Often overshadowed by figures like Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín, Juana Azurduy de Padilla stands as one of the most formidable and uncompromising military leaders of the South American Wars of Independence. A woman of mestizo heritage, she defied the strict patriarchal norms of the 19th-century Spanish colonial empire to lead armies, organize guerrilla factions, and fight on the front lines for the liberation of Alto Perú (modern-day Bolivia) and the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (modern-day Argentina). next...