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Elizabeth A.Sackler Center for Feminist Art

Kenau Hasselaer

b. 1526, Haarlem, Netherlands; d. 1588, location uncertain

Kenau Hasselaer, daughter of the mayor of Haarlem, in the Netherlands, led an army of women to defend the city when it was besieged by the Spanish in 1573. A shrewd businesswoman, she operated a successful timber company.