The earliest record I could find of someone directly accusing King James of having homosexual leanings is in a book from the year 1650 called “The Court and Character of King James I” written by Anthony Weldon. Of course, we will discuss this book and Weldon in more detail but first let’s address the real questions: Is it true? Was King James gay?
So here’s the summary, King James does have some letters that if a person wrote today they would be thought to be gay, for sure. However, it appears that much of that language was either, just his style of speaking and/or perfectly normal (by normal I mean heterosexual) in the culture of that day. Aside from that there are plenty of sources from that time period that maintain King James was a righteous man and good king (in other words, not gay). It appears the majority of the few people that accused him of homosexuality were his enemies or were at odds with him. King James has many published works (not including his Authorized Version of the Bible) and also private letters that clearly and strongly articulate his position against homosexuality. Lastly, he was married and had a lot of babies…
Those who wish to discredit the King James’ Authorized Version will continue to think he’s gay. Those who seek the glory of the Most High God will probably not be affected either way because they know how the King James Version came about and that King James obviously pulled no punches publicly showing himself as a vigorous opponent to homosexuality. His version of the Bible is still the most trustworthy in English.
The answer: Probably not.
There is no straightforward trustworthy evidence to say he was gay and there are plenty of sources and testimony from King James himself that would suggest he was not gay. Somethings are questionable but to say that he is gay requires a person to make an assumption far past the evidence but in all fairness that does not mean it is not possible that he was absolutely not gay.
Let’s examine a bit of the evidence
Anthony Weldon did interact with and live in the same time period as King James, but his testimony is untrustworthy because of his relationship with King James. See, apparently Weldon made false claims about the Scottish nation which were discovered around the time he was with King James to go to Scotland in 1617. So, Weldon was then dismissed from his responsibilities. Later, — I’m talking like, 25 years after King James died type of “later” — Weldon wrote the book that was mentioned above which contains many accusations including homosexuality to the then dead King James.
After Weldon, there were few other of the time that made these accusations but most of those that died (from what I can tell) had some type of personal gripe with King James. This is likely why, almost immediately after these types of accusations were made public, people came to the defense of King James’ legacy.
In the book “Examen historicum” Peter Heylyn, who also lived in the same period of King James and Weldon, suggested Weldon’s claims were false and that there was no sufficient evidence to support it.
Godfrey Goodman, another who lived in the same period of time said, “I never read a more malicious-minded author, nor any who had such poor and mean observations”.
To me, the most solid evidence to support King James being gay is in one of his own letters to George Villiers. In many of his letters to Villiers, King James calls him “sweetheart” and uses language that if used today would lead some to interpret it as sexual but a lot of the language was simply common to the culture. I say a lot and not all because of one particular letter that King James wrote.
My only sweet and dear child,
Notwithstanding of your desiring me not to write yesterday, yet had I written in the evening if, at my coming out of the park, such a drowsiness had not come upon me as I was forced to set and sleep in my chair half an hour. And yet I cannot content myself without sending you this present, praying God that I may have a joyful and comfortable meeting with you and that we may make at this Christmas a new marriage ever to be kept hereafter; for, God so love me, as I desire only to live in this world for your sake, and that I had rather live banished in any part of the earth with you than live a sorrowful widow’s life without you. And so God bless you, my sweet child and wife, and grant that ye may ever be a comfort to your dear dad and husband.
This is the letter that I would consider the most solid evidence for a homosexual King James. He calls a man his wife and talks of their marriage and him being a widow. Definitely appears to be at least borderline to me. However, there is more to consider.
King James, in his writing, often played with relationship titles and used them as metaphorical to relay a message to the reader. In these other situations, it is never a thought that these titles were literal or sexual in his mind. For example, in his books in which he wrote advice to his son he often related the king of nations as a father and the people as the children. He even wrote, when attempting to unify nations, saying:
He even wrote to Queen Elizabeth (who was queen before him) calling her his friend, cousin, brother (even though she is female), mother (even though she was not), and wife (she was not his wife).
No one is suspicious of a romantic relationship between Queen Elizabeth and King James even though he fancies her as his wife in the letter he wrote above.
Now that we’ve looked at, what I consider, the most solid evidence that supports a gay King James; why don’t we have a look at the most solid evidence against that notion.
We’ve already discussed the historians of the day that did not accept King James as a homosexual but let’s examine why that would have been hard for them to believe.
King James was married to Anne of Denmark for about 30 years, until her death in 1619. Now there is such thing as marriages being strictly for public view and not a true marriage in private which some suggest about their marriage. However, let’s look at more facts. She gave birth to seven kids and there is documentation of at least two miscarriages. Looking at the dates of the births/miscarriages, there’s no doubt that this was more than just a “for show” marriage. She was coming up pregnant by James almost every year from 1594-1606. This doesn’t require us to “read between the lines” of letters and make assumptions about his sexuality; this is clear, straightforward results of a heterosexual relationship.
However, if we did want to look at his letters, we could find more evidence there. Here are a few quotes from King James’ writings related to his wife and marriage:
“…I thank God I carry that love and respect unto you which, by the law of God and nature, I ought to do to my wife and mother of my children. . . For the respect of your honorable earth and descent I married you; but the love and respect I now bear you for that ye are my married wife and so partaker of my honour, as of all my other fortunes… Where ye were a king’s or cook’s daughter ye must be all alike to me being one my wife.”
“Marriage is one of the greatest actions that a man does all his time.” “When you are married, keep inviolably your promise made to God in your marriage, which all stands in doing of one thing. And abstaining from another, to treat her in all things as your wife and the half of yourself, and to make your body (which then is no more yours but property hers) common with none other. I trust I need not to insist there to dissuade you from filthy vice of adultery remember only what solemn promise you made to God at your marriage.” And for your behavior to your wife, the Scripture can best give you counsel therein. Treat her as your own flesh, command her as her lord, cherish her as your helper, rule her as your pupil, please her in all things reasonable, but teach her not to be curious in things that belong not to her. You are the head, she is your body, it is your office to command and hers to obey, but yet with such a sweet harmony as she should be as ready to obey as you to command, as willing to follow as you to go before, your love being wholly knit unto her, and all her affections lovingly bent to follow your will.”
James repeatedly taught the importance of morality and marriage. James wrote in Basilicon Doron:
“But the principal blessing that you can get of good company will stand, in your marrying of a godly and virtuous wife. . . being flesh of your flesh and bone of your bone. . . Marriage is the greatest earthlv felicity. .. without the blessing of God you cannot look for a happy marriage.”
James instructed his son:
“Keep your body clean and unpolluted while you give it to your wife whom to only it belongs for how can you justly crave to be joined with a Virgin if your body be polluted? Why should the one half be clean, and other defiled? And suppose I know, fornication is thought but a venial sin by the most part of the world, yet remember well what I said to you in my first book regarding conscience, and count every sin and breach of God’s law, not according as the vain world esteems of it, but as God judge and maker of the law accounts of the same: hear God commanding by the mouth of Paul to abstain from fornication, declaring that the fornicator shall not inherit the kingdom of heaven, and by the mouth of John reckoning out fornication among other grievous sins that declares the commiters among dogs and swine.” James notes the end thereof is a “man given over to his own filthy affections.”
It doesn’t stop there. He also was very outspoken about homosexuality in particular:
King James book Basilicon Doron (the Kingly Gift) was written in 1599. It contained instructions to his son about how to properly carry out the responsibilities of the king. Included among his instructions is this statement: “there are some horrible crimes that ye are bound in conscience never to forgive: such as witchcraft, willful murder, incest and sodomv (homosexuality)…”
In July of 1610, James was asked to pardon a number of criminals. He did pardon several on the list but refused to pardon those convicted of sodomy. He advised his son to stay away from “effeminate ones.” James repeatedly referred to homosexuality as the “horrible crime!” These are indeed strange statements from someone given to homosexuality. James routinely listed homosexuality with witchcraft and murder just as the Bible does.(http://www.scionofzion.com/kj_real_story.html)
