#WILLIAM RUFUS KING SERIES#

On his way home from the crusade, he was captured, forcing England to pay a ransom for his return. So overall, the evidence points to him being bisexual. In fact, it shows he probably didnвЂ™t bother to hide what he did. This was a common act of Christian faith at the time and doesnвЂ™t mean he was ashamed of his actions. But he had at least one illegitimate son.ДЇinally, it is likely he admitted his gay affairs as part of church ceremonies where he publicly вЂconfessedвЂ™ his вЂsinsвЂ™. Richard rarely saw his wife, who had been forced on him in an arranged marriage.

He apparently had one male lover, a young knight and fellow crusader, Raife de Clermon, who he freed from Muslim captivity.ДЄnd he is thought to have had sex with women too, even raping them. Despite early military success, he failed in this quest.Д«ut the crusade provides more evidence for his sexuality. Once king, Richard joined Christian soldiers in the Third Crusade to conquer Jerusalem from the Muslims. No surprise the younger Philip may have been attracted to this courageous warrior. Richard was a towering figure, up to 195cms (6вЂ™5вЂќ) tall, and reportedly very attractive with strawberry blond hair, light eyes and a pale complexion. вЂAnd the king of France loved him as his own soul and they loved each other so much that the king of England was absolutely astonished at the passionate love between them and marvelled at it.вЂ™ But that doesnвЂ™t explain Roger of HovdenвЂ™s next comment: Modern historians have claimed this was diplomacy вЂ“ that getting in bed with each other was merely symbolic. He adds: вЂThey ate every day at the same table and from the same dish, and at night their beds did not separate them.вЂ™ The chronicler, Roger of Hovden, who knew Richard personally, says Philip вЂhonoredвЂ™ Richard. Attacking these courtiers is as close as the archbishop could come to challenging the king himself, without being accused of treason. Unusually for a monarch, he was never married and had no children.ДЇurther evidence for his homosexuality comes from his squabble with the leader of the English church вЂ“ Anselm, the Archbishop of Canterbury.ДЄnslem was already smarting at WilliamвЂ™s tactic of delaying the appointment of new bishops so he could take money from the churchвЂ™s estates.Д«ut he allegedly went further, attacking the вЂeffeminacyвЂ™ of WilliamвЂ™s courtiers and calling for sodomy to be made illegal. He is said to have promoted these men on the basis of their performance in bed, rather than their talent. They wore fashionable pointed shoes and grew their hair long. But he filled his court with attractive young men. His red face earned him the nickname William Rufus and he had a paunch. He extended his rule into Wales, brought the Scottish King Malcolm under his influence and established peace in Normandy. He made himself unpopular through his taxes and by imposing the death penalty on people who hunted deer in great swathes of forest he claimed for royal use.Д«ut he was also a brave general. And the country was still sharply divided between the English people and their new Norman overlords. William II came to the throne just 21 years after his father, William I, had conquered England. William II was вЂaddicted to every kind of vice, particularly lust and especially sodomy,вЂ™ according to Frank Barlow, the leading medieval historian.

#WILLIAM RUFUS KING SERIES#

King William Rufus (1087 вЂ“ 1100) Handsome men were promoted in William IIвЂ™s court, just as in the TV series Merlin. This is the incredible history of their secret love lives, stormy reigns, tragic sicknesses and grisly murders. And they include some of the most famous rulers in British history.

Of 41 monarchs since William The Conqueror, weвЂ™ve identified seven who were likely lesbian, gay or bisexual. EnglandвЂ™s вЂgayвЂ™ kings and queens defied society вЂ“ during perhaps the most homophobic era of human history вЂ“ to have same-sex lovers.

William rufus king