hroughout history ViacDonald tyle Editor ad strokes of history, it is not e apprised of the great dealings of t of which happen to be male. What hey simply stay home and leave the 1storian will tell you, of course not! > saint Joan of Arc, warrior women verywhere from the ancient world to ies of the 20th century. The trick is WHITE MOUSE LITY Australian sr spy 2 AD to 2011 AD as Nancy Wake, was the wife of French ently, after witnessing the atrocities ich resistance and became a key member of e was dubbed “the White Mouse” by German Gestapo. Eventually Wake was forced to flee id of over five million francs, making her the »s area. She left behind her husband, at his 1 her stead. ne a member of the Special Operations ig World War II that specialized in espionage, 1g as a liaison between the Maquis groups and tment for the Maquis, as well as smuggling ated the transmission of key information es risking her own life to ensure the Allies any medals and accolades, making her one of far Il. NOOR INAYAT KEAN NATIONALITY Indo-American descent, but raised in various parts of Europe ROLE British Muslim war heroine LIVED 1914 AD to 1944 AD t seems a little unfair to choose two of the SOE’s finest, but both women were so incredible I couldnt decide. Khan also served during World War II and aided the Allies in the French resistance effort, operating under the callsign of “Nurse.” She was a member of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force, where she was trained as a wireless operator (radio transmission) and was assigned to aid a bomber training school. However, she found the work dull and later applied for a different commission. She was then recruited into the SOE, who modified her training as a wireless operator to include field work in an occupied territory. It was dangerous work. Wireless operators were imperative to the organized resistance effort, but they were also incredibly vulnerable to detection because they were at the centre of every information hub. Owing to the success of female couriers behind enemy lines, military superiors decided to smuggle female wireless operators into France, since they would be less suspicious to Nazi forces. Khan became the first female operator sent to Gestapo- occupied France. After serving in France for four months, Khan was betrayed—either by double agent Henri Déricourt or because of a romantic spat involving other British operatives. Khan was captured and interrogated by German agents for close to a year, but apparently never gave them any information pertaining to her work or her fellow operatives. In1958 a former Dutch prisoner of the Schutzstaffel (SS), who wished to remain anonymous, revealed that Khan was beaten and then shot by Wilhelm Ruppert—an SS soldier who presided over executions at Dachau concentration camp. Khan was awarded the George Cross and the Croix de Guerre posthumously. A bust of her was erected in central London, near her former family home. Her name also appears at the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry War Memorial at St. Paul’s Church in Wilton Place, London. KRUTULUN NATIONALITY Mongolian ROLE Wrestling princess LIVED C. 1260 AD to 1306 AD A descendant of Genghis Khan, Khutulun wasn't known for her military prowess, unlike ost of the women on this list. However, she did accompany her father, Kaidu, on many of his military campaigns as an advisor. Described as incredibly beautiful by the likes of men like Marco Polo, Khutulun was also an accomplished wrestler. She was so good that she had a standing bet against anyone willing to challenge her. If they defeated her, then she would marry them—if she won, then they would have to pay her 100 horses. Khutulun never lost the wager, accumulating a vast herd of over 10,000 horses before she eventually married—possibly for love, possibly for politics, but sources agree it wasn't for losing a wrestling match. NATIONALITY American ROLE Wrestling princess LIVED C. 1260 AD to 1306 AD ozen was a member of the Chiricahua Apache and sister to Chihenne Chief Victorio. Victorio claimed her as his right hand and second-in-command. He praised her as a decidedly intelligent military strategist—she was said to have had a supernatural ability to predict the movements of the enemy. She served Victorio in his marauding campaign to reclaim parts of New Mexico, near Black Mountain, from occupying US and Mexican forces. After Victorio’s defeat and death, Lozen joined Geronimo and even attempted to negotiate peace. However, after Geronimo’s surrender she was imprisoned in Florida, then Alabama, and like many of the Apache leaders she died of illness during her confinement.