Hannah Snell, English Soldier

Hannah Snell (April 23, 1723 - February 8, 1792) was an English soldier. In 1744 Hannah married a man named James Summs. The couple had a daughter, but the child died and her husband disappeared. She borrowed clothes from her brother-in-law, James Gray, assumed his identity and joined the Marines. In 1748, her unit was sent to capture the French colony of Battle of Pondicherry in India. She also fought in the battle at Devicottail in 1749. She was shot in her groin and to avoid revealing her gender, instructed a local woman to take out the bullet instead of being tended by the regimental Surgeon. In 1750, her unit returned to London, where she revealed her sex to her shipmates. She petitioned the Duke of Cumberland, the head of the army, for her pension and sold her story to London publisher Robert Walker who published her account, The Female Soldier. She was honorably discharged and the Royal Hospital, Chelsea officially recognized Snell's military service in November and granted her a pension in 1750 (increased in 1785), a rare thing in those days. In 1791 her mental condition suddenly worsened. She was admitted to Bethlem Hospital and died in 1792 at the age of 68

Restrictions Only for Ireland and United Kingdom

1700s 1723 1792 Cross-dresser Cross-dressing Crossdresser Crossdressing Discharged Dresser Eighteenth Honorably Impersonator Kickass Snell

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