Las Soldaderas

Las Soldaderas : Veteran Heroes
Raise your hand if you have ever heard of the term Soldaderas? It’s alright if you have
not heard of them yet, this small group of women impacted the feminist movement in the country
of Mexico and have not been recognized in today's society.
The story is set in 1910, the Mexican Revolution has just started, as men sign up to go
fight, another group joins them on their journey. This group earned the term of Soldaderas from
the word soldada, or soldier’s pay, as soldiers would give the women who would travel with
them their pay in order to buy food or necessities (Viewpoints on Women in the Revolution - the
Mexican Revolution and the United States | Exhibitions - Library of Congress, 2019). Soldaderas
were not only caretakers though, they were also soldiers who would fight alongside men in the
revolution and were often discriminated against by other fellow soldiers. In order to steer clear of
troubles, some Soldaderas would dress up as men and would come up with various stories as to
why they dressed the way they did. No matter how much they helped though, they were still
discriminated against and abused due to deep rooted machismo, or sexism, in Mexican culture.
The living conditions of the usual Adelita, another term for Soldaderas, were not the best.
They would live in the same camps as the soldiers, but when it was time to travel they were told
to walk alongside the soldiers, who rode on horses, while carrying their belongings, food, and
tools for the kitchen. They would ride on top of wagons as the inside was occupied by the
horses,who were deemed to be more important than the group of women due to machismo. An
example of this can be seen in one of the biggest Mexican figures, Pancho Villa. Although today
he is seen as someone to look up to after his battles, he was the man who ordered his soldiers to
execute ninety Soldaderas and banned female soldiers saying that ‘Viejas’, a derogatory term for
women in Spanish, should not fight alongside men (LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, 2020).
Today many of the Soldaderas stories are not known, but there were a few whose stories
came to light. Rosa Bobadilla was a Soldadera known as ‘La Coronela,’ as she inherited her
husband’s position shortly after his death fighting in one of the battles fought in the Revolution.
She fought many federals while commanding 200 people. After the war ended Emiliano Zapata,
a General, gave her properties to attend to the loved ones of those who died in battle, widows,
and orphans. Petra Herrea, who went by Pedro, presented as a man during the war and was an
outstanding soldier. Despite her many efforts Pancho Villa never gave her the recognition she
deserved in his army as a General, she did however earn the title of Colonel after making her
own army made up of 1000 Soldaderas and became an ally of Venustiano Carranza, a leader in
the Mexican Revolution (The Brave Women of the Mexican Revolution, 2019). Other than the
Revolution bringing in change it also opened the doors for the first transgender man to be
recognized by the Mexican Government, his name being Amelio Robles. He first entered the war
passing as a man, but had always shown interest in living as a man from an early age. When he
entered the military he showed to be a great soldier and later came to be known as Zapatista
Coronel Amelio Robles Avila – a key leader in the Mexican Revolution. Due to his hard work
the Government identified him as a man and was later able to marry in a catholic church and
adopt a son (Amelio Robles Ávila, n.d.).
Best said by Pablo Piccato “They (Soldaderas) proved that women could fight, that
women could be courageous. In a way, simply by being a coronella you were criticizing the
patriarchy”(Hohman, 2018). Soldaderas were not only brave women, they were survivors and
heroes, they unknowingly created role models for women and girls to look up to today, girls like
me who need a hero that looks like them.
Works Cited
Amelio Robles Ávila. (n.d.). Legacy Project Chicago. Retrieved September 12, 2022,
from https://legacyprojectchicago.org/person/amelio-robles-avila
Hohman, M. (2018, September 14). When Women Took Up Arms (and Disguises) to Fight
in Mexico’s Revolution. HISTORY.
https://www.history.com/news/women-mexican-revolution-soldaderas
LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes. (2020). Soldaderas: Her Stories from the Fields with Dr.
Gloria Arjona | Wednesday, December 9, 2020. In YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1ml3SG4FqA
The brave women of the Mexican Revolution. (2019, November 19). El Universal.
https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/english/brave-women-mexican-revolution
Viewpoints on Women in the Revolution - The Mexican Revolution and the United States |
Exhibitions - Library of Congress. (2019). Loc.gov.
https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/mexican-revolution-and-the-united-states/viewpoints-on-wo
men.html

Las Soldaderas

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Las Soldaderas

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Las Soldaderas

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Las Soldaderas : Veteran Heroes

in Mexico’s Revolution. HISTORY.

Gloria Arjona | Wednesday, December 9, 2020. In YouTube.

Exhibitions - Library of Congress. (2019). Loc.gov.

You might also like