N'Nonmiton: The Story Of The Dahomey Amazons.

Last week there was a serious argument on Facebook about gender roles. This was because someone said for one to be a true feminist, that person must do away with the notion of gender roles.
Personally, I thought that was as simple as stating that James is a boy and Mary is a girl.

Gender role means that there are specific jobs for the masculine gender just as there are jobs cut out for females alone.
Example in a family, fetching water is meant for only the boys while girls are made to wash clothes, dishes and cook.
Now if a 'feminist' agrees to this notion doesn't it go against the fundamental principles of feminism?
That same week, I stumbled on the story of these legendary warriors.
All women.

image source: google.

When someone says warrior the first thing that normally comes to mind is a masculine figure. Brave, strong, courageous, audacious...
But these women were all these... And more.
It first started out as a corp of elephant hunters under the watch of King Hougbadja (reigned 1645-1685).
Just for fun.
Then his son after him King Agaja decided to have female bodyguards.
Not long after, women were recruited into the militia to fight real battles against other kingdom.
image source: google.

Girls as young as 8 were drafted into the army with rigorous training which made them indifferent to pain and death.
A woman either volunteers herself or her father or husband gave her up for being stubborn and strong willed.
Basically women that had the fire in their stomach.
Strong willed. Aggressive.
Image source: google.

Most of them joined because they saw it as an opportunity to rise to positions of command and influence as they had a say in the grand council.
Talk about gender roles, the Dahomey Amazonas laid that notion to waste.

When the Europeans invaded Benin, these women decimated them.
They never surrendered or retreated from a fight unless they were expressly told to do so by their king.
They liked to be called N'Nonmiton meaning "our mothers" but the name that was more popular was Ahosi meaning "King's wives".
Many of them never married and were virgins. It was the life they signed up for.
They numbered up to 6000 women so rich and influential that it was said that each had a slave that rang a bell whenever she came out in the open to alert the men to steer clear and even look away.
Highly disciplined women.
Now if this isn't badass I don't know what is.

They disbanded when the kingdom became a French protectorate. That was until towards the end of the 19th century.

Gender roles (scoffs).