Maria Bochkareva formed the 1st Women’s Batallion in Russia during World War I. Having led a rough l

Maria Bochkareva formed the 1st Women’s Batallion in Russia during World War I. Having led a rough life as a laborer and farmer alongside two consecutive abusive husbands, she left home to join the Imperial Russian Army in 1914, and earned the repspect of the men in her regiment through her valor on the battlefield. Bochkareva rose to the rank of officer, and petitioned the government to establish a battalion of female soldiers under her command in 1917. Though short-lived, the ‘Women’s Battalion of Death’ was one of the only all-female units that saw action that year. Though they performed well in combat, the increasing hostility of their male counterparts forced them to disband.Bochkareva was captured by the Bolsheviks in 1918 while attempting to organize another women’s unit, and was ‘found guilty of being an enemy of the people.’ She was executed by firing squad in 1920. (The portrait is approx. 9″ x 12″, graphite and white pencil on toned paper.) -- source link

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