Legends of the Broadsword: Jaguarina, Queen of the Sword
One of the most successful broadsword fencers of 19th century America was a woman- and her name was Jaguarina!
An expert with the broadsword, rapier, foil, saber and knife, Jaguarina toured the country in the latter part of the 1800s, billing herself as "The Queen of the Sword," and "The Champion Amazon of the World." She defended these titles in public fencing matches against the most famous swordsmen she could find, defeating Captain J. H. Marshall in mounted broadsword combat, the U.S. Army sword champion Sergeant Owen Davis, and a master of broadsword and foil named Captain Weidermann.
Weidermann initially expressed a chivalrous (or sexist) reluctance to fight a woman, but he soon realized she was at least his match:
"She constantly forced the fighting, thundering out of her corner and across the field, to meet the captain almost before he was out of his. She wore a French army officer's cuirass, of copper and brass, which blazed in the sunshine, as she came tearing across the lists." (From "The Jaguarina-Weidermann Battle," in the Journal of Manly Arts: April 2002)
Jaguarina prevailed in this contest by a score of six to five, and defeated Weidermann again in their re-match with foils. In the words of Herbert C. Hensley: "apparently the lady was just too fast for him."