She’s one of the most famous women in the world.

Whether you know her as the First Lady to Bill Clinton or as Donald Trump’s rival in 2016, Hillary Clinton’s passion for politics has earned her a fierce reputation.

And it all started on this day in 1947.

Born Hillary Diane Rodham, young Hillary was raised in Chicago and graduated from Wellesley College in 1969.

Portrait of Hillary Rodham as a high school student in 1965. Photo: Getty

From a young age, it became clear Hillary was never going to accept a life on the sidelines.

At the time, women were subjected to strong societal expectations that taught them to be doting housewives and mothers above all else.

But Hillary chose to ignore all that.

Instead, she earned a Juris Doctor from Yale Law School – where she met her husband and future president Bill Clinton – and began the first few years of an impressive legal career.

Hillary Rodham met Bill Clinton at Yale University in the early 1970s. Photo: Getty

As First Lady of the United States from 1993 to 2001, Hillary advocated for sweeping healthcare reform and played a leading role in creating programs that would help protect children in foster care.

First Lady Hillary Clinton speaking at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 1996. Photo: Getty

From 2009 to 2013, she served as the 67th US secretary of state under Barack Obama, and as a US senator for New York from 2001 to 2009.

As Hillary jumped from one political strength to another, she started to turn her sights to the top prize: Presidency.

Hillary Clinton speaks during a campaign rally at North Carolina State University in 2016, with less than 24 hours until election day. Photo: Getty

In 2016, she became the first woman to be nominated for president of the United States by a major political party when she won the Democratic Party nomination.

She was the first woman to win the popular vote in a US presidential election, but was defeated by Donald Trump.