And not only did she win, she did it at two Olympiads in 396 B.C. What makes her so special? Well, in addition to winning in the foot race at the Heraian Games that took place at Olympia, she was also the first woman in history to win at the Olympic Games when she entered her team in the four horse chariot event. in Sparta and, unlike other Greek women beyond Sparta, she grew up training herself physically and mentally, as was expected of strong, Spartan women. It is believed that Kyniska was born sometime around 440 B.C. She was also the half-sister of King Agis, and sister to King Agesilaus II (444-360 B.C.) who waged war on both the Persians and his fellow Greeks. Kyniska of Sparta was the daughter of King Archidamus II (476-427 B.C.), the Eurypontid King of Sparta. The very first time I read about this Spartan princess, I knew immediately that I had to write a story around her achievements. Those of you who have read Heart of Firewill be familiar with Kyniska of Sparta, one of the main protagonists of the story. The biographies below will be brief, but I hope they encourage you to read more. There are far too many outstanding women in history for me to list them here, but with this post I wanted to introduce you to a small group of women who have left a great impression upon me, personally, during my years of study, research and writing. With hope, curricula in high school and beyond have changed to more properly reflect the role of women in history. Over my years of study, I can’t remember how many times I’ve come across a woman from history who blew my mind with their daring, but whose life was rarely explored in-depth in any of my courses or the books I read. While there have been some amazing men in history, there have also been many incredible women who have displayed great strength, resilience, and courage on the world scene, women who have set a shining example and challenged the status quo. Men declared most wars, made political decisions, ruled, and basically determined the future for numerous societies, kingdoms and empires. As has often been the case in history books and classes, the focus of historical personages has been male-oriented. Hello History-Lovers! This week on the blog we’ve got a special post about some amazing women from ancient and medieval history.
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