The Revolutionary General’s Secret Life: A Strange Party Rule That Sparked Whispers of His True Identity
So, picture this: a Revolutionary War hero who not only helped shape the United States military but also shook things up with his social life—and wardrobe choices. Baron Friedrich von Steuben, born in Prussia but a bona fide American legend, wasn’t your average military man. He famously adopted two adult men (yes, adoption was a thing before civil unions!) and once threw a party where the invite sternly warned guests not to wear “a whole pair of breeches.” Intriguing, right? Was this a quirky joke about wartime shortages, or something a bit more scandalous stirring beneath the surface? Today, historians and comedians alike ponder his sexuality, making von Steuben a fascinating figure in the conversation about early American history’s hidden stories and the complex nature of queer identity back then. Curious to dive deeper into this pantsless mystery and the man behind the legend?
Baron Friedrich von Steuben adopted two adult men and once asked guests not to wear “a whole pair of breeches” to a party, leading to speculation about his sexuality.
Public DomainBaron Friedrich von Steuben was born in Prussia, but he’s considered a father of the United States military.
The history of America is diverse. If one spends enough time combing through the historical record, they’ll find that it is filled to the brim with people of different origins, races, religions, creeds, and sexualities.
While some of these features came to be accepted, others remained hidden. Today, researchers pore over historical documents to learn more about the beliefs and lifestyles of certain individuals. This often comes into play in discussions surrounding sexuality. Few of America’s founding figures wrote explicitly about their sexual attraction, and as a result, the bedroom preferences of notable men have become a hotly debated topic.
One of these men is Baron Friedrich von Steuben. Not only was he openly gay, according to some experts, but his same-sex attraction was supposedly widely known and even accepted at the time.
Was Baron Friedrich Von Steuben Gay?
Friedrich von Steuben’s name frequently emerges in discussions of gay figures from early American history. A 2018 article by HISTORY dubbed him “The Revolutionary War Hero Who Was Openly Gay,” and a clip from a stand-up comedy show about his alleged homosexuality recently went viral on TikTok, amassing over 502,000 views.
“When the history books tell you this guy was openly gay, there’s s—t they noticed,” jokes host Dawn Brodey in the clip.
From here, Brodey gives her co-host a little pop quiz.
“According to one of Friedrich’s aides, he threw parties in Valley Forge. He would invite all the young officers to dine with him in his private party — under what conditions?” Brodey, a comedian with a history degree, asks.
The answer? The condition was that the guests “wear no pants.”
Public DomainHoward Pyle’s 19th-century painting of Baron Friedrich von Steuben and George Washington at Valley Forge.
This isn’t the only reason that many historians believe von Steuben was gay. There were rumors that he was dismissed from the Prussian army for homosexuality, though historians have not found substantial evidence of this.
While some early figures acknowledged the rumors, they often downplayed or dismissed them. In a letter to George Washington in 1777, Benjamin Franklin stressed von Steuben’s battlefield qualifications above all else. Washington himself admired the Prussian military officer, calling him “much of a gentleman” and a “man of military knowledge” who was “acquainted with the world,” according to Friedrich Kapp’s 1859 biography about von Steuben.
After joining the American Revolutionary War effort, von Steuben became instrumental in the army’s eventual success. All the while, he seemingly pursued gay relationships. He became close with two men, William North and Benjamin Walker, eventually living with them and perhaps even beginning a sexual relationship with them. He later adopted the men — a fairly common practice before the legalization of civil unions and gay marriage.
Von Steuben was also believed to have been romantically involved with his secretary, a man named John Mulligan. When von Steuben died in 1794, he left Mulligan his library.
All of this could be conjecture — but what about von Steuben’s purported pantsless parties?
The Alleged ‘Pants-Off’ Parties Of Friedrich Von Steuben
The allegations about von Steuben’s no-pants get-togethers come from a historical account of a party he hosted. According to the memoir of Pierre-Étienne Du Ponceau, von Steuben’s secretary and translator, younger officers were once invited to an event at Valley Forge. The rule for the gathering was that no one could be admitted “that had on a whole pair of breeches.”
Did this mean that von Steuben was hosting pants-off dance-offs? The historical record is unclear, but probably not.
Most historians believe that von Steuben was not encouraging guests to show up without pants. Instead, his invitation was likely a joke about how poorly supplied officers were during the war, with many unable to maintain a single complete pair of pants.
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