You: “Men were men and women were women in the 17th century”
Philippe d’Orleans, brother of Louis XIV, flagrantly gay and dandy, in a long term relationship with the Chevalier de Lorraine, and loved to dress in female clothing too.
Hortense Mancini, royal mistress and female libertine, flagrantly bisexual and enjoyed to dress as a man on the odd occasion.
Aphra Behn, poet and playwright, general libertine, most probably a lesbian and defied gender roles by managing to make it big in a man’s world some 200 years before feminism was a thing. Also advocated racial equality and denounced slavery.
James I, King of England (and Scotland), VERY VERY GAY. Boyfriends included the 1st Duke of Buckingham and Esme Stewart.
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, one of the greatest soldiers in history but also “irresistible to either men or women”
John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, a poet and libertine who was defying ideas about masculinity anyway but who, on the good authroity of @thepurposeofplaying, was probably not cisgender.
Anne, Queen of Great Britain who was most probably gay and had romantic relationships with Sarah Churchill and Abigail Masham.
It was extremely in vogue for women to dress up as gentlemen, mainly for the pleasure of men, but also because they damn well wanted to because THEY LOOKED GOOD. Here is Elisabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate, Duchess of Orleans, in her male attire:
Mary of Modena, Queen of England, in her attire:
And here is Lady Frances Stewart (who, incidentally, was the model for Britannia, the personfication of Great Britain) in her attire:
Here’s what contemporaries have to say about the fashion styles of the age:
“A strange effeminate age when men strive to imitate women in their apparell, viz. long periwigs, patches in their faces, painting, short wide breeches like petticoats, muffs, and their clothes highly scented, bedecked with ribbons of all colours. And this apparell was not only used by gentlemen and others of inferior quality, but by souldiers especially those of the Life Guard to the King, who would have spanners hanging on one side and a muff on the other, and when dirty weather some of them would relieve their gards in pattens.
On the other side, women would strive to be like men, viz., when they rode on horseback or in coaches weare plush caps like monteros, whether full of ribbons or feathers, long perwigs which men use to wear, and riding coat of a red colour all bedaubed with lace which they call vests, and this habit was chiefly used by the ladies and maids of honour belonging to the Queen, brought in fashion about anno 1662″
OH AND LET’S NOT FORGET MEN’’S HIGH HEELS:
Both of these belong to King Louis XIV of France.
Also, men didn’t start powdering their wigs until the 1700s which is the 18th century, you troll.
If you’re going to be homophobic and transphobic, try and be accurate next time. You wouldn’t want to be historically inaccurate.
LASTLY, a word from Philippe d’Orleans:
origamiaround
izzy806
annaxmalina
discoholicmusic
blakekathryn
ellievsbear
jbbartram-illu
germansingergirl
