Gay Warriors: A Documentary History from the Ancient World to the Present (review)

In Gay Warriors, B. R. Burg attempts to examine the nature of homosexuality in western military history. He brings together a diverse body of primary and secondary sources that constitute "an essential segment of the historical materials that underpin the folklore, legends, truths, and traditions of military homoeroticism through the ages" (p. 2). Thus, this book represents a potentially significant contribution to existing literature on this topic.

Among the selections of primary sources are excerpts from ancient authors such as Virgil, Xenophon, and Plutarch, trial proceedings against the Knights Templars, court-martial testimony from the Royal Navy, the memoirs of Phil Sheridan, official statements by George Washington, diary entries from an American sailor, and various writings by Walt Whitman and Herman Melville. In the chapters on the twentieth century, military regulations, articles, speeches, and correspondence reveal contemporary perspectives on homosexuality and the military. Among these, Lt. Col. Lewis H. Loeser's article, "The Sexual Psychopath in the Military Service," appearing in the American Journal of Psychiatry in 1945 stands as the most informative. Burg also sprinkles secondary works by Allan Bérubé, Anne Gilmour-Bryson, Arthur Gilbert, John Boswell, and himself throughout his book.

That there have been homosexuals and homosexual activities in militaries cannot be disputed. One need only think of the Sacred Band of Thebans in antiquity or of World War I authors such as Wilfred Owen, Robert Graves, Siegfried Sassoon, or T. E. Lawrence. The degree to which homosexuality pervaded various military cultures is the truly significant issue.

If Burg had intended to raise the reader's consciousness about homosexuality and military history, he would have been successful. He does, however, attempt to convince readers that there also exists "an ancient correlation not only of military service and homosexuality, but of democracy in particular with military service on the part of all citizens, which extends from ancient history to the present. It is perhaps time that one of the leading modern democracies in the world recognized it" (p. 11). This quote comes not from Burg's pen but from an article by John Boswell originally published in the New Republic in 1993. It contains numerous ahistorical and polemical statements that Burg neglects to critique or substantiate. For his part, this reviewer is skeptical. Did democracy take different forms in ancient Greece and in the modern United States? Can any form of democracy be found in late antique, medieval, or early modern Europe? What changes occurred in the social construction of homosexuality, let alone warfare, from antiquity to the present? Lastly, what historiographical debates have erupted over democracy, homosexuality, and warfare? Burg offers few answers in his commentary.

Aside from historical and historiographical inadequacies, this book lacks precision in terms and usage. For example, Burg repeatedly uses "homosexuality" and "homoerotic sexuality" without careful distinction. What is the difference, if any at all, between these two terms? Dealing with nuances would have also added much texture to Burg's book.

Gay Warriors, by virtue of its topic, marks one step forward in the integration of the history of homosexuality and military history. But, because of its poor execution, this book may actually represent two steps backward. Ultimately, Burg's book is more about a political agenda than historical inquiry.