(Clockwise from left): American civil war soldier Frances Hook; 19th century Dahomey women soldiers; defending a besieged German city in 1615; 18th century British soldier Hannah Snell and Union soldier Frances Clayton. Sources:
Wikimedia Commons, Herzog August Bibliothek Wolfenbuettel
Fighting in sieges, an army of crack female troops, cross-dressing as male soldiers: women have survived and thrived as part of the war machine. But they’re rarely included in military histories.
The violence in north-east Nigeria has displaced thousands of people.
Wikimedia Commons/Flickr
The insecurity in the area has serious implications for development and the well-being of people, especially young people.
Kenyan women hold a vigil for victims of violence.
Dai Kurokawa/EPA
Women who survive violence in Kenya are building peace in their communities.
Women and girls rescued from Boko Haram militants in January 2018.
Deki Yake/EPA-EFE
Boko Haram has the highest number of women fighters in the history of terror
Nettie Palmer’s ’s 1916 poem, Birds, was a love song from a wife to a soldier-husband.
photographer unknown. State Library of Victoria
An anthology of Victorian women poets is a window into their thoughts and feelings during the first world war.
Zenobia addressing her troops.
Giambattista Tiepolo (National Gallery)
Anything is possible in the world of computers games – except women who fight, apparently.
Cersei Lannister and her brother Jaime in Game of Thrones.
Sky Atlantic
The new series will bring several strong women into conflict with each other – just like the Wars of the Roses.
Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman: she fights better than a man, but prioritises peace.
Atlas Entertainment, Cruel & Unusual Films, DC Entertainment
In a world where public avenues for violence are increasingly open to women, Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman presents us with an ethical and feminist model of fighting femininity.