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Bio   Lakshmi Bhai was queen of the small Indian state of Jhansi.  

She was born in 1835 as Manubai and married to the Raja of Jhansi in 1842.  (Do the math.)   It was a time of great expansion by the British East India Company at the expense of the numerous Indian royal states. 

In 1853, Lakshmi and her ailing husband adopted a son, Damodar Rao, according to Hindu law.  When the old raja died, the Company rejected both Damodar Rao and Lakshmi Bhai as his regent.  The British instead decided to merge Jhansi into the British provinces of India.

Lakshmi Bhai became a magnet for leaders of the anti-British movement that culminated in open rebellion against the British known as the Sepoy Mutiny.  Although the rebellion failed and many lives were lost on both sides, notice was served that the people of the Indian subcontinent would ultimately regain their independence.

Lakshmi was a strong military and political leader who could not beat the odds.  She died of battle wounds at the age of 22.  British General Hugh Rose said, "Of the mutineers, the bravest and the greatest commander was the Rani."  Nancy

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