"The Ahosi – All Female Military Regiment Of The Fon" Topic

"The Ahosi (King's wives) or Mino (our mothers) was an all-female military regiment of the Fon nation of the Kingdom of Benin. Misconceptions fueled by European narratives refer to the soldiers as "Amazons," based on what they thought to be a similarity to the semi-mythical Amazons of ancient Anatolia. By doing this they were deliberately romanticising the might of these women, to denounce the military prowess of an unknown African military formation.

They were a military corps of women appointed to serve in battles under the direction of the Fon king. They emerged during the Eighteenth Century (some scholars say 17th Century) and were finally suppressed during the 1890s. The Ahosi were chosen from among the nominal wives of the king. Estimates of the number of women soldiers vary by accounts, yet some scholars believe the numbers to have ranged over time from several hundred to a few thousand women soldiers.

The Fon women's army had three main wings: the right and left wings, and the elite center wing or Fanti. Each of these wings had five subgroups: the artillery women, the elephant huntresses, the musket-bearing frontline group, the razor women, and the archers. They served in battles in conjunction with male troops…"

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Amicalement
Armand

Interesting, but I don't see that comparing these female soldiers to the Amazons of legend 'denounces' their military effectiveness. If anything, it does the opposite.

Glad you enjoyed it my friend.

Amicalement
Armand