Rejected Princesses | History That's More Than 2-Dimensional.

History That's More Than 2-Dimensional.

Lyudmila Pavlichenko (1916-1974)

The Deadliest Female Sniper in History

When her beloved college of history was bombed by the Germans, this woman began a dark path that would see her become history's deadliest female sniper -- and one of Eleanor Roosevelt's best friends.

Taytu Betul (c.1851-1918)

The Bad Cop Empress of Ethiopia

This stubborn empress led her native Ethiopia to do the unthinkable - defeat one of the major European powers in war.

Collection: Royalty >

Gudit

This Jewish-Ethiopian warrior queen took the throne, ended a millennium-old biblical dynasty, and caused a break in Ethiopia's history that has not healed to this day - or did she...?

Wu Zetian

The only female emperor of China in history, her ruthless rise to power makes Game of Thrones look like a day at the beach.

Soraya Tarzi

1920s Afghanistan was a progressive and rapidly-modernizing country in large part to the most powerful, empathic, and maligned queen it had ever seen.

Kate Shelley (1863-1912)

The Girl Who Saved a Train

To save an oncoming passenger train, this 15-year-old girl climbed across a collapsing bridge, with nothing but flashes of lightning to keep her from falling to her death in the flooding river below -- a river that had already killed her father.

The Mirabal Sisters (1924/27/35-1960)

The Sisters Who Toppled a Dictatorship

When a cruel dictator ruined this Dominican Republic family, these sisters gave their lives to end his.

Jackie Mitchell (1913-1987)

The Teen Who Struck Out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig

In 1931, a seventeen-year-old girl struck out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in front of a crowd of thousands -- and then was benched into obscurity.

Collection: Pirates >

Ching Shih

Headed a squadron of 80,000 pirates, ruled the Chinese seas for two decades, and actually retired happily - but not before extorting a nice pension from the Chinese government.

Jeanne de Clisson

When her husband was unjustly executed, this French noblewoman-turned-pirate became the terror of France.

Charlotte Badger

The first European woman to end up in New Zealand, Charlotte Badger was part pirate, part adopted Maori, and part mom. Which part is which is somewhat lost to history.

Sophie Morigeau (1836-1916)

Hard-Living, Hard-Bargaining Frontier Woman

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.

The Princess in the Leather Burqa

When her father decided to marry her, this leather-clad princess embarked on one of the most bonkers Cinderella tales ever told.

Micaela Almonester (1795-1874)

The Survivor Baroness of New Orleans

After decades of gaslighting and emotional abuse at the hands of her in-laws, this iron-willed woman survived being shot four times point blank, won a separation from her husband, and became one of the most respected business icons in New Orleans.

Collection: Spies >

Manuela Sáenz

This revolutionary heroine of South America kept a pet bear, a disembodied moustache, and a lifestyle that defied every convention possible.

Noor Inayat Khan

Pacifist Indian princess who gave up everything of herself to hold the line in occupied Paris during World War 2.

Isabelle Eberhardt

This undefinable adventurer's life burnt bright but short: a wildcard of the Algerian revolution, she survived an assassination attempt by sabre, and died in a freak desert flood.

Isabel Godin des Odonais (1728-1792)

The Woman Who Lived

To reunite with her husband, she went on a months-long trek through the jungle -- and was the only survivor.

Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958)

The Overlooked Discoverer of DNA

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.

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