Warrior Queens

Queen Tomyris

Tomyris was a Persian queen who had ascended the throne of Massagetai after the death of her husband, who reigned during 530 B.C. Massegetai was an ancient Iranian nomadic confederation.

According to Herodotus, an early classical writer, Queen Tomyris became a legend after the fiery battle with Cyrus II the Great of Persia who waged war on Tomyris’s country. Cyrus II was defeated and killed. A Central Asian folklore is that, Tomyris had Cyrus’s corpse beheaded and kept his head with her all the time.

Queen Artemisia

During 480 BC, after the death of the king of Halicarnassus, his wife, Artemisia took over the throne and became a loyal subject of Persia. Her major claim to fame was her bravery in the Persian wars especially in the naval Battle of Salamis in which she was one of the allies of the Persians under King Xerxes.

In the battle, Artemisia rose to fame by sinking an enemy vessel and playing a clever trick to save her crew. She was later praised for her bravery by Xerxes.

Queen Boudicca

Queen Boudicca was a warrior queen in the Celtic Icenic tribe. She has left a mark in the British history for her bravery against the Romans. She led a revolt after the death of her husband, the king of Iceni, Prasutagus. The main cause behind the revolt was the humiliation heaped on them by the Romans, who stormed into Boudicca’s kingdom.

Boudicca and both her daughters were flogged and ill treated. As a result, the queen gathered a force of around 120, 000 men and fanned the flames of a revolt. The rebellion lasted for several months, destroying major towns and killing thousands of citizens. Towards the end, when Boudicca suffered a major defeat, both her daughters and she chose to drink poison rather than fall into the hands of the Romans.

Queen Zenobia

Also named as the Empress of the East, Queen Zenobia was a third-century Syrian Queen of Palmyra known for her boldness and her brave battles against the Romans. During her reign, the eastern kingdoms of the Roman Empire fell one by one due to the growing power of Palmyra.

Described as a beautiful woman, Zenobia was a character of great ambition. She had broke her friendly relations with the Romans and revolted against them. In 270, she, along with her troops, advanced the Roman-held territories, defeated the Romans and captured Egypt. This success made Zenobia bolder and her army gave her the title as “The most illustrious and pious Queen.”

Penthesilea

Penthesilea was the Queen of the Amazones who had accidentally killed her own sister, Hippolyta, while hunting deer. This incident had caused so much grief that Panthesilea decided to die, but die an honorable death.

She joined the Trojan War, and fought for her own city, Troy. This transformed Panthesilea from a gorgeous queen to a strong warrior. She covered her great beauty with an armor and helmet. She mounted chariots and horses, not like a queen but like a soldier. She fought the war with great courage killing many but was eventually killed by Achilles, the Greek hero of Trojan War.

Rani Laxmibai

She was a national heroine and seen as the epitome of female bravery in India. Rani Laxmibai had married the Maharaja of Jhansi in 1853 and became the Queen of the princely state. She is known for her bravery during the first wars of Indian Independence in 1857. She had gathered an army of men and women and fought for the defense of her state. However, in 1858, the British army had entered Jhansi and the fiery conflict ended with the capture of Jhansi. Laxmibai died the same year fighting the British.

Cartimandua

At the time of Roman invasion in 43AD, Cartimandua was the queen of the Brigantes tribe in Northern Britain. She had signed a peace treaty with the Romans in exchange for being allowed to retain the control of her own lands. This relationship between the queen and the Romans raised other instabilities. Due to political and personal differences, Cartimandua’s husband Venutius called for a war during AD 69 and seized the kingdom. Though, the queen was rescued from being killed by the Romans, she never regained her throne.

Rani Durgavati

Rani Durgavati was a legendary queen who has left a mark in the Indian history. After the death of her husband, Dalpat Shah in 1550, the eldest son of king Sangram Shah of Gond Dynasty, the young Rani took the reins of the Gond Dynasty in her hands. She fought against the Muslim invasion by Baz Bahadur and succeeded the battle.

This victory gave Durgavati great honor and fame. Her next battle with the Mughal general, Khwaja Abdul Majid Asaf Khan, the ruler of Rewa, was almost successful but the Rani and her son got injured and their defeat was apparent. Rather than leaving the battlefield in dishonor, Rani Durgavati, took out a dagger and killed herself on June 24, 1564.

Advertisement