Was benjamin franklin gay

Due to social and official discrimination, though, most of their stories have gone untold. He also downplayed rumors that the baron had been dismissed from the Prussian military for homosexuality. Did you know that Paul Revere didn't ride alone, and there were women on the Revolutionary War battlefields?

Something You Might Not

He is now considered instrumental in helping the Americans win the Revolutionary War. When the war ended, Baron von Steuben was granted U. After the war, von Steuben legally adopted both men— a common practice among gay men in an age before same-sex marriage was legal.

Baron Friedrich von Steuben was known for his bravery and the discipline and grit he brought to the American troops. Was Alexander Hamilton bisexual? Benjamin Franklin is part of gay history news. Learn more about these queer patriots and their straight allies.

It worked, and the drill manual he wrote for the army is still partially in use today. Washington approved of von Steuben. They lived together, managed his precarious finances and inherited his estate when he died in When von Steuben died, he inherited his library and some money.

With his strict drills, showy presence and shrewd eye for military strategy, he helped turn them into a military powerhouse. After being fired, von Steuben bounced from job to job. Historians also think he was homosexual—and served as an openly gay man in the military at a time when sex between men was punished as a crime.

Was Betsy Ross stitching a sapphic revolution? As historian William E. But he was gay, and homosexuality was viewed as a criminal aberration by many of his peers. Was Benjamin Franklin gay? Benjamin Franklinwho recommended von Steuben to Washington, played up his qualifications.

He was a strict drillmaster, but he also socialized with the troops. Benjamin Franklin, who recommended von Steuben to Washington, played up his qualifications. Find out more about the war's lesser-known patriots. In an era before gay marriage or open pride, military men fell in love, formed passionate friendships and had same-sex encounters.

As Inspector General, he taught the army more efficient fighting techniques and helped instill the discipline they so sorely needed. Gay men have always gay boulder part of the American military.

Is Benjamin Franklin gay

Read this article from the Washington Blade, your gay news online source. He also downplayed rumors that the baron had been dismissed from the Prussian military for homosexuality. When von Steuben arrived in camphe was appalled by the conditions the soldiers had been fighting under, and immediately set to work drilling soldiers with strict Prussian techniques.

Meanwhile, von Steuben proved himself a heroic addition to the army. He became close to William North and Benjamin Walker, aides-de-camp who seem to have been involved in their own romantic relationship, and lived with them for two years in camp. Baron Friedrich von Steuben, a Prussian military man hired by George Washington to whip the Continental Army into shape during the darkest days of the Revolutionary Waris known for his bravery and the discipline and grit he brought to the American troops.