New details have emerged to show that the rave-making Black Panther movie was inspired by a real all-woman army in Africa.
When News Breaks Out, We Break In. (The 2014 Bloggies Finalist)
The Ahosi of Dahomey, or the ‘Dahomey Amazons’, are said to have inspired Black Panther writers
Black Panther has been dubbed the superhero blockbuster of the year
- and it's got fans talking about what could have inspired the
captivating script.
Many are convinced the film's Dora Milaje warriors are based on a
real life all-woman army in Africa, known as the Ahosi of Dahomey, or
the "Dahomey Amazons."
The all-female military regiment, created by King Houegbadja in the
19th century, were chosen for their incredible ability to fight men.
Often recruited as virgin teenagers, the fierce women would live in
the royal palace in what was then the kingdom of Dahomey - now known as
the modern day Republic of Benin.
They called themselves N’Nonmiton, which means "our mothers” and dedicated their efforts to weapons training, protecting the king on the bloodiest battlefields.
The women made up different units, each with its own battle songs,
and were allegedly equipped with Danish guns and their own uniform. In
later years, they were apparently armed with Winchester rifles, clubs
and knives and swift decapitation became their trademark.
The
all-female military regiment, created by King Houegbadja in the 19th
century, were chosen for their incredible ability to fight men
Dahomey women were trained to be strong, fast, ruthless and fought to the death, according to reports.
Training exercises resembled a form of gymnastics, including
jumping over walls covered with thorny acacia branches and being sent on
10-day "Hunger Games-style" expeditions in the jungle with only a machete.
They also learnt survival skills and insensitivity training, with
one initiation test involving seeing whether the women were merciless
enough to throw bound human prisoners of war to their deaths from a
fatal height.
The women weren't allowed to marry or have children, as by joining
the regiment they were legally married to the king. Some of the women
had became soldiers by their own volition, while others were enrolled by
husbands who complained they couldn’t control their "unruly" wives.
The
women made up different units, each with its own battle songs, and were
allegedly equipped with Danish guns and their own uniform
Reports suggest there were between 1,000 and 6,000 members before
the regiment was disbanded in the 20th century as part of French
colonial expansion.
The fictional Dora Milaje made their first appearance in 1998’s
Black Panther No. 1 - the first issue of Christopher Priest’s beloved
run.
But after three decades Black Panther had his own bodyguards while
the army remained in the background for the most part of the comic book
series.
In the 2016 relaunch of Black Panther, a much-needed focus was put
back on the group, which consisted of the finest women from each of the
18 tribes that made up Wakanda - the fictional East African nation.
And the regiment makes a firm prominence in the movie spin-off of the Marvel classic.
-Culled from The Sun UK
When News Breaks Out, We Break In. (The 2014 Bloggies Finalist)
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