The warrior queens

About this book

In this panoramic work of history, Fraser looks at women who led armies, empires and rebellions: Cleopatra, Tamara of Georgia, Isabella of Spain, Elizabeth I, Catherine the Great, Jinga Mbandi of Angola, the Rani of Jhansi, and the 20th-century "iron ladies" Margaret Thatcher, Golda Meir and Indira Gandhi, among others. Her touchstone is Boadicea, the first-century Briton who led 120,000 compatriots in a revolt that temporarily shook the Roman hold on her country. With her as a vibrant centerpiece, Fraser brings forward a constellation of 17 women who, through accidents of fate or descent, or sheer genius for power, have been cast in the role of Warrior Queen--seen by her contemporaries as (often simultaneously) monster, angel, honorary male, one who shames men into bravery--and seen, long after her reign, as the focus of a golden age.--From publisher description.

Themes & subjects

About the author

Antonia Fraser

27 August 1932

Lady Antonia Margaret Caroline Fraser, née Pakenham, is a British author of history, novels, biographies and detective fiction. She is the widow of the 2005 Nobel Laureate in Literature, Harold Pinter (1930–2008), and prior to his death was also known as Antonia Pinter. - Wikipedia