In British slang the word "gong" means a medal. It originated in the military but now enjoys widespread use. When Blighty's Blog throws a gong at somebody it means we admire his or her achievements.
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When we look back over time there are many notable women worthy of receiving our gong. Women have featured prominently among the influential characters who have changed the course of British history.
The Iron Lady
In recent times the "Iron Lady" Margaret Thatcher stamped her personality with indelible permanence on Britain. But Mrs Thatcher was a controversial character. Despite her notable achievements some Britons choose to remember her with something less than total reverence.
Bad Attitude
So looking further back into the history books we find one woman whose outstanding contributions to British history remain unmatched to this day. She too was controversial; in the sense that Roman invaders found her attitude quite unacceptable.
Boudica by Name
Until quite recently she was called Boadicea. It is now recognized that the name "Boadicea" was a mistranslation into modern English. She is now more correctly referred to as "Boudica".
Boudica was the Queen of the Iceni tribes in what is now Norfolk, England. Along with her husband the King she ruled a region that was peacefully cooperating with the Roman invaders. Peacefully, that is, until her husband died.
Her husband's will passed the throne to Boudica but the Romans had other ideas. Boudica was flogged, her daughters raped and her territory lost its independence.
Warrior Queen
The rest of the story of the warrior queen is legendary. Boudica was an intelligent, powerful woman who took the defence of Britain literally into her own hands. No page in the history book of England has ever stood out so clearly in honour of a British woman.
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