Maria Quitéria was a Brazilian lieutenant who has been called the “Brazilian Joan of Arc” and a national heroine. Quitéria served in the Brazilian War of Independence dressed as a man. Maria Quitéria de Jesus was born on June 27, 1792. Quitéria had no formal education but had necessary skills such as farming, hunting, and using firearms. These skills would one day become beneficial for her in the military. An unmarried Quitéria enlisted in the Brazilian Army as a man against her father’s will in 1822. Quitéria would fight several battles in the War for Independence against the Portuguese in her hometown of Bahia. Quitéria’s father started to reveal her secret to the army once he found out that she had betrayed his request. However, his plan backfired and Quitéria was allowed to stay and keep fight because of the skilled she showed in battle. Quitéria was promoted to cadet and soon after promoted again to lieutenant in 1823. She was received and decorated by the Emperor for her actions. Quitéria became the first recognized female in the Brazilian military. After the war, Quitéria married Gabriel Pereira Brito and had a daughter with him, named Luisa. Maria Quitéria along with Maria Felipa de Oliveira and Sister Joana Angelica are known as the three Bahian women resistance fighters in the Brazilian War for Independence. Quitéria died in 1853 at the age of 61. It wasn’t until years later that her legacy was revived. Quitéria was memorialized nationally after her death. A bronze medal was issued by the military bearing Quitéria’s likeness in 1953, one hundred years after her death. This medal was called the “Medal of Maria Quitéria” and was issued to both civilian and military personnel for valuable contributions to military efforts. In 1996 Maria Quitéria was proclaimed Patron of the Corps of Support Staff Officers of the Brazilian Armed Forces.