Before Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) and Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green), Star Trek: Lower Decks. But the first female starship Captain in the franchise was actually seen in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
When Star Trek: Voyager launched in 1995, Kate Mulgrew received her due acclaim as the "first female Captain." But it really must be clarified that Mulgrew's Kathryn Janeway was the first female Captain to headline her own Star Trek series, which was a stellar and historic achievement. Subsequently, when Michael Burnham became Captain at the end of Star Trek: Discovery season 3, she was hailed as the franchise's first Black female Captain, but this was also incorrect. But Burnham is the first Black female Captain to headline a Star Trek series, as Lower Decks' Captain Freeman isn't the main character, an honor that goes to her insubordinate daughter, Ensign Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome).
How Star Trek's First Female Captain Made History Twice
Preceding Captain Janeway by 9 years, Madge Sinclair portrayed Star Trek's first female Captain seen on-screen in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, and she gets a dual honor as the first Black female Captain in Star Trek as well. Sinclair played the unnamed Captain of the USS Saratoga, which faced the Whale Probe attacking Earth that iral James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and his crew placated by traveling back in time and bringing humpback whales to the 23rd century. Although Sinclair's Captain wasn't identified by name, the fact remains her presence is instantly historic and opened the door for the female Star Trek Captains who succeeded her.
However, Madge Sinclair made history a second time by returning as a different Star Trek Captain. Sinclair played Captain Silva La Forge, the mother of Lt. Commander Star Trek: The Next Generation season 7. Thus, Sinclair became the first actress to portray Star Trek Captains in the 23rd and 24th centuries, although one can only conjecture if her two characters are actually related. Sinclair, who died in 1995, was a celebrated actress perhaps best known for playing the Queen of Zamunda opposite James Earl Jones in Coming To America, and she voiced Queen Sarabi alongside Jones' King Mufasa in The Lion King.
Star Trek Now Proudly Has Black Female Lead Characters
Madge Sinclair's historic contributions to Star Trek led the way for the franchise's current Black female lead characters. Sonequa Martin-Green's Michael Burnham is the centerpiece of Star Trek: Discovery since the show's inception. Meanwhile, Star Trek: Lower Decks features a Black mother/daughter relationship that's never been seen in Star Trek before, thanks to Ensign Mariner and Captain Freeman. Sinclair also paved the way to make Avery Brooks' lead role as Captain Benjamin Sisko on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - the first Black lead of a Star Trek series - a reality.
Today, female Starship Captains and irals, the rank Janeway now holds on Star Trek: Prodigy, are a common sight, thankfully. But there is only one first Star Trek female Captain, and Black female Star Trek Captain, and that's Madge Sinclair. Captain Janeway, Captain Burnham, and Captain Freeman follow in her footsteps and can lay claim to a piece of Star Trek history in their own right, but it was Madge Sinclair's Captain of the Saratoga and Silva La Forge in TNG who led the way.