Queer Ancestor Spotlight: Karl Heinrich Ulrichs
Karl Heinrich Ulrichs was born August 28, 1825 in what was at the time the Kingdom of Hanover, part of the German Confederation. He studied law an theology at Göttingen University, graduating in 1846. He then studied history at Berlin University, graduating in 1848. Ulrichs then served as an administrative lawyer until he was dismissed due to his homosexuality in 1857.
Engraving of Karl Heinrich Ulrichs, taken from Jahrbuch für sexuelle Zwischenstufen, vol. 1 (1899)
After coming out to his family in the early 1860’s he went on to publish five essays where he discussed same-sex love as natural and biological. His first five essays, collected as Forschungen über das Rätsel der mannmännlichen Liebe (Studies on the Riddle of Male-Male Love.) He coined various early terms, pulled from works by Plato, used to describe homosexuality such as:
Urning, used to describe men who desire men
Dioning, used to describe men who desire women
Urningin, used to describe women who desire men
Dioningin, used to describe women who desire women
On August 29, 1867 Ulrichs became the first homosexual in the modern West to speak out against the criminalization of homosexuality. He is regarded by many as the first advocate for legal equality for homosexuals in the modern era. The Congress of German Jurists had convened at this time to debate and discuss a legal framework for a unified German nation. Due to Prusssia’s outsized influence much of their legal code had been formally or informally adopted by many of the sovereign states that comprised existing Confederation. It was one statute, Paragraph 175 which criminalized sodomy, that Ulrichs was specifically concerned would be adopted into a new unified legal code. He petitioned for the right to speak to the assembly and was granted time on the final day. His address shocked the majority of the jurists in attendance and he was met with cries of “Silence!” and “Crucify!” but there were attendees sympathetic to what he had to say.
His impact can best be encapsulated in words he wrote late in his life:
“Until my dying day I will look back with pride that I found the courage to come face to face in battle against the spectre which for time immemorial has been injecting poison into me and into men of my nature. Many have been driven to suicide because all their happiness in life was tainted. Indeed, I am proud that I found the courage to deal the initial blow to the hydra of public contempt.”
Ulrichs essays and public stance in defense of the inherent dignity of homosexuals would go on to inspire others, such as Karl-Maria Kertbeny and Magnus Hirschfeld, who would be pioneers in early 20th century sexuality studies and fierce advocates for equality and legal protection of homosexuals. Ulrichs himself would continue writing prolifically on same-sex love and championing homosexual acceptance until his died in self-imposed exile in Italy on July 14, 1895.
