Gilgamesh (circa 2700 BCE, Iraq) King of Uruk in Babylonia (modern Iraq)
Enkidu.
Ni-ankh-khnum and Khnum-hotep (2465 BCE–2325 BCE, Egypt) Overseer of the Manicurists in the Palace of the King Niuserre
In the most private part of their tomb, Ni-ankh-khnum and Khnum-hotep are shown in an intimate embrace meant to last an eternity.
Akhenaton (Amenhotep IV) (1380–1362 BCE, Egypt) Pharaoh
Smenkhkare, co-regent and successor.
Harmodius and Aristogiton (circa 514 BCE, Greece) citizens
one another
Socrates (Between 471 and 469 BCE–339 BCE, Greece) Greek stone cutter and philosopher
In his Memoirs of Socrates Xenophon tells of Socrates's attempt to flirt with the nude model, Theodote.
Sophocles (497 BCE–406 BCE, Greece) playwright
The historian Athenaios reported that Sophocles loved boys like Euripides loved women.
Alexander the Great (356–323 BCE, Macedonia) King of Macedon and conqueror of the known world
Hephaestion was his closest and life-long friend.
Anxi (–243 BCE, China) King
Long Yang became a favorite of King Anxi.
Gao (256–195 BCE, China) Emperor
Jiru
Hui (210–188 BCE, China) Emperor
Hongru
Jing (188–141 BCE, China) Emperor
Zho Ren
Wen (202–141 BCE, China) Emperor
Deng TongZhao TanBeigong Bozi
Wu (156–87 BCE, China) Emperor
Han YanHan YueLi Yannian
Ai (36–1 BCE, China) Emperor
Emperor Ai made his lover, Dong Xian, marshal and even talked of abdicating to him before his death.
Augustus Caesar (Gaius Octavius) (63 BCE–14 CE, Italy) Roman Emperor
According to Suetonius, Julius Caesar is accused (by Marc Antony) of adopting his favorite nephew as heir on condition that he submit to a sexual relationship.
Cheng (51–7 BCE, China) Emperor
According to historic records, years later when Emperor Cheng-ti died, Zhang Fang couldn’t stop crying after hearing the news and died soon afterward.
Virgil (Publius Vergilius Maro) (70–19 BCE, Italy) Roman poet
Alexander, a slave owned by his patron Asinius Pollio.
Xuan (91–49 BCE, China) Emperor
Zhang Pengzu
Yuan (75–33 BCE, China) Emperor
Hong Gong,Shi Xian
Zhao (95–74 BCE, China) Emperor
Jin Shang
Caius Julius Caesar (100–44 BCE, Italy) Roman Dictator
King Nicomedes of Bythinia (north-west Turkey), and possibly his nephew, Gaius Octavius (Augustus Caesar)
Pei Kai (237–291, China) Emperor
Zhang Hanbian (365–420, China) Emperor
Zhou Xiaoshi
Jian Wendi ( circa 550 CE, China) Emperor
Malgo (Maelgwn Gwynedd) (480–547 CE, United Kingdom) King of Gwynedd (the Britons of NW Wales)
As well as taking male lovers, Malgo also had at least three wives (not simultaneously).
Yu Xin (513–581, China) Emperor
Wang Shao
Abu Nuwas al-Hasan ibn Hani al-Hakami (757–814, Iran) poet
Waliba ibn al-Hubab, Nuwas's handsome older cousin, became his lover and teacher.
Hadrian (Publius Aelius Hadrianus) (76–138 CE, Italy) Emperor of Rome
Antinoüs, household slave, became Hadrian's lover at age 12 or 13.
Xizong (874–889, China) Emperor
Zhang Langgou
David (1010–970 BCE, Israel) 2nd King of Israel
Jonathan (son of King Saul) of whose early death he lamented: "Thy love to me was wonderful, surpassing the love for women.
Benedict IX (Theophylactus) (1012–1055, Italy) Pope
One of the most corrupt and notorious of all popes, Benedict allegedly hosted homosexual orgies, sodomised animals and ordered murders.
St. Anselm (1033–1109, Italy) Catholic monk, theologian
He had emotional relationships with Lanfranc, and then a succession of his own pupils.
Aelred of Rievaulx (1110–1167, England) monk
Aelred called Simon, a 14 year old novice, "my gentlest friend," "my beloved brother," and "the one-in-heart with me.
Salah El-Din (westernized as Saladin) (1138–1193, Kurdistan (northern Iraq)) First Ayyubid sultan of Egypt
Karakush (a Turkish eunuch).
Richard the Lionheart (Richard I) (1157–1199, England) King
Philip II of France was 15 when he met and fell in love with the young man who would become Richard I of England.
Philip II (Phillip Augustus) (1165–1223, France) King
Richard the Lionhearted fell in love with Phillip, during a visit to the French court, when the later was 15.
Edward II (1284–1327, England) first Duke of Wales, later King of England
Piers Gaveston, his squire, later made Earl of Cornwall by Edward, was executed by the barons in 1312.
Hafiz (Shams ud-din Mohammed) (1319–1389, Iran) poet
Much of the sexuality in Hafiz's poetry celebrates the expression of male-male love as not merely approaching, but actually reaching a state of divinity.
Donatello (Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi) (1386–1466, Italy) sculptor
Donatello hired especially beautiful boys as apprentices, and "stained" them so that no one else would find them pleasing.
Mehmet II, the Conqueror (Muhammad II or Mohammed II) (1430–1481, Turkey) Sultan
One source says that captured Christian youths were placed in his harem.
Marsilio Ficino (1433–1499, Italy) philosopher
Giovanni Cavalcanti, his protégé, worked with him on the first translation of Phaedrus.
Julius II (1443–1513, Italy) Pope
Evidence for Julius II's sexual/romantic involvement with men is suspect at best.
Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519, Italy) artist, inventor, scientist
Leonardo had no relationships with women, never married, had no children, and raised many young proteges, including Gian Giacomo de' Caprotti, nicknamed "Salai"("lamb or offspring of Satan"), who shared his life for 20 years.
Desiderius Erasmus (Gerhard Gerhards) (1466–1536, Netherlands) Philosopher
Desiderius seems to have been unlucky in love, having made advances to, and been rejected by his friend and fellow monk Servatius Roger, and one of his pupils, Thomas Grey, later Marquis of Dorset.
Michelangelo (1475–1564, Italy) artist and poet
Gherardo Perini, a model for Michelangelo, is thought to be the subject of some of his homoerotic poetry.
Moctezuma Xocoyotzin (1480–1520, Mexico) ruler of the Triple Alliance (misnamed the Aztecs)
The inclusion of Moctezuma in any list such as this is problematic.
Julius III (1487–1555, Italy) Pope
Innocenzo, a 15 year old beggar boy, caught Julius's eye fighting off an attack by a pet ape.
Suleiman the Magnificent (1494–1566, Turkey) Ottoman ruler
There are many reports that sodomy was rife in the Ottoman Empire.
Benvenuto Cellini (1500–1571, Italy) sculptor, goldsmith
Fillipino Lippi, son of the famous painter, was in a relationship described by Cellini: “We came to love each other so much that we were never apart, day or night.
Wuzong (1506–1522, China) Emperor
Michel Eyquem de Montaigne (1533–1592, France) essayist, politician
Montaigne's inclusion in a list of famous gays is problematic.
Henri III (1551–1589, France) King of France
The term mignons was applied to Henri's favorites.
Francis Bacon (1561–1626, England) philosopher, essayist, statesman, scientist
Bacon favored young Welsh serving-men, especially Tobie Matthew who is said to have inspired Bacon's essay "Of Friendship"Henry Percy
Christopher Marlowe (1564–1593, England) dramatist and poet
Thomas Watson met Kit while the later was a student at Cambridge.
James VI & I (James Charles Stuart ) (1566–1625, Scotland) King James VI of Scotland and King James I of England
One of his earliest relationships, at age 15, was with his relative Esme Stuart, a young French nobleman.
Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1571–1610, Italy) painter
No conclusive evidence of Caravaggio's sexuality has survived, and homophobic critics rail against any suggestion of same-sex attachment.
Shenzong (1573–1620, China) Emperor
John Atherton (1598–1640, England, Ireland) Cleric
During his youth, possibly while a student at Oxford, Atherton is known to have engaged in sexual relations with another man.
Lord Audley, Earl of Castlehaven (Mervyn Touchet) (1593–1631, England, Ireland) Earl of Castlehaven
Amptil (or possibly Antill) had originally been a beggar and a vagabond, until Sir Henry Smith picked him up and made him his footman, then master of his stables, and eventually arranging Amptil's marriage to his son's daughter.
Xizong (1621–1628, China) Emperor
(from Brett Hinsch, Passions of the Cut Sleeve: The Male Homosexual Tradition in China, (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press,1990)
Jean-Baptiste (Giovanni Battisti) Lully (1632–1687, Italy) composer
In 1685, Lully was involved in an affair with a "music page" being trained in the royal service.
Ihara Saikaku (1642–1693, Japan) poet, writer
Little is known of his personal life, so inferences are drawn from his writings.
William III (William of Orange) (1650–1702, Netherlands) King of England
William Bentinck, who William brought to England and created Earl of Portland after his coronation.
Peter the Great (1672ndash;1725, Russia) Czar
Alexander Danilovich Menshikov, born in the slums of Moscow, was Peter’s constant companion, acted as the virtual ruler of Russia during Catherine's brief reign, and then became Prince Regent during the reign of Peter's grandson.
George Freideric Händel (1685–1759, Germany) composer
Handel never discussed his private life, never married, and spent most of his time in all-male social circles.
Frederick the Great (Frederick II) (1712–1786, Germany (Prussia)) King of Prussia
Keith, a royal page, was probably the then 16 year old crown prince of Prussia's first lover.
Johann Joachim Winckelmann (1717–1768, Germany (Prussian Saxony)) archaeologist, art historian, Papal Antiquary
Friedrich Rheinhold von Berg was 26 and Winckelmann was 45 when they met in 1762.
Baron Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus von Steuben (1730–1794, Germany (Prussia)) soldier
Pierre Etienne Du Ponceau, a 17 year old "interpreter," accompanied von Steuben to Valley Forge, despite a lack of linguistic skills.
Jean-Jacques-Régis de Cambacérès (1753–1824, France) lawyer
For much of his life, Cambacérès was open about his orientation, albeit discreet about the particulars.
William Beckford (1760–1844, England) writer
The Honorable William Courtenay, later 3rd Viscount and 9th Earl of Devon, regarded as one of the most beautiful boys in England, was Beckford's object d'amour for nearly six years.
Baron Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (1769 –1859, Germany (Prussia)) naturalist and explorer
Wilhelm Gabriel Wegener, a fellow student.
Rev. John Church (1782 (1784)–1835, England) minister
William Webster was also a candidate for priesthood (Anglican) at Tottenham Court Chapel when Church fell in love with him.
William Rufus de Vane King (1786–1853, United States) lawyer, politician, US Vice President
James Buchanan lived with King for many years.
George Gordon, Lord Byron (1788–1824, England) poet
John Edleston, a young chorister at Trinity CollegeEustathius GiorgiuNicolo GiraudLukas, the subject of "On This Day I Complete My Thirty Sixth Year," a description of Byron's unrequited love for the Greek boy.
James Buchanan (1791–1868, United States) 15th President of US
William Rufus King met Buchanan in 1833, when both were in the Senate.
John Henry Newman (1801–1890, England) clergyman
When his companion, Ambrose St John, died Newman clung to the corpse all night.
Hans Christian Anderson (1805–1875, Denmark) writer
Objects of unfulfilled desire: Edvard Collin (son of the Royal Danish Theatre Director and Anderson's mentor, Jonas Collin) and Henrik Stempe.
Nikolai Gogol (1809–1852, Ukraine) writer
Gerasim Vysotsky was Gogol's first and unrequited love.
Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865, United States) President
Joshua Speed and Lincoln slept in the same bed for four years in Springfield—declining an offer of a bed of his own in the Butler household, and sharing Speed's bed long after it was economically necessary—and developed a deep, "initimate" friendship.
Herman Melville (1819–1891, Unites States) author
Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Walt Whitman (1819–1892, United States) poet
Fred VaughanPeter Doyle, streetcar conductor
Horatio Alger, Jr. (1832–1899, United States) clergyman and novelist
Sam, a Chinese immigrant boy, became Alger's ward, among many other boys.
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835–1921, France) musician, composer
In terms of intimate relationships with men, he was somewhat secretive, and would disappear for weeks at a time to conduct his liaisons.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893, Russia) composer
Vladimir Shilovsky, a rich and temperamental young man, was one of Tchaikovsky's private pupils.
Henry James (1843–1916, United States) novelist
Though very closeted, the author had a number of intimate relationships with young men.
Edward Carpenter (1844–1929, England) writer, poet, activist
Andrew Beck, a fellow student at Cambridge University, developed a close friendship with Carpenter that had a "touch of romance.
Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845–1886, Germany (Bavaria)) King of Bavaria
Prince Paul von Thurn und Taxis Richard Wagner: Ludwig took great joy in the presence of the composer, upon whom he lavished attention and costly gifts.
Horatio Herbert Kitchener (1850–1916, England) General
Members of Kitchener's staff were referred to as as "Kitchener's Band of Boys.
Cecil Rhodes (1853–1902, England) Imperialist; Prime Minister of the Cape Colony (British South Africa)
Neville Pickering, secretary of DeBeers Mining, died 1886Harry Currey and Philip Jourdan, both of whom also had worked as his secretary.
Jean-Nicholas-Arthur Rimbaud (1854–1891, France) poet
Paul Verlaine was Rimbaud's mentor and lover.
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900, Ireland) playwright and novelist
Lord Alfred ("Bosie") Douglas, the son of the Marquess of Queensberry.
Andre Gide (1869–1951, France) writer
Marc Allégret became Gide's lover when he was 16 and Gide was 48.
Marcel Proust (1871–1922, France) novelist
Alfred Agostelli, chauffeur, secretary and live-in companion
W. Somerset Maugham (1874–1965, England) author
Gerald Haxton was a twenty-two-year old from San Francisco who served in the same ambulance unit in Flanders with Maugham.
Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926, Germany) poet
I have been unable to find a reason to include Rilke on a list of gay men.
E.M. (Edward Morgan) Forster (1879–1970, England) author
Mohammed el Adl, an Egyptian tram conductor, became Forster's lover when Forster was in his 40s.
John Maynard Keynes (1883–1946, England) economist
Duncan Grant, painter
Ernst Röhm (1887–1934, Germany) Nazi leader
Röhm's homosexuality was widely known, even to Hitler who defended it.
T. E. (Thomas Edward) Lawrence (1888–1935, England) soldier, author
Salim Ahmed, whom Lawrence called Dahoum, was a 15 year old Arab boy that he met while on an archeological dig on the banks of the Euphrates River in 1911.
Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951, Austria) philosopher
Frank Ramsey, a young philosopher, had a sexual and intellectual relationship with Wittgenstein until Ramsey died in 1930, at the age of 26.
Jean Cocteau (1889–1963, France) novelist, poet, film-maker, artist
Jean Marais starred of Cocteau's 1946 film Beauty and the Beast
Federico García Lorca (1898–1936, Spain) poet and playwright
Emilio Aladrén PerojoSalvador DalíPhillip CummingsRafael Rodriguez Rapún
François Poulenc (1899–1963, France) composer
Richard Chanlaire, painter.
J. Edgar Hoover (1895–1972, United States) Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Clyde Tolson (1900–1975), Assistant Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, was Hoover's constant companion for over 40 years, lived with Hoover until the latter's death.
Aaron Copeland (1900–1990, United States) composer
Copland lived an openly gay life in an era when it was not generally acceptable (although few biographies make note of this essential fact).
James Mercer Langston Hughes (1902–1967, United States) poet, author, dramatist
While Hughes admitted to a homosexual encounter with a seaman in 1926, much of his life was deeply closeted.
Dag Hammarskjöld (1905–1961, Sweden) UN Secretary-General
Little is known of Hammarskjöld's personal life beyond rumor and speculation.
Henry Pu Yi (1906–1967, China) Emperor
According to his sister-in-law, Hiro Saga, as an adult P'u Yi kept a pageboy as his concubine.
W. H. (Wystan Hugh) Auden (1907–1973, England) poet
Chester Kallman, also a poet, wrote the libretto for Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress with Auden.
Samuel Barber (1910–1981, United States) composer
Gian Carlo Menotti met Barber when they attended the Curtis Institute.
Gian Carlo Menotti (1911–, Italy) composer
Samuel Barber and Menotti met while at music school together.
Bayard Rustin (1912 (1910?)–1987, United States) civil rights activist
Davis Platt.
Alan Turing (1912–1954, England) Mathematician
In 1952, while continuing his research on computers, Turing was investigated by police following a break-in at his house by a friend of his lover.
James Baldwin (1924–1987, United States) author
Lucien Happersberger
Yukio Mishima (Kimitaka Hiraoka) (1925–1970, Japan) author
Jiro Fukushima attempted to publish Mishima's love letters to him, but was stopped by legal action from the family.
Thomas Anthony Dooley, III (1927–1961, United States) Naval officer, medical doctor
Clifford James Anchor (aka Mike Erickson), radio broadcaster and gay rights activist, met Dooley in 1959.
