KING BILLY 'WAS GAY' Unnist fury as activist claims William of Orange had male lovers. - Free Onle Library

Contents:

• GAY ACTIVIST'S 'KG BILLY WAS A HOMOSEXUAL' CLAIM SPARKS FURORE
• WAS KG WILLIAM III BISEXUAL? LEADG BRISH GAY RIGHTS MPAIGNER PETER TATCHELL CERTALY THKS SO.
• WAS KG BILLY OF THE BOYNE FAMY GAY?
• 5 GAY BRISH KGS AND QUEENS OM HISTORY
• KING BILLY 'WAS GAY' UNNIST FURY AS ACTIVIST CLAIMS WILLIAM OF ORANGE HAD MALE LOVERS.
• MAY 1, 1981: THE DAY BILLIE JEAN KG PUBLICLY ME OUT AS GAY

GAY ACTIVIST'S 'KG BILLY WAS A HOMOSEXUAL' CLAIM SPARKS FURORE

Published 18th-19th Century Social Perspectiv, 18th–19th - Century History, Early Morn History (1500–1700), Early Morn History Social Perspectiv, General, Issue 6 (Nov/Dec 2008), Letters, Volume 16In his article ‘Billy’s Boys’ the last issue, is a py thatBrian Lacy do not answer the qutn posed the troductn, thatis, whether William III was fact homosexual. Further, is known that William’s prumedlong-time lover, Bentck, de of Portland, abhorred homosexualy andcried his rrponnce what he lled ‘nt habs’ (seeWilliam and Mary by Henri and Barbara van r Dee (1973), pp 421–2). Also, they availedof the gossip that arose followg the stagg of Vanburgh’s edy TheRelapse, or Virtue Danger, Dry Lane 1696, wh s numerohomosexual allns, to smear William.

PROFILE WILLIAM OF ORANGE Gay rights activists Northern Ireland ma the shockg (to some) claim that Kg Billy was gay, and certaly the young monarch had his male favour at urt.

But has long been moured that Bentck was, fact, a spurned lover; that William had homosexual clatns, had found a new sexual favoure and that Keppel had supplanted Bentck's place Kg Billy's forward 300 years - to last Monday, Belfast, when gay rights activist Peter Tatchell told the gatherg at Amnty Internatnal's Pri Lecture that, "William of Orange had male lovers, most notably William Bentck, whom William ma Earl of Portland, and Arnold Van Keppel, who was a mere page when William met him and ma him Earl of Albemarle. "Censorg William III's homosexualy is pla hypocrisy, " Tatchell had add. That if Kg Billy was ed gay or bisexual, then the homophobia displayed by certa Unnist polins would look pretty hollow.

WAS KG WILLIAM III BISEXUAL? LEADG BRISH GAY RIGHTS MPAIGNER PETER TATCHELL CERTALY THKS SO.

After all, the practice of "outg" historil figur has been a mor, but by, ont the battle for gay rights. In 1697, Bentck wrote a letter to William, clarg his shock at the mours of "Thgs I am ashamed to hear, and which I thought you to be as far removed of as any man of the world, I would have thought any man of society would have distanced himself om" was William of Orange actually homosexual? While some pot to ments ma ma even by WIlliam's admirers that uld suggt that his "one vice" was homosexualy, David Onnekk, his bgraphy of Bentck, argu that the evince that se is only circumstantial, and that while William's letters "radiate his ep iendship and rpect for his servant, they are rather void of timate feelgs".

Bis, Onnekk argu, one has to exame the role of the Jab, who were wagg a propaganda war at the the Who's Who Gay and Lbian History ref to st judgement on William. He may have been gay, says. He may have had early gay experienc.

He may have had homosexual impuls that he never acted upon. Or he may have simply held two iendships particularly ar a urt of nspirators and, IT HAS been enough for the Orange Orr's historian Cecil Kilpatrick to update his bgraphy of William 1998 an attempt to refute the mours - reportedly after a young member of the Boys' Briga asked Kilpatrick if was te that Kg Billy was gay. "This has all been said before, " sighs Steven Kg, a former adviser to David Trimble and a proment gay unnist.

WAS KG BILLY OF THE BOYNE FAMY GAY?

" Kg believ that, spe the homophobia poed by the lik of Orange Orr member Iris Robson, the claims are not as woundg as some would like to believe. And even if some irrefutable evince was to nfirm William's homosexualy, "some people will refe to believe and others will probably expect the way don't take om his historil legacy. This week the gay rights activist Peter Tatchell dredged up the 300-year-old mour that William had homosexual lovers and claimed this "tth" was a challenge to the homophobic attus of some wh the Prottant muny.

5 GAY BRISH KGS AND QUEENS OM HISTORY

"It is particularly hypocril for Unnist policians to play the homophobic rd when their hero, William of Orange, had male lovers. A leadg gay rights activist has raised the temperature the row over homosexualy by claimg there was evince Kg Billy had male Tatchell highlighted the ntroversial allegatn as evince of hypocrisy over homosexualy Northern Ireland, but he was nmned by unnists for settg out to liberately e mpaigner will tonight liver the Amnty Internatnal Pri Lecture Tatchell’s appearance at the cy’s week-long gay pri ftival after the DUP’s Iris Robson sparked ntroversy by brandg homosexualy an Robson, wife of First Mister Peter Robson, has nmned all attacks on the gay muny, but Mr Tatchell said: "It is particularly hypocril for unnist policians to play the homophobic rd when their hero William of Orange had male lovers. "This is the kd of liberately offensive and provotive ment and shock tactics that he has ed the past, " he Robson sparked ntroversy when she said that, le wh her Christian beliefs, she se homosexualy as an Strangford MP has repeatedly nied her remarks were homophobic, sistg she had Christian love for gay people themselv and nmned anyone who would attack people for their Mr Tatchell targeted Mrs Robson for heavy cricism ahead of his Belfast speech.

KING BILLY 'WAS GAY' UNNIST FURY AS ACTIVIST CLAIMS WILLIAM OF ORANGE HAD MALE LOVERS.

"Iris Robson’s remarks are part of a pattern of homophobia that seems to characterise sectns of Northern Irish society, " he said.

"It is only a year ago that Ian Paisley jnr ma upsettg outbursts agast gay people. "Iris Robson claims homosexualy is not natural, yet same-sexual relatns are found every human society and every animal speci.

MAY 1, 1981: THE DAY BILLIE JEAN KG PUBLICLY ME OUT AS GAY

”Ian Paisley jnr ed ntroversy by sayg he was repulsed by gays, but he and other senr DUP figur have fend their right to exprs their moral opposn to homosexualy, while also matag their nmnatn of homophobic Tatchell has mpaigned ternatnally and he warned that his experience has been that public ments agast homosexualy n rult physil attacks on gay people. "It is shameful that over 70 natns still outlaw homosexualy, that several untri reta the ath penalty for same-sex relatnships, and that none of the ternatnal human rights nventns explicly guarantee gay equaly and protectn agast discrimatn on the grounds of sexual orientatn.