Historical Badasses


[Image description: A depiction of Kate Warne.] Via pinkerton.com
[Image description: A depiction of Kate Warne.] Via pinkerton.com

Meet the woman detective who saved Abraham Lincoln’s life

Theresa Personna
[Image description: A copy of "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen surrounded by roses.] Via Unsplash
[Image description: A copy of "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen surrounded by roses.] Via Unsplash

An aspiring author’s love letter to Jane Austen

Karis Rogerson
Amybeth McNulty as Anne Shirley-Cuthbert In Netflix's Anne with an E.] via IndieWire
Amybeth McNulty as Anne Shirley-Cuthbert In Netflix's Anne with an E.] via IndieWire

Anne of Green Gables was a symbol of strength and resistance during World War II

Fatemeh Mirjalili

A picture of Jnanadanandini Devi
A picture of Jnanadanandini Devi

This unstoppable feminist set fire to Bengali society

Sreemoyee Banerjee

Hurrem Sultan was the Ottoman empire’s femme fatale

Safa Shoaib
[Image descriptions: Pirate Zheng Yi Sao fights off her enemies.] Via Wikimedia Commons.
[Image descriptions: Pirate Zheng Yi Sao fights off her enemies.] Via Wikimedia Commons.

The greatest pirate of all time was a widow from China

Supreeta Balasubramanian

On the left, a photo of Phillipa Soo in her role as Eliza. She wears a simple white dress, and she has an intense look on her face. On the left, is a portrait of Eliza. She is also wearing a white dress, and her hair is grey and curled.
On the left, a photo of Phillipa Soo in her role as Eliza. She wears a simple white dress, and she has an intense look on her face. On the left, is a portrait of Eliza. She is also wearing a white dress, and her hair is grey and curled.

Eliza Hamilton, America’s forgotten founding mother

Jenin Al Shalabi
[Image description: A statue of the Trung sisters.] Via beyondword.com
[Image description: A statue of the Trung sisters.] Via beyondword.com

The Trung sisters are Vietnam’s legendary freedom fighters

Laurie Melchionne
[Image description: Mary Shelley, Emily Bronte, and Jane Austen.] Via singers.com, discoverbritainmag.com, and Wikimedia Commons
[Image description: Mary Shelley, Emily Bronte, and Jane Austen.] Via singers.com, discoverbritainmag.com, and Wikimedia Commons

Anonymous was always a woman in the literary world

Zara Khan

[Image description: Nellie Bly, in 1890, stands for a portrait photo, holding a bag and hat.] Via Library of Congress
[Image description: Nellie Bly, in 1890, stands for a portrait photo, holding a bag and hat.] Via Library of Congress

Here’s how the real Lois Lane invented gonzo journalism

Helena Ong
[Image description: A black and white photograph of Pandita Ramabai.] Via Wikipedia.org
[Image description: A black and white photograph of Pandita Ramabai.] Via Wikipedia.org

Pandita Ramabai is India’s original feminist badass

Hannah Rachel Abraham
A collage of a few of India's political activists and freedom fighters; Jhansi ki Rani (left), Sarojini Naidu (middle), and Kasturba Gandhi (right).
A collage of a few of India's political activists and freedom fighters; Jhansi ki Rani (left), Sarojini Naidu (middle), and Kasturba Gandhi (right).

The Indian Independence movement was possible thanks to these women

Natalia Ahmed