Large Fierce Mammal

Sir Richard Francis Burton in a portrait painted in 1875 by Frederick Leighton (1830-1896). Said Burton to Leighton, “Don’t make me look ugly, there’s a good fellow.”

Do what thy manhood bids thee do,
From none but self expect applause;
He noblest lives and noblest dies
Who makes and keeps his self-made laws.

~ Sir Richard Francis Burton ~

If you’ve never heard of Sir Richard Francis Burton (1821-1890), then you have been denied exposure to one of the greatest minds in history; and if there was ever a Man deserving of the capitalization of that word, it was him. An Englishman of the Victorian Imperial period, renowned Swordsman, prolific Author, Speaker of a plethora of languages to a point of competency that permitted him to pass as a native in places where to be identified otherwise meant instant death, Burton never achieved the notoriety one would expect his accomplishments to attract. At least not the kind of notoriety that word is usually employed to describe.

Talented though he was, Burton’s interests were so broad and free ranging as to represent one of the many reasons that kept him from the fame and fortune he always craved, but that remained forever out of his reach. He had a fierce interest in the people rather than the Princes of the places he travelled through, and his methods included immersing himself among them – living, dressing, speaking, eating, and yes, fucking – as they did. His propensity to “go native” was bad enough to the Victorian mind, but it was his decidedly un-Victorian approach to sex, and the lore thereof (to which he typically contributed), that attached itself to him in the minds of those whose opinions and associations could affect his access to fame and fortune.

Today I intend to expose you, dear reader, to this more earthy side of Sir Richard Francis Burton.

Welcome to the entertainingly ribald 2008 documentary starring Actor Rupert Everett, and aptly titled The Victorian Sex Explorer. Just click play and enjoy the ride, so to speak.