Was Napoleon gay?
Allan Adler
I'm reading Men of Mathematics, by Eric Temple Bell. I've found a couple
of remarks about Napoleon which might be Bell's way of saying that
Napoleon was gay. Does anyone know one way or the other?
Here are the remarks:
(1) In the biography of the mathemtician Monge, who was a great friend
of Napoleon, Bell mentions the reaction of the students at the Ecole
Polytechnique to Napoleon declaring himself emperor. Napoleon remarked
to Monge, "your pupils are nearly all in revolt against me", to which
Monge replied, "Sire, we have had trouble enough to make republicans
out of them; give them time to become imperialist; moreover, permit me
to say, you have turned rather abruptly!".
Bell, in order to explain that Monge and Napoleon remained friends,
writes: "Little spats like this meant nothing between old lovers."
(2) In the biography of Gauss, Bell describes the futile defense which
Gauss' benefactor Duke Ferdinand offered against Napoleon. The Duke
was mortally woounded and a deputation from Braunschweig was sent to
beg Napoleon to let Ferdinand die in his own bed instead of in prison.
Napoleon refused and Bell describes the matter thus: "It was the wrong
time of the month and Napoleon was enjoying one of his womanish tantrums."
Of course, these remarks can be interpreted differently. But since they
clearly raise the question of Napoleon's homosexuality, what is the answer?
Allan Adler
a...@zurich.ai.mit.edu
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Joe Dzikiewicz
>"It was the wrong
> time of the month and Napoleon was enjoying one of his womanish
>tantrums."
I don't see the above as evidence that Napoleon might have been homosexual.
Maybe a hermaphrodite, but on the whole it sounds more like a scurrilous
metaphor.
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Joe Dzikiewicz
I can resist anything but temptation!
Eric & Linda Gross
I would take those comments to attempts at wit, and not a statement of
Napoleon's sexual orientation.
Rich Rostrom
> Bell, in order to explain that Monge and Napoleon remained friends,
> writes: "Little spats like this meant nothing between old lovers."
Just a metaphor for the friendship between the two men.
> Bell describes the matter thus: "It was the wrong time of the month
> and Napoleon was enjoying one of his womanish tantrums."
This has nothing to do with sexuality and everything to do with
personality. Bell was English, IIRC, and Englishmen tend to regard
strong displays of emotion as 'effeminate' or 'womanish'. Napoleon
was French (and Italian, more or less, being from Corsica). Thus
Bell described him in terms of this stereotype.
>Of course, these remarks can be interpreted differently. But since they
>clearly raise the question of Napoleon's homosexuality, what is the answer?
Napoleon was, as you should know, married twice, and had numerous
mistresses.
AFAIK, no one has _ever_ sugggested he had any homosexual tendencies.
--
It seemed incredible that the petty manipulations | Rich Rostrom
we had done so quietly in the dark could result in |
such a glorious catastrophe. | rrostrom@
--- Vladimir Peniakoff, _Popski's Private Army_ | 21stcentury.net
anker...@my-deja.com
Allan Adler <a...@nestle.ai.mit.edu> wrote:
>
>
> I'm reading Men of Mathematics, by Eric Temple Bell. I've found a
> couple
> of remarks about Napoleon which might be Bell's way of saying that
> Napoleon was gay. Does anyone know one way or the other?
No, he was not. He did like big-chested women, even if the rest
of their figure was not as impressive. But liking big boobs is
not (usually) an indication of homosexuality.
GFH
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
dspe...@earthlink.net
<a...@nestle.ai.mit.edu> wrote:
First, I'm not gay so you can interpret these answers as you desire.
I will give a more or less universal reference to Schom's book,
although this response is informed by many years of reading and many
authors some superior to Schom.
>
>I'm reading Men of Mathematics, by Eric Temple Bell. I've found a couple
>of remarks about Napoleon which might be Bell's way of saying that
>Napoleon was gay. Does anyone know one way or the other?
>
>Here are the remarks:
>(1) In the biography of the mathemtician Monge, who was a great friend
> of Napoleon, Bell mentions the reaction of the students at the Ecole
> Polytechnique to Napoleon declaring himself emperor. Napoleon remarked
> to Monge, "your pupils are nearly all in revolt against me", to which
> Monge replied, "Sire, we have had trouble enough to make republicans
> out of them; give them time to become imperialist; moreover, permit me
> to say, you have turned rather abruptly!".
>
> Bell, in order to explain that Monge and Napoleon remained friends,
> writes: "Little spats like this meant nothing between old lovers."
In general usage far into the 20th century a usage such as this had no
homosexual meaning. The equation of "lover" with "sexual lover" is
quite post-modern.
The context of this statement is very clear, and is not sexual. Read
the history of the Revolution. The "turn" was Napoleon's
transformation from an officer of the revolution to an imperialist or,
if you want, even a more granular choice from allegiance to one party
to another.
>
>(2) In the biography of Gauss, Bell describes the futile defense which
> Gauss' benefactor Duke Ferdinand offered against Napoleon. The Duke
> was mortally woounded and a deputation from Braunschweig was sent to
> beg Napoleon to let Ferdinand die in his own bed instead of in prison.
> Napoleon refused and Bell describes the matter thus: "It was the wrong
> time of the month and Napoleon was enjoying one of his womanish tantrums."
Bell is not an authority on Napoleon, so I can hardly see how a
frankly homosexual statement from this author is of any import.
>
>Of course, these remarks can be interpreted differently. But since they
>clearly raise the question of Napoleon's homosexuality, what is the answer?
Allan, Napoleon might have been a bisexual, although I seriously doubt
it. If he were, he would have to have controlled his tendency very
rigidly. The least hint of scandal would have been trumpeted by every
enemy, English, French and Italian.
dan