Laskarina Bouboulina
| Laskarina Bouboulina Λασκαρίνα Μπουμπουλίνα |
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Oil painting of Bouboulina, the National Historical Museum, Athens
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| Native name | Laskarina Pinotsi |
| Nickname(s) | "Kapetanissa" |
| Born |
11 May 1771 Constantinople, Ottoman Empire |
| Died |
22 May 1825 Spetses, Ottoman Empire |
| Allegiance |
 Greece |
| Service/branch | Hellenic Navy |
Laskarina Bouboulina (Greek: Λασκαρίνα Μπουμπουλίνα, pronounced [laskaˈrina bubuˈlina]; 11 May 1771 – 22 May 1825) was a Greek naval commander, heroine of the Greek War of Independence in 1821, and an Admiral of the Imperial Russian Navy.
Bouboulina was born in a prison in Constantinople; she originated from the Arvanite community of the island of Hydra. She was the daughter of Stavrianos Pinotsis, a captain from Hydra island, and his wife Skevo. The Ottomans had imprisoned Pinotsis for his part in the failed Orlof Revolution of 1769–1770 against the Ottoman rule. During one of her mother's visits she was born. Her father died soon afterward and the mother and child returned to Hydra. They moved to the island of Spetses four years later when her mother married Dimitrios Lazarou-Orlof. Bouboulina had eight half-siblings.
She married twice, first Dimitrios Yiannouzas and later the wealthy shipowner and captain Dimitrios Bouboulis, taking his surname. Bouboulis was killed in battle against Algerian pirates in 1811. Then 40 years old, Bouboulina took over his fortune and his trading business and had four more ships built at her own expense, including the large warship Agamemnon.
In 1816, the Ottomans tried to confiscate Bouboulina's property because her second husband had fought for the Russians against the Turks in the Turko-Russian wars. She sailed to Constantinople to meet Russian ambassador Count Pavel Stroganov and seek his protection. In recognition of Bouboulis's service to the Russians, Strogonov sent her to safety in Crimea. She also met with the mother of Mahmud II, who afterward reportedly convinced her son to leave Bouboulina's property alone. After three months of exile in the Crimea, Bouboulina returned to Spetses.
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