"They're the first kings of Europe
And their women weren't shut up
Yes their women were leaders
They won battles, gave orders"
Here is a link to the song:
Most of my readers are familiar with the strong roles women held in our Northern European history, but for those that aren't, I hope you'll be pleased that this was indeed the case. As Damien Dempsey said, "our women were leaders, they won battles and gave orders."
One of the earliest and most famous examples that comes to my mind is Boudica. Here is a concise history of her deeds from Wikipedia:
Boudica (Boudicca, or Boadicea)(d. AD 60 or 61) was queen of the British Iceni tribe who led an uprising against the occupying forces of the Roman Empire.
Boudica's husband Prasutagus, ruler of the Iceni tribe who had ruled as a nominally independent ally of Rome, left his kingdom jointly to his daughters and the Roman Emperor in his will. However, when he died, his will was ignored — the kingdom was annexed as if conquered, Boudica was flogged, her daughters were raped, and Roman financiers called in their loans.
In AD 60 or 61, while the Roman governor, Gaius Suetonius Paulinus, was leading a campaign on the island of Anglesey in northern Wales, Boudica led the Iceni people, along with the Trinovantes and others, in revolt. They destroyed Camulodunum (modern Colchester), formerly the capital of the Trinovantes, but now a colonia (a settlement for discharged Roman soldiers) and the site of a temple to the former emperor Claudius, which was built and maintained at local expense. They also routed a Roman legion, the IX Hispana, sent to relieve the settlement.
On hearing the news of the revolt Suetonius hurried to Londinium (London), the twenty-year-old commercial settlement that was the rebels' next target. Concluding that he did not have the numbers to defend the settlement, Suetonius evacuated and abandoned it — Londinium was burnt to the ground, as was Verulamium (St Albans). An estimated 70,000–80,000 people were killed in the three cities (though the figures are suspect).Suetonius, meanwhile, regrouped his forces in the West Midlands and, despite being heavily outnumbered, defeated the Britons in the Battle of Watling Street. The crisis caused the emperor Nero to consider withdrawing all Roman forces from Britain, but Suetonius' eventual victory over Boudica re-secured Roman control of the province. Boudica then either killed herself so she would not be captured, or fell ill and died — the extant sources, Tacitus and Cassius Dio, differ.
Interest in the history of these events was revived during the English Renaissance and led to a resurgence of Boudica's legendary fame during the Victorian era, when Queen Victoria was portrayed as her 'namesake'. Boudica has since remained an important cultural symbol in the United Kingdom. The absence of native British literature during the early part of the first millennium means that Britain owes its knowledge of Boudica's rebellion solely to the writings of the Romans.
Enya has a song about her, titled, naturally enough, 'Boadicea'. It's an absolutely mesmerizing song, and I always imagine Boudicca's armies marching to fight the Roman's when I hear it.
Another great historical example of woman not only as leaders, but as heroins and mythical figures, come to us as Valkyries.
Excerpt form Wikipedia:
In Norse mythology, a valkyrie (from Old Norse valkyrja "chooser of the slain") is one of a host of female figures who decides who falls and dies in battle. Selecting among half of those who die in battle (the other half go to the goddess Freyja's afterlife field Fólkvangr), the valkyries bring their chosen to the afterlife hall of the slain, Valhalla, ruled over by the god Odin. There, the deceased warriors become einherjar. When the einherjar are not preparing for the events of Ragnarök, the valkyries bear them mead. Valkyries also appear as lovers of heroes and other mortals, where they are sometimes described as the daughters of royalty, sometimes accompanied by ravens, and sometimes connected to swans or horses.
Valkyries are attested in the Poetic Edda, a book of poems compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources; the Prose Edda and Heimskringla (by Snorri Sturluson), and Njáls saga, a Saga of Icelanders, all written in the 13th century. They appear throughout the poetry of skalds, in a 14th century charm, and in various runic inscriptions.
In modern culture, valkyries have been the subject of works of art, musical works, video games and poetry.
Read More Here
Few could forget the dramatic music of "Die Walküre"(Ride of the Valkyries) by Richard Wagner, which fame was renewed in the 20'th century as part of the soundtrack to "Apocalypse Now" a movie set in the Vietnam war.
I urge you to go and learn more about our noble women, revere your mothers, daughters and sisters.
Hail to you all!
Check out Eoghan Odinsson's New Book "Northern Wisdom"
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