From daughters to soldiers, from household chores to weapons. The only documented female military unit in modern military history. These women lived in sub-Saharan Africa. They managed to make their colonialists tremble with fear.
People christened them Dahomey Amazons, and they called themselves "N'Nonmiton", which literally means "our mothers." They defended their king in the bloodiest battles and were considered the elite division of the Kingdom of Dahomey, today these territories belong to the Republic of Benin. The Amazons were sworn in as virgins and were considered untouchable. Their trademark was beheading with the speed of lightning.
These warriors are by no means mythical characters. The last Dahomean Amazon passed away at the age of one hundred years in 1979, this woman named Navi whiled away her life in a distant village. At the best of times, the Amazons made up almost a third of the Dahomean army; by European standards, they excelled men in bravery and efficiency in battle.
The history of the Amazons dates back to the 17th century. There are suggestions that the Amazons were originally elephant hunters and greatly impressed the king with their dexterity in this matter, while their husbands fought with enemy tribes. Another theory is that women were the only ones allowed into the royal palace after dark.
Thus, it is only natural that they were the king's bodyguards. Be that as it may, only the strongest, healthiest and most courageous women were selected for careful preparation, which turned them into killing machines that have terrified all of Africa for over two centuries.
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They were armed with Dutch muskets and machetes, and by the early 19th century, the Amazons were becoming increasingly warlike and fiercely loyal to the king. Girls, starting at the age of 8, were recruited into groups and given weapons. Some women came to the unit voluntarily, while others were sent there by their husbands, complaining about their lack of control.
Above all, they were taught to be strong, fast, ruthless, and able to withstand unbearable pain. The exercises, somewhat reminiscent of gymnastics, included jumping over walls entwined with thorny acacia shoots. Also, women were sent to the so-called "Hunger Games", they spent 10 days in the jungle, having only a machete with them. After such training, they became fanatical fighters. To prove their worth, they had to become twice as hardy as men. Dahomey Amazons stood in battle until the last, if the king did not receive an order to retreat, and fought for life and death, they never surrendered.
These women were forbidden to marry or have children while they served. They were believed to be married to the king. But at the same time, they all kept a vow of chastity, acquiring an almost semi-sacred status as elite warriors. Even the king did not dare to break their vow of chastity, and if you are not the king, then touching the Amazon was punishable by death.
In the spring of 1863, the British explorer Richard Burton arrived in Dahomey on a mission from the British Government to bring peace to the people of Dahomey. The Dahomeans were a militant nation and took an active part in the slave trade, this played into their hands, allowing them to seize and sell their enemies. The Dahomey Amazons simply amazed Barton. According to him, their muscles were so developed that they could only be recognized as women by their breasts.
The female soldiers were part of the elite wing of the army as the king's bodyguards. Some even believe that every man in the Dahomey army had a female counterpart. Burton nicknamed this army "Black Sparta".
The women were taught the skills of survival, discipline and ruthlessness. Brutality training was key to hitting the king's soldiers. The recruitment ceremony involved checking if would-be warriors were ruthless enough to throw a prisoner from a deadly height.
A French delegation visiting Dahomey in 1880 observed a sixteen-year-old Amazon during training. Their records state that she threw the machete three times before the captive's head was chopped off. She wiped the blood from her weapon and swallowed it to the cheers of the Amazons watching her. It was a tradition for them to bring home the head and genitals of the enemy.
Despite the brutal training, the women endured. For many, this was a chance to avoid hard household chores. Serving as Amazons allowed women to rise to the level of commanders, to have power and play not the last role in the Grand Assembly, which discussed the politics of the kingdom. They could even get rich and remain lonely and independent. They lived, of course, under the king, but they had everything they wanted, even tobacco and alcohol. They had servants.
Stanley Alpern, the author of the only complete study of the life of the Amazons in English, wrote: “When the Amazons left the palace, a slave girl with a bell announced it. The ringing of the bell made it clear to the men that they needed to get out of the way, move some distance and look in the other direction.
Even after France's colonial expansion in Africa intensified in the 1890s, the Dahomey Amazons continued to inspire fear. The soldiers of the French army who had dragged one of the Amazons to bed were often found in the morning with their throats cut. During the Franco-Dahomean wars, many French soldiers hesitated before killing a woman. This underestimation of the enemy led to multiple losses in the French army, and Amazonian units deliberately attacked French officers.
By the end of the second Franco-Dahomean war, the French still gained the upper hand, but only after the arrival of the Foreign Legion, armed with machine guns. The last forces of the king were forced to surrender, almost all the Amazons died in the fierce battles of this war. Later, the legionaries wrote about the incredible bravery and audacity of the Amazons.
In 2015, a French street artist launched a campaign to pay tribute to the uncompromising female fighters of the 19th century. Working in Senegal, in the south of Dakar, she transferred images of the faces of these warlike women from old photographs found in local archives to the walls of houses.
Since the Amazons were considered the most formidable women on earth, they had a huge impact on attitudes towards women in African countries and beyond.