Ten Medieval Warrior Women

While Joan of Arc is well-known as a woman who was involved in medieval warfare, there are many more examples of women who took up arms or commanded armies during the Middle Ages. Here is our list of ten medieval warrior women.

There are many women who could be included on this list, including ones who defended castles or commanded forces. Some accounts, such as Eleanor of Aquitaine leading a troop of women during the Second Crusade, have been shown to be untrue or gross exaggerations made by medieval writers. Other tales, such as the story of Onorata Rodiani, who said to have disguised herself as a man and joined up with a mercenary company in the 15th century, are also hard to verify. There are also many accounts of unnamed women who took part in battles or sieges, such as the woman of Toulouse, who operated a siege machine that killed Simon de Montfort while he tried to attack the city during the Albigensian Crusade. Finally, one can mention the story of Big Margot, a lady who was the standard bearer for a Flemish army – she would be killed at the battle of Westrozebeke in 1382.

Some sources about women in medieval warfare:

Susan Abernethy, The Siege of Beauvais in 1472 

Mary Elizabeth Ailes, “Camp Followers, Sutlers, and Soldiers’ Wives: Women in Early Modern Armies (c. 1450–c. 1650)”, A Companion to Women’s Military History  (Brill, 2012)

James Blythe, “Women in the Military: Scholastic Arguments and Medieval Images of Female Warriors,” History of Political Thought, Vol. 22:2 (2001)

Kelly DeVries, “The Use of Gunpowder Weaponry by and Against Joan of Arc During the Hundred Years War“, War and Society, Vol.14 (1996)

Kelly DeVries, “Teenagers at War During the Middle Ages“, The Premodern Teenager: Youth in Society, 1150-1650 (Toronto, 2002)

Val Eads, “Sichelgaita of Salerno: Amazon or Trophy Wife? Journal of Medieval Military History, Vol.3 (2005)

Valerie Eads, “Means, Motive, Opportunity: Medieval Women and the Recourse to Arms” -Paper presented at The Twentieth Barnard Medieval & Renaissance Conference, “War and Peace in the Middle Ages & Renaissance,” December 2, 2006

Leszek Gardeła, “‘Warrior-women’ in Viking Age Scandinavia? A preliminary archaeological study, ” Analecta Archaeologica Ressoviensia: Funerary Archaeology (Archeologia Funeralna), Volume 8, Rzeszów (2013)

David J. Hay, The Military Leadership of Matilda of Canossa, 1046-1115 (Manchester University Press, 2010)

Elizabeth Lev, The Tigress of Forli: Renaissance Italy’s Most Courageous and Notorious Countess, Caterina Riario Sforza de’ Medici (Mariner Books, 2012)

Christoph T. Maier, “The Roles of Women in the Crusade Movement: A Survey.” Journal of Medieval History, Vol. 30, no. 1 (2004)

Megan McLaughlin, “The Woman Warrior: Gender, Warfare, and Society in Medieval Europe.” Women’s Studies, Vol. 17 (1990)

J. F. Verbruggen, “Women in Medieval Armies.” Journal of Medieval Military History, Vol. 4 (2006)