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Takeko Nakano
When the end of an era was at hand, this samurai woman refused to go gently.
Sutematsu Oyama
The first Japanese woman to go to college didn't have a choice. But the experience changed her - and she changed Japan in return.
Tsuruhime Ohori
When invaders threatened her island home, she declared herself a living god, raised an army, and fought them tooth, nail, and occasional grenade.Collection: Queens of the Underworld >
Kate Leigh and Tilly Devine
America had Al Capone. Sydney had Kate Leigh and Tilly Devine - who *hated* each other.
Sonya Golden Hand
Russia's greatest female thief was so slippery that even once she was re-captured after escaping from a Siberian prison, nobody was totally sure it was her.
Stephanie St. Clair
This audacious black gangster fought the Italian mob for control of Harlem and won, taunting them in full-page newspaper ads as she went.Collection: Disabilities >
Amanirenas
When Rome set its eyes on her country, this one-eyed queen fought them tooth and nail, until they left her alone.
Sophie Morigeau
The only use this Canadian badass had for pretty pink bows was to adorn her own rib — which she amputated from her own body after an accident.
Sarah Biffin
Born without arms or legs, this artist learned to write, sew, and paint with her mouth - and came to work for kings and queens.Random Princesses
Lolita
The poster child for childhood abuse, nobody should ever make a kids' movie about her.
Marjana
The actual hero of the Ali Baba myth, this slave girl saves the titular character by singlehandedly dispatching the forty thieves - without him even knowing.
Tsuruhime Ohori
When invaders threatened her island home, she declared herself a living god, raised an army, and fought them tooth, nail, and occasional grenade.
Zelia Nuttall
This single mom developed the field of Mexican archaeology, while fiercely protecting it from the sleazy and opportunistic.
Man-deok Kim
When famine hit Jeju island, where she'd been exiled since birth, this prostitute-turned-businesswoman spent her fortune to feed everyone.
Dhat al-Himma
Sword-slinging Arabian heroine who stars as the heroine of an extremely long and entertaining epic tale.
Rebecca Lukens
First her father died. Then her sons. Then her husband. Pregnant, saddled with debt, a failing company, and an overbearing mother, Rebecca Lukens rolled up her sleeves and showed the world what she was made of: iron.
Moll Cutpurse
Cross-dressing Queen of Thieves who flouted social norms and had plays written about her.
Rosalind Franklin
The three men who accepted the Nobel Prize for "the most important scientific discovery of the 20th century" neglected to mention one thing: they owed much of their success to one brash, brilliant, and overlooked female scientist.
Masako Hojo
When her shogun husband cheated on her, she raised an army and destroyed the other woman's house. Later she deposed her incompetent son to become the first nun to rule Japan.
Ida Laura Pfeiffer
Starting her travels at 45 years old, this globetrotter became a worldwide sensation for going boldly where no woman had gone before.
Sor Juana Inés de La Cruz
This brilliant poet rose from illegitimacy and poverty to become one of the luminaries of her age - until she flew too close to the sun.
Marsha P. Johnson
This cheery godmother of trans civil rights masked a dark past of abuse.
Christine de Pizan
When her husband unexpectedly died, she rolled up her sleeves and became one of the greatest authors of the age to keep food on the table. She wrote passionate defenses of her gender (and military treatises!) that were centuries ahead of their time.
Ida B. Wells
One of the first anti-lynching advocates, she risked her life for decades to report on the truth when nobody would believe her.