Who Was Adelita?

Who was Adelita?

There is a corridos - or Mexican folk song - of the story about a young woman in love with a soldier who travels with him and his regiment during the Mexican Revolution.

Legend has it that the song is based on a real-life character, however, the true identity of the woman is still unknown. Some claim her real name was Altagracia Martinez, also known as Marieta Martinez, while others maintain she was, in fact, Adela Velarde, a woman who actually took part in military action in the capacity of a nurse.

An Adelita was a soldadera, or woman soldier, who not only cooked and cared for the wounded but also actually fought in battles against Mexican government forces. In time the word Adelita was used for all the soldaderas, who became a vital force in the revolutionary war efforts.

The term ˜La Adelita" now signifies a woman of strength and courage and is remembered in progenitive folk songs, poems, art and even comic books of popular culture.

Regardless, La Adelita has now come to represent the archetype of Mexican Revolutionary woman-warrior.

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