Queen Teuta

Queen Teuta lived a couple of hundred years BCE (Before Common Era) in Illyria, which latest research has placed in what is now Bosnia and Herzegovina. She was the widow of King Agron and Regent for their son and she followed in the Ardaei tribal traditions of heavy drinking and pirate activity on the Adriatic Sea. Even the Romans, though they eventually defeated Queen Teuta, saw the Ardaei as formidable opponents and a real problem.

At one point, when the Romans tried to negotiate some kind of peaceful co-existence, Queen Teuta simply explained to them that Illyrian law considered piracy -- like fishing -- a lawful enterprise and her government had no right to try to stop people from engaging in it. The Roman ambassadors didn't appreciate her attitude and let her know it. So when they boarded their ships to return to Rome, she had her troops seize the ships, kill one of the emissaries, and take the other captive.

It took 20,000 troops, 200 horsemen, and the entire Roman fleet of 200 ships to conquer Queen Teuta and her people. They took her holdings, severely restricted her movements, and demanded an annual tribute, all of which Queen Teuta initially accepted. Eventually, however, in-your-face woman that she was, she decided she'd rather step down than continue to live under their rules. Her resistance to Roman oppression got her honored on an Albanian coin in the year 2000 because some historians believe that Albania is the true site of the Illyrian kingdoms. In-your-face women's faces are liable to pop up anywhere and anytime and be claimed by many. So be on the lookout!