transgender spy enthralled Georgian England. As if being the first openly transgender person recorded in modern European history wasn’t interesting enough, the Chevalier (meaning ‘knight’) d’Éon also led a remarkable life as a decorated soldier, diplomat and spy.
Charismatic, popular and fiercely intelligent, d’Éon fascinated the public. Born male in 1728, Charles-Geneviève-Louis-Auguste-André-Timothée d’Éon de Beaumont came from Burgundy aristocracy.
They studied in Paris, before gaining their first job in the civil service. Climbing the ranks, d’Éon became secretary to the French ambassador to Russia in 1756.
However, the role was a front. The Chevalier was in fact a member of le Secret du Roi, a secret network of spies and diplomatic agents established by Louis XV.