The Tragedies and Triumphs of History’s Lesser-Known Warriors
Not too long ago I wrote a little piece on history’s fearsome female pirates. As I said then, piracy is just one of many areas where women made a name for themselves and shaped history, in both big and small ways. There are a lot of other categories we can talk about — soldiers, queens, women’s organizations, etc.
But for now I want to focus on a bit of a mixed bag. These figures can best be described as “warriors”, though that’s still not necessarily the most accurate or all-encompassing term for who and what they were. And in these stories, many of the successes are bittersweet, or else chased closely by tragedy. Nonetheless, they are valuable stories to share and celebrate and remember.
During the rule of Aurangzeb, leader of the Mughals, a young Sikh guru was executed when he was just ten years old. Another guru, Gobind Singh Ji, ordered his followers to take up arms as warrior-saints, abandoning their family names.[1] Among this group of followers was Mai Bhago, who had been taught riding and combat skills by her father from a young age.[1][2]
During the ensuing warfare against the Mughals, Mai Bhago and the other Sikh warriors suffered under a variety of difficult conditions. 40 of the warriors grew tired of this and forsook from their religion and their guru for the sake of returning to their normal lives. Mai Bhago was deeply unimpressed by this. She rode to nearby cities to not only convince the women there to refuse the deserters any hospitality, but also to convince some to take up arms themselves.[1] The deserters were so shamed by this that they were convinced to rejoin the fight and reclaim their place as warrior-saints under Guru Gobind Singh Ji.[1][2]
Mai Bhago and the 40 warriors returned to the guru’s stronghold just as the Mughals were launching another assault. Through a variety of clever tactics, including cutting off access to water and setting up false tents to draw fire,[1] they were able to force the Mughals into retreating — but not without a heavy death toll. In fact, of the 41 warriors in that battle, Mai Bhago was the only one to survive. She went on to become Guru Gobind Singh Ji’s bodyguard, outliving him and eventually dying peacefully of old age.[1][2]
Lozen was a Chihenne Chiricahua Apache warrior and medicine woman who fought alongside two famed Apache leaders: her older brother Victorio and, later, Geronimo.[3][4]
As a medicine woman, Lozen was knowledgeable of the medicinal uses of plants and minerals; as a warrior, she was skilled in riding, shooting, and strategy.[3][4] According to her legends, she always knew where enemies would be — she would pray to the Apache deity Ussen for guidance,[3] singing with her arms extended as she turned in a circle. When her palms began tingling, that was her sign of what direction U.S. troops would be approaching from. [4] Because of this, she is often compared to Joan of Arc.[3]
Alongside her brother, Lozen fought hard against the encroachment of the U.S. into their territory, though, sadly, they lost nearly half of their people between 1877 and 1880 as a result of skirmishes with the U.S. and Mexican armies.[3]
Following her brother’s death. Lozen went on to join resistance leader Geronimo, whom she fought alongside for six years.[3][4] Eventually, however, Geronimo fell, too, and Lozen ended up imprisoned at Mount Vernon in Mobile, Alabama. She died in prison of tuberculosis at just 50 years of age.[3][4]
Among the Crow, there is a gender identity known as baté, which can be most closely be compared to a woman assigned male at birth.[5][6] These people were well-respected within the Crow nation as a bridge between genders, and took on a mix of traditionally male and female roles.[6] One such person was Osh-Tisch.
Osh-Tisch was a fierce warrior who fought against the Lakota in the Battle of Rosebud, where she earned her name, which means Finds Them and Kills Them All.[5][6] In a recount of the battle told by a woman named Pretty Shield, it’s said that Osh-Tisch stood over a fallen ally and shot down enemies while another woman by the name of The Other Magpie created distraction by screaming, spitting, and hitting enemies with her coup stick (a simple stick with a single feather attached to it, indicating it had had little use in combat prior to the Battle of Rosebud).[5]
Years after this battle, the invasion from Europeans and subsequent impacts of colonialism saw Osh-Tisch and other Crow people living on a reservation. Government agents and missionaries did not understand or respect baté; in the 1890s, federal agent Briskow rounded up the baté and forced them into male clothes and manual labour. It is worth noting that he specifically forced them into European male clothing, even going so far as to cut their hair so it adhered to European conceptions of masculinity. In doing so, Briskow not only stripped Osh-Tisch and other baté of their gender, but also their culture.[5][6]
The rest of the Crow, however, would not stand for this. Even though the Crow leaders held little sway with the US government, they were able to force Briskow into resigning and leaving their land, thus allowing Osh-Tisch and the other baté to live as their true selves.[5][6]
White prejudice and cruelty persisted, however, and many baté and other Two Spirit people committed suicide as a result. Osh-Tisch formed an intertribal outreach that linked Two Spirits from various tribes in secret communication, facilitating support and understanding.[5]
Sadly, when Osh-Tisch died, she would be one of the last known baté whose story is still remembered.[5][6]
Reference
1) Porath, Jason. 2016. “Mai Bhago.” Rejected Princesses. Retrieved February 3, 2020 (https://www.rejectedprincesses.com/princesses/mai-bhago).
2) Kaur, Prabhneet. 2016. “Know Mai Bhaog: Quoted by BBC as One of the Most Badass Women.” Hindustan Times. Retrieved February 3, 2020 (https://www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/know-mai-bhago-quoted-by-bbc-as-one-of-the-most-badass-women-in-history-punjab-sikh-international-women-s-daygolden-temple/story-DNwFYAc0j6uwDhiBGRTWXN.html).
3) Romano, Andrea. 2016. “Lozen: The Badass Warrior Woman you’ve probably never heard of.” Mashable. Retrieved February 3, 2020 (https://mashable.com/2016/01/13/wtf-history-lozen/).
4) Apache, Crisosto. 2011. “Lozen and Dahteste.” Retrieved February 3, 2020 (http://crisostoapache.com/lozen-and-dahteste/).
5) Porath, Jason. 2016. “Osh-Tisch.” Rejected Princesses. Retrieved February 3, 2020 (https://www.rejectedprincesses.com/princesses/osh-tisch).
6) Mills, Laura. “Osh-Tisch: The Warrior.” Making Queer History. Retrieved February 3, 2020 (https://www.makingqueerhistory.com/articles/2019/4/29/osh-tisch-the-warrior).
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This was originally published to Vocal in 2020.
