Rani Laxmibai
Rani Lakshmibai, the Rani of Jhansi (19 November 1828 — 18 June 1858), was an Indian queen - the Maharani consort of the Maratha princely state of Jhansi from 1843 to 1853 as the wife of Maharaja Gangadhar Rao.[1] She was one of the leading figures of the Indian Rebellion of 1857[2] and became a symbol of resistance to the British rule in India for Indian nationalists.
She was married to the Maharaja of Jhansi, Gangadhar Rao Newalkar, the 5th Raja (king/princely ruler) of Jhansi situated in northern India, in May 1842, when she was 13 and he 28. Afterwards, she was called Lakshmibai (or Laxmibai) in honour of the Hindu goddess Devi Lakshmi, and according to the Maharashtrian tradition of women being given a new name after marriage. In September 1851 (approx. age 21), she gave birth to a boy, later named Damodar Rao, who died four months after birth due to a chronic illness. The couple adopted a son a year before her husband Rao's death in 1853. After her husband's death, Rani Lakshmibai was driven from her kingdom. She led military forces to fight against British colonialism and, after being defeated, was eventually killed in battle on 18 June 1858 (aged 29). She remains an incredibly famous and influential Indian historical figure, with statues, parks and national landmarks commemorating / named after her.