#20. Anne Of Great Britain
Queen Anne Of Great Britain was the last of the Stuart monarchs from 1655 to 1714. Queen Anne had a long-time relationship with Sarah Churchill, the wife of the Duke Of Marlborough, in the early 1700s. According to some personal writings, Anne called Sarah “my dear”.
Nowadays, Anne has been considered the “England’s lesbian Queen”. Queen Anne left Sarah for another woman and Sarah accused her publically. Luckily for Anne, she was very popular until her death in 1714.
#19. William II Of England
William II, son of William The Conqueror, became the King of England 1087. William II was known as William Rufus because of his red face. He was the favorite son of his father, that’s why became king over his elder brothers.
William II never married or had kids, that why many rumors around his sexuality are written. Some historians believe that Ranulf Flambard, his closer advisor, was his secret lover. Also, it’s known that William II had many courtiers around him.
#18. Richard I Of England
Richard I Of England is well-known as Richard The Lionheart because of his actions in the Third Crusade and his supposed friendship with Robin Hood. Also, he is one of the most popular gay icons in England.
During his reign, he never married or fathered a child. Instead of that, he had the company of his mother, Eleanor Of Aquitaine right next to him. Some historians believed that he had a secret romance with King Philip II Of France as he spent a lot of time with him just because he was an “ally”.
#17. Lord Ivar Mountbatten
Nowadays, British Royalty is more open to modern times and Lord Ivar Mountbatten became the first member of it that came out. Mountbatten is the cousin of Queen Elizabeth II and he is currently dating James Coyle.
Queen Elizabeth II has been keeping her family away from the flashes and spotlight but sometimes they do want they want to. Mountbatten had previously married Penelope Thompson and both had three children.
#16. Edward II
Perhaps King Edward II Of England was one of the most famous royal members of all time. Also, Edward II used to speak publically about his sexuality, not like many others that kept in secret.
Edward II often showed love affection for his male lover, Piers Gaveston, and he even kissed Gaveston in front of everyone in his wedding with Isabella Of France! Sadly for the lovers, their story ended when the barons of Edward killed Gaveston.
#15. Elizabeth I
One of the most famous queens in England of all time is definitely Queen Elizabeth I, that reigned from 1533 to 1603. Many historians and local people are still wondering about the secrets romance of the powerful queen.
For some people, she passed away virgin and for some other, she was actually a lesbian and had many lovers during her life. Of course, Queen Elizabeth said that she was married to her kingdom and subjects.
#14. Richard II
Back in the past, since the moment you were born — if you are a boy — you probably could know your future life, like Richard II that was only 10-years-old when he became a king. When he started with his reign, it was all controlled by his counselors.
When Richard II was old enough to rule his kingdom, he had the special company of Robert De Vere, the Earl Of Oxford. They had a long-term relationship and spend their lives together. It’s said that when Vere died, Richard II kissed his friend’s hand and said goodbye for the last time.
#13. Henry VIII Of England
We know that Henry VIII Of England is perhaps the most famous monarch of all time. Not only because his reign but for his terrible acts to his wives and women.
Unbelievably, there are some historians that believe that Henry VIII had secret male lovers and that his terrible acts were just a mask. On the other hand, Henry VII criminalized gay sex in 1533 in the Buggery Act.
#12. James IV And I
James became the King of England after the death of Elizabeth and he had a lot of pressure under him. Everyone loved Elizabeth and people used to say that Elizabeth was the king and now they had James The Queen.
According to some documents, King James suffered from this and he tried to defend his right to love a man. In fact, James had a relationship with Robert Carr, that later became Earl Of Somerset after James named him.
#11. Catherine The Great
Another monarch that became very famous up to these days, is without a doubt The Empress Of Russia, Catherine The Great. Many stories go around the empress and her sexuality.
According to some historians, Catherine enjoyed freely her sexuality and didn’t have problems to tell that publicly. Some of her enemies said that she died while she was having sex with a horse!
#10. William III Of England
The life of the monarchs was based on rumors and sayings that people could create around them, like the case of William III Of England. When his wife Mary died, everyone started to wonder about his real sexuality.
According to satirical pamphlets from the time, William III had many male lovers as he was always surrounded by male friendships. Also, it’s said that two Dutch courtiers were his secret lover.
#9. Philipe I
We have to say that everything that surrounds King Louis XIV is famous and full of drama, from Marie Antoniette to his youngest brother Philipe I, the Duke Of Orleans.
Philipe I was openly gay and he had no problem showing affection to men and had two wives at the same time. Also, he used to dress in women’s clothes. Philipe I’s most famous lover was the Philipe De Lorraine.
#8. Al-Hakam II
Al-Hakam II was the Arab Caliph of Córdoba in Al-Andalus from 961 AD to 976 AD. Al-Hakam II was married to Subh Of Córdoba and together they had two sons. But that didn’t stop the Caliph to have many male lovers.
According to some writings, the Caliph had his own male harem that followed him everywhere he went during his reign. It seems that his son Hisham II followed the steps of his father.
#7. Charles I Of Württemberg
Chares I became the King of Württemberg from 1864 to his death in 1891. King Charles I married to Grand Duchess Olga Of Russia, the daughter of Tsar Nicholas I and Charlotte Of Prussia. But Charles I’s real love was the American Charles Woodcock, they even appeared in public wearing the same clothes.
It’s said that in 1891, King Charles I invited to Baron Von Jackson to his household as a “confidential friend and companion”. Don't miss the following stories!
#6. Princes Isabella Of Bourbon-Parma
Princess Isabella Of Bourbon-Parma was the daughter of Felipe Of Spain, Duke Of Parma and Louise Élisabeth. The young princess had a secret romance with her husband’s sister, Archduchess Maria Christina.
Both of them spent a lot of time together while they were having a double life. They were called “Orpheus and Eurydice” because of this. Evidence of their romance is the more than 200 letters they exchanged during their lives where they showed their affection to each other.
#5. Hadrian
Hadrian is one of the most famous emperors of Rome for building Hadrian’s wall to delimited the northern border of the empire. Hadrian got married close to 100 CE but he also had a male lover called Antinous.
Tragically, Antinous drowned in the sea and when Hadrian founded a city in Egypt, he named it Antinopolis in honor of his lover. Believe it or not, in Ancient Rome and Greece didn’t exist the modern concept of homosexuality and men were allowed to have relationships with other men.
#4. Ludwig II Of Bavaria
Ludwig II was the King Of Bavaria from 1864 until his death in 1886. Ludwig II is known as “The Fairy Tale King”. During his life, the king never married or fathered any child. Ludwig’s personal documents are the most important evidence that we have from his private life.
According to his diaries and letters, he was gay but he couldn’t tell that to everyone because his deep faith in the Roman Catholic Church. Ludwig II suffered a lot during his life because he couldn’t express his feelings.
#3. Emperor Ai Of Han
Emperor Ai Of Han was a Chinese emperor from the Han dynasty from 7 BC to 1BC. He was only 20 years when he became the emperor. According to some historians, he was openly gay.
During his reign, the emperor had a relationship with an official from his court, Dong Xian that got many benefits from their relationship. Let’s see the last royal members that were/are openly gay.
#2. Princess Margaret
Being the sister of Queen Elizabeth II was not always easy for Princess Margaret. She was known for being the “party princess”. During her life, she married bisexual photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones and had a lot of affairs with men and women.
According to a biography of the princess by Noel Botham called Margaret: The Last Real Princess, Margaret had a romance with the American ambassador’s daughter, Sharman Douglas. Some tabloids said that Douglas confessed the romance in the 1950s.
#1. Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil
Manvendra Singh Gohil is the Prince of the Maharaja in Rajpipla and he is the first openly gay prince in India — and in the world. The prince is also the founder of the charity The Lakshya Trust, that works with the LGTB and HIV/AIDS community.
In 2006, the prince took courage and declared that he was gay. Like many other princesses of India, he had an arranged marriage in 1991 that only lasted one year.