Edward Hyde, Lord Cornbury (1661-1723)
"that peculiar but detestable magot"
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Three American colonists, all members of a faction opposed to Edward Hyde, Lord Cornbury, governor of New York and New Jersey (1701-1708), wrote four letters between 1707 and 1709 discussing a rumor that Cornbury wore women's clothes.[1]
One of the colonists, Lewis Morris, a bitter political foe of Cornbury, wrote to New York's secretary of state. Morris noted that Governor Cornbury had acquired the habit of dressing in women's clothes, and testified to the good character of a suggested replacement.[2]
Here is what Morris actually wrote on February 9, 1707 of Cornbury's suggested replacement:
He is an honest man and the reverse of my Lord Cornbury; of whom I must
say something which perhaps nobody will think worth their while to tell, and that is, his dressing publicly in woman's clothes every day, and putting a stop to all public business while he is pleasing himself with that peculiar but
detestable magot [caprice].
Interpretation
Morris, significantly, made no mention of sodomy or any other sexual practice in his accusation against Cornbury. There is no known document suggesting that American colonists associated cross-dressing, effeminacy, and male-male sodomy, though in some English cities at the time such a link was beginning to be made.Citation Needed
Since Cornbury was apparently one of the most corrupt and hated English colonial officials it would seem that, given his cross-dressing, a hint of sodomy would have soon clouded his name-if such an association had occurred to his many American enemies.
Other Contemporary Quotations about Cornbury?
Please add quotations and full citations.
Cornbury is said to have delivered a "flowery panegyric on his wife's ears" after which he invited every gentleman present to feel precisely how shell-like they were; to have misappropriated £1500 meant for the defense of New York Harbor, and, scandalously, to have dressed in women's clothing and lurked "behind trees to pounce, shrieking with laughter, on his victims".[3]
Cornbury is also reported to have opened the 1702 New York Assembly clad in a hooped gown and an elaborate headdress and carrying a fan, imitative of the style of Queen Anne. When his choice of clothing was questioned, he replied, "You are all very stupid people not to see the propriety of it all. In this place and occasion, I represent a woman (the Queen), and in all respects I ought to represent her as faithfully as I can." Citation Needed
It is also said that in August, 1707, when his wife Lady Cornbury died, His High Mightiness (as he preferred to be called) attended the funeral again dressed as a woman. It was shortly after this that mounting complaints from colonists prompted the Queen to remove Cornbury from office.[4]
Historians Discuss Cornbury
Nineteenth century historian George Bancroft said that Cornbury illustrated the worst form of the English aristocracy's "arrogance, joined to intellectual imbecility". Citation Needed
Later historians characterize him as a "degenerate and pervert who is said to have spent half of his time dressed in women's clothes", a "fop and a wastrel". Citation Needed
In 2000, Patricia U. Bonomi re-examined the assertions about Cornbury's cross-dressing, and found them to be based on very little evidence. Three colonials, all members of a faction opposed to Cornbury, wrote four letters between 1707 and 1709 discussing a rumor that Lord Cornbury wore women's clothes. There are also some early documents that might be cited to support charges of having taken bribes or misappropriated government funds, but there the contemporary evidence ends.[5]
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References
- ↑ Patricia U. Bonomi, Lord Cornbury Scandal: The Politics of Reputation in British America (Durham, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2000). Let's quote all four references between 1707 and 1709. Citation Needed
- ↑ Jonathan Ned Katz, Gay/Lesbian Almanac (NY: Harper & Row, 1983), p. 125-27, citing Edmund B. O'Callaghan, ed., Documents Relative to the Colonial History of the State of New York (Albany: Weed, Parsons, 1855), vol. 5, pp. 38; Jonathan Ned Katz, Gay American History: Lesbians and Gay Men in the U.S.A. (NY: Crowell, 1976), p. 570 n.23. Since Katz's two works were published more research has been published about Cornbury. See, principally: Bonomi, Patricia U. Lord Cornbury Scandal: The Politics of Reputation in British America (Durham, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2000) ISBN-10: 0807848697. Also see: Ross, Shelley, Fall From Grace (NY: Random House, 1988). ISBN-10: 0517198304. A biography of Lord Cornbury appears on Wikipedia: Edward Hyde, 3rd Earl of Clarendo, Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Hyde,_3rd_Earl_of_Clarendon#Reputation
- ↑ Shelley, Ross, Fall From Grace (NY: Random House, 1988), p.4. What is the original evidence for all the quotes? Let's quote the originals on OutHistory. Citation Needed
- ↑ Ross, p.4-7. Evidence? Citation Needed
- ↑ Patricia U. Bonomi, Lord Cornbury Scandal: The Politics of Reputation in British America (Durham, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2000). Let's quote all four references between 1707 and 1709. Citation Needed
Special Note: This entry is part of the Curated Exhibit Colonial America: The Age of Sodomitical Sin. The curator is Jonathan Ned Katz. Unlike most entries in curated exhibits, this one is open to editing by anyone with documents, data, or interpretations to share. We also strongly encourage you to discuss the content or propose edits on the discussion page of this entry. Thanks.
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