force who travelled into the uncharted Arabian desert and was recruited by British Military Intelligence to help reshape the Middle East after World War I. She drew the borders of Iraq, helped install its first […]

Filed Under: Artists, Leaders & Rulers, Other Tagged With: 20th century women, english women, women adventurers, women archaeologists, women photographers, women spies

Elizabeth Woodville, The White Queen

January 22, 2014 by Abbie McDonough 10 Comments

Elizabeth Woodville, The White Queen

In the 1400s Britain was embroiled in a civil war known as the Cousins War, or the Wars of the Roses. Most people remember the Kings and the many battles… but behind the scenes Elizabeth Woodville was always there, pulling strings to keep her children from harm and to bring them to greatness. With every […]

Filed Under: Leaders & Rulers Tagged With: 15th century women, british women, english women, queens

Elizabeth Yates, the British Empire’s first female mayor

November 6, 2012 by KeriLynn Engel Leave a Comment

Elizabeth Yates, the British Empire’s first female mayor

Elizabeth Yates (1845–1918) was the mayor of Onehunga in New Zealand in 1894, just two months after women gained the right to vote in New Zealand. This made her the first woman to be a mayor anywhere in the British Empire. Born Elizabeth Onan in Scotland, she was the older of two daughters. She moved […]

Filed Under: Leaders & Rulers, Women Firsts Tagged With: 19th century women, new zealand women, scottish women, women mayors, women politicians

Queen Liliʻuokalani, first and last queen regnant of Hawaii

September 27, 2012 by KeriLynn Engel 6 Comments

Queen Liliʻuokalani, first and last queen regnant of Hawaii

Liliʻ (1838–1917), born Lydia Liliʻ Loloku Walania Wewehi Kamakaʻ, was the first female monarch of Hawaii to reign in her own right. Up until the 1890s, the Kingdom of Hawaiʻ was an independent sovereign state, officially recognized by the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, and Germany. During Liliʻ’s reign, the Overthrow of the […]

Filed Under: Featured, Leaders & Rulers, Musicians, Women Firsts Tagged With: 19th century women, hawaiian women, pacific islander women, women poets, women songwriters

Ana Nzinga Mbande, fearless African queen

January 12, 2012 by KeriLynn Engel

Ana Nzinga Mbande, fearless African queen

Queen Nzinga Mbande was a ruthless and powerful 17th century African ruler of the Ndongo and Matamba Kingdoms (modern-day Angola). Nzinga fearlessly and cleverly fought for the freedom and stature of her kingdoms against the Portuguese, who were colonizing the area at the time. Around the turn of the 17th century, the independent kingdoms and […]

Filed Under: Leaders & Rulers, Warriors & Soldiers Tagged With: 17th century women, african women, black women, queens

Corazon Aquino, revolutionary president of the Philippines

December 29, 2011 by KeriLynn Engel 14 Comments

Corazon Aquino, revolutionary president of the Philippines

Corazon Aquino (1933-2009) was the first female president of the Phillipines, and is known for leading the People Power Revolution in 1986 which restored democracy to the country. She was named TIME’s Woman of the Year in 1986. Cory Aquino did not aspire to be a politician. In 1955, after graduating from Mount St. Vincent […]

Filed Under: Activists, Leaders & Rulers, Women Firsts Tagged With: 20th century women, asian women, filipino women, latinas, women politicians, women presidents

Sayyida al Hurra, Islamic pirate queen

December 13, 2011 by KeriLynn Engel 6 Comments

Sayyida al Hurra, Islamic pirate queen

Sayyida al Hurra was a 16th-century pirate queen. Though Islamic records of the time are strangely silent about her, she was a powerful force of the time and an equal ally of the famous pirate Barbarossa. Her real name is unknown; the title Sayyida al Hurra means “noble lady who is free and independent; the […]

Filed Under: Leaders & Rulers, Warriors & Soldiers Tagged With: 16th century women, islamic women, muslim women, queens, women pirate

Nana Asma’u: princess, poet, reformer of Muslim women’s education

December 4, 2011 by KeriLynn Engel 7 Comments

Nana Asma’u: princess, poet, reformer of Muslim women’s education

Nana Asma’u (1793-1863) was a princess, poet, and teacher, and is considered the precursor to modern feminism in Africa. She had such an impact of the education of women, that in Nigeria today, many Islamic women’s organisations, schools, and meeting halls are named after her. Nana was a member of the Fodio clan who ruled […]

Filed Under: Activists, Leaders & Rulers, Teachers, Writers Tagged With: 19th century women, african women, black women, muslim women, nigerian women, princess

Eugenia Charles, Dominica’s first female prime minister

November 18, 2011 by KeriLynn Engel Leave a Comment

Eugenia Charles, Dominica’s first female prime minister

Eugenia Charles (1919-2005) was the Prime Minister of Dominica from 1980 to 1995. She was Dominica’s first and only female prime minister, and Dominica’s longest-serving prime minister. She became interested in law while working at the colonial magistrate’s court. After studying law at the University College of the University of Toronto and the London School […]

Filed Under: Activists, Leaders & Rulers, Women Firsts Tagged With: 20th century women, black women, caribbean women, dominican women, women politicians

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Amazing Women In History by KeriLynn Engel
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