English war-nurse, head of a nurses’ training school in Brussels, where she attended German as well as Allied soldiers during the European War. In August 1915, she was accused by the German military authorities of Belgium of assisting prisoners to escape, and in October was condemned to be shot by a firing squad of German soldiers.
Olive Clio Hazlett was an American mathematician who worked in algebra. Between 1914 and 1930 she published fourteen papers that were presented at meetings of the American Mathematical Society. She did outstanding work for the Cryptanalysis Committee during World War II.
Joan Clarke was one of the English mathematicians recruited to work on wartime German codes with Alan Turing at Bletchley Park.
During the US Civil War, runaway slave couple Dabney and Lucy Ann Walker provided Union General Joseph Hooker with valuable intelligence.
Policarpa Salavarrieta was a Neogranadine seamstress who spied for the Revolutionary Forces during the Spanish Reconquista of the Viceroyalty of New Granada (modern-day Colombia, Ecuador, Panama and Venezuela). Considered a heroine of Colombian independence, she was captured by Spanish Royalists and executed for high treason. The anniversary of her death is commemorated with the Day of the Colombian Woman.
Doña Manuela Sáenz de Vergara y Aizpuru was an Ecuadorian revolutionary who supported the cause by collecting information, distributing leaflets, and protesting for women’s rights, and received the Order of the Sun (“Caballeresa del Sol” or ‘Dame of the Sun’) for her work.
Famous chef, author, and television personality, Julia Child made French cuisine accessible to American audiences. She was one of the first women to host her own cooking show on television, providing tips and lessons on how to prepare French food simply and easily.
Only 17 years old when the Civil War began, Isabella “Belle” Boyd would become one of the most famous female Confederate spies, hailed by some as the “Cleopatra of Secession.” Her colorful postwar life also included several marriages and stints as an actress and author.
World renowned performer, World War II spy, and activist are few of the titles used to describe Josephine Baker. One of the most successful African American performers in French history, Baker’s career illustrates the ways entertainers can use their platforms to change the world.
Georgia frontierswoman Nancy Morgan Hart was a legendary hero of the American Revolution who made it her mission to rid the Georgia territory of British Loyalists (Tories). According to various accounts, she captured six, killed one, and oversaw the hanging of five others. She also served as a spy.