You thought homosexuality is a recently discovered stuff? Well, you are wrong. In fact, homosexuality has been observed and practiced all around the globe since ancient times and you may be amazed to find out how deep it goes. Here are the most famous gay people of the history that you may have not known about:
Spartans
These feared warriors of ancient Greece were more than just killing machines. Stories regarding the Spartan society include pederasty as one of the most common practices between young Spartan boys and their mentors. Furthermore, there was a special military unit called the Sacred Band of Thebes, consisting mainly in soldier couples. It was believed it will strengthen the bonds between the warriors, which will help them in the battlefield.
Ancient Rome celebrities
Some of the most known Roman figures are surrounded by some of these juicy stories. Caesar was considered “every woman’s husband and every man’s wife”, but he was not the only one in this position. The roman emperor Hadrian was involved in a love affair with Antinous Pius and had a relationship with Marcus Aurelius after Pius died. Other gay Roman figures are the poets Horace and Seneca, the last one being considered as “passive”.
British kings and poets
You may have heard of King Richard 1 the Lion-hearted. Yes, gay. We also mention King Edward the second and his intimate friend Piers Gaveston, but this is not all. The famous Shakespeare is also believed to have been gay. Despite having been married to Anne Hathaway, with which he had 3 children, his hidden side seems to involve the attraction towards a younger man. From whom he wrote precisely 126 love poems. Candidates for the identity of that character are believed to be Henry Wriothesley and William Herbert, Shakespeare’s contemporaries.
France and Italian figures
Italian artists of the past are believed to have shared their passion for beautiful men. Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo are all considered to have had an appeal for gorgeous males. Leonardo da Vinci was also considered gay by some of his biographers, especially Michael White, who highlighted Leonardo’s relationships with Fioravante di Domenico and Bernardo di Simeone, two young and attractive men.
American icons
A love affair is believed to have existed between George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, his personal secretary. This idea of Washington being gay is not as farfetched as you may think. Larry Kramer, the author also approached this in his latest novel The American people. Also, the known writers Herman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne had a love affair, Abraham Lincoln shared the bed with Joshua Speed for 4 years and Janis Joplin was also believed to have had a lust for young women.
Besides this, who knows how many other important figures crossed the boundaries of genders when love came in the equation?
