Hannah Snell (1723-92) The Female Soldier Hannah took her brother-in-law's name, James Gray, and dressed in his suit of clothes, to search for her deserting husband. Discovering he had been executed for murder, she decided to continue in a male identity and joined John Guise's 6th Regiment of Foot when they marched against the Young Pretender, Charles Edward Stuart, in 1745. However, she deserted after a brutal whipping from her sergeant, and joined the Marines instead, sailing for India. She was wounded in the legs and groin - but had the bullet taken out by a local woman so that the regimental surgeon should not discover her sex. On return to England in 1750, she revealed that she was a woman and appealed for a pension. She published her story as a book, The Female Soldier, and created a theatrical act: showing military drill and singing songs in uniform. She was honourably discharged and granted her pension. On retirement, she married twice and had two children from each h...