History is full of daring individuals who swapped identities to chase a dream, and these 10 famous women took it to the next level by donning masculine guises. From battlefields to literary circles, each of them risked reputation, safety, and even life itself to get ahead. Below, we celebrate their audacious choices, the obstacles they faced, and the legacies they left behind.
Why These 10 Famous Women Chose Disguise
Whether it was to claim a medal, secure a publishing contract, or simply stand on a marathon course, the common thread binding these women is a fierce determination to break gender‑based barriers. Their stories remind us that courage often wears a different uniform.
10 Rena ‘Rusty’ Kanokogi
In the spring of 1959, Rusty Kanokogi entered the YMCA Judo Championship in Utica, New York, sporting a cropped haircut and a chest‑taping trick to hide her femininity. She fought her way to victory, but when she stepped forward to claim her medal, the tournament official demanded confirmation of her gender. Upon answering “yes,” the organizers stripped her of the prize. Kanokogi later reflected, “It instilled a feeling in me that no woman should have to go through this again.”
Her lifelong ambition was to see women’s judo recognized as an Olympic discipline. That dream began to materialize in 1984 when women’s judo debuted as an exhibition sport at the Los Angeles Games, and it achieved full medal status at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Celebrated as the mother of women’s judo, Kanokogi succumbed to cancer at 74 in 2009. A year earlier, the Japanese government honored her with the Order of the Rising Sun, the nation’s highest award bestowed upon a foreign citizen.
9 The Brontë Sisters
Sisters Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Brontë released a poetry collection titled Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell in 1846, each adopting a male pseudonym. The following year, Emily’s novel Wuthering Heights appeared under the name Ellis Bell, while Charlotte’s Jane Eyre and Anne’s Agnes Grey were published under Currer Bell and Acton Bell respectively.
In the preface to the 1910 edition of Wuthering Heights, published posthumously after Emily’s 1848 death, Charlotte explained their choice of male pen names: “Averse to personal publicity, we veiled our own names under those of Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell; the ambiguous choice being dictated by a sort of conscientious scruple at assuming Christian names positively masculine, while we did not like to declare ourselves women, because—without at that time suspecting that our mode of writing and thinking was not what is called ‘feminine’—we had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked on with prejudice.”
After receiving generous critical acclaim, the Brontë sisters began publishing under their true names, cementing their status as some of the most influential authors in literary history.
8 Joan of Arc
Joan of Arc, famously known as “The Maid of Orléans,” lived a brief yet extraordinary life from 1412 to 1431. Born into a peasant family in northeastern France, she claimed divine guidance to rescue France and install Charles VII as its rightful king. At sixteen, she cut her hair, adopted male attire, and set out for Chinon with a small entourage.
Her conviction convinced Charles VII to grant her command of an army, which she led to lift the siege of Orléans. However, in 1430, while defending Compiègne, she was unhorsed and captured by the Burgundians. Charged with 70 offenses—including cross‑dressing and witchcraft—she was tried, forced to sign a confession, and burned at the stake the following year.
Joan’s martyrdom turned her into a national heroine and later a saint, symbolizing courage and perseverance against overwhelming odds.
7 Anna Maria Lane
In 1776, Anna Maria Lane enlisted in the Continental Army—a bold move, as women at the time typically served only as cooks, nurses, or laundresses. Determined to fight alongside her husband John, she disguised herself as a man, allowing her to serve in campaigns across New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Georgia.
Her concealment was feasible because 18th‑century soldiers rarely bathed and slept in their uniforms, making gender detection difficult. Historian Joyce Henry noted, “As far as enlistment, there are no physicals when one enters the army in the 18th century. One must have front teeth and an operating thumb and forefinger so one may be able to reach in, grab a cartridge, tear off the paper, and be able to successfully load your musket.”
During the 1777 Battle of Germantown near Philadelphia, Lane was wounded yet survived. Though the exact moment of discovery remains uncertain—likely when she was injured—she managed to stay beside her husband throughout the war. For her bravery, she received a lifetime pension of $100 per year and passed away in her mid‑fifties on June 13, 1810.
6 Deborah Sampson
Deborah Sampson earned the unique distinction of being the only woman to receive a full military pension for service in the American Revolutionary War. Formerly a schoolteacher, she assumed the male alias Robert Shurtleff and enlisted in 1782.
During her two‑year tenure, Sampson led roughly thirty infantrymen on an expedition, captured fifteen enemy soldiers, dug defensive trenches, and endured cannon fire. Her true identity remained hidden until she fell seriously ill and was taken unconscious to a hospital, where officials finally uncovered her gender.
In 1783, she received an honorable discharge and embarked on a lecturing career, often appearing in full uniform to recount her experiences. After her death in 1827 at age 66, her widower petitioned Congress for a pension typically reserved for a female widow. Congress approved, noting “no other similar example of female heroism, fidelity and courage,” though Sampson’s husband died before receiving the benefit.
5 Joanna Zubr
Polish soldier Joanna Zubr concealed her gender while serving alongside her husband Michal in the Napoleonic Wars. Enlisting in 1808, she rose to the rank of sergeant within a unit later renamed the Greater Polish Division, which participated in Napoleon’s 1812 invasion of Russia.
During the disastrous Russian retreat, Zubr became separated from her division but managed to escape Russian territory on her own and eventually return safely to Poland. Reunited with her husband, the couple settled in Wieluń, as the Austrian‑occupied and Russian‑controlled regions of Poland remained inaccessible.
Joanna Zubr earned the Virtuti Militari medal—the highest Polish military honor—making her the first woman ever to receive such a distinction for bravery in battle. She died during a cholera epidemic in 1852 at roughly eighty years of age.
4 Maria Quitéria de Jesus
In 1822, Maria Quitéria fled home to join the Brazilian Army, cutting her hair and donning masculine attire to avoid detection. Although her father initially opposed her enlistment, he eventually discovered her secret yet did not prevent her continued service, as Major Silva y Castro welcomed her skillful contributions.
From October 1822 to June 1823, Quitéria conducted daring ambushes in the province of Bahia, luring enemy troops to nearby camps and striking them with a concealed bayonet. In August 1823, Emperor Pedro I promoted her to lieutenant—an unheard‑of honor for a woman at the time.
A century after her death, the Brazilian government commemorated her by hanging a portrait in the military headquarters in 1953, solidifying her status as a national heroine.
3 James Barry
Military surgeon James Barry rose to the rank of Inspector General in the British Army, overseeing military hospitals and dramatically improving patient care. Barry also performed South Africa’s first successful Caesarean section, saving both mother and child.
Born Margaret Ann Bulkley, Barry’s true gender remained concealed until after death in 1865, when a maid preparing the body discovered the secret. The British Army, shocked by the revelation, initially restricted access to Barry’s papers, a restriction later lifted by historian Isobel Rae in the 1950s.
Even Florence Nightingale, founder of modern nursing, expressed disdain upon learning Barry’s identity, writing, “He kept me standing in the midst of quite a crowd of soldiers… every one of whom behaved like a gentleman while he behaved like a brute. After he was dead, I was told that [Barry] was a woman… I should say that [Barry] was the most hardened creature I ever met.”
2 J.K. Rowling
Joanne Rowling, globally renowned as J.K. Rowling, initially chose to omit her first name from the Harry Potter books to attract a young male readership. The series exploded into the best‑selling franchise in history, translated into over sixty languages.
In 2013, Rowling adopted another male pseudonym—Robert Galbraith—for her crime novel The Cuckoo’s Calling, stating she wanted to “take my writing persona as far away as possible from me.” Editor David Shelley, unaware of the true author, remarked, “I never would have thought a woman wrote that.” The secret was soon leaked by a lawyer’s friend, but the book quickly became another bestseller for Rowling.
1 Kathrine Switzer
In 1967, Kathrine Switzer made history as the first woman to officially start the Boston Marathon—a race that, at the time, barred female competitors. She entered under the guise of a man, and when race officials realized a woman was running, one official lunged at her, trying to yank off her bib number and shouting, “Get the hell out of my race, and give me those numbers!”
Switzer later recalled, “Before I could react, he grabbed my shoulder and flung me back… I was so surprised and frightened that I slightly wet my pants and turned to run.” She added, “I knew if I quit, nobody would ever believe that women had the capability to run 26‑plus miles. If I quit, everybody would say it was a publicity stunt. If I quit, it would set women’s sports back.” Her fear turned to fierce anger, fueling her determination to finish.
Her perseverance paid off: in 1972, women were finally permitted to officially enter the marathon, cementing Switzer’s place as a pioneer for female athletes.
These ten remarkable women prove that sometimes, the boldest way to change the world is to step into a different pair of shoes—literally.