Isaac Newton: Were They Gay?

So we've all heard of this fella. He's famous for his scientific pursuits and discoveries in the laws of gravitation, as well as the three laws of motion and calculus. He paved the way for future scientists in physics and in mathematics.

However, it seems, when we delve into the famous physicists' personal life, he died a virgin. Some people theorise the man was gay, or asexual. One thing is for sure, he did not have time for women or seemed indifferent to them in a romantic and sexual sense.

Newton had a reputation for being a recluse, which didn't help with his love life, evidently, and also has been thought to fall on the autistic spectrum (this is, of course, hard to determine with only historical records, etc).

It appears that most people deem Newton a repressed gay man due to his reclusive behaviour as well as his workaholic tendencies. As Newton had no romantic or sexual relationships to gossip about, there's no evidence to suggest he felt attraction towards women or men. The biggest word to stand out in describing Newton's personal life is 'asexual.' But, of course, it's impossible for any of us to know for sure. This article is probably the shortest I've written in this series, due to the lack of information there is on Newton's personal life.

However, we know he was greatly upset by his friend Locke trying to persuade him to marry, as he angrily worded in a famous letter that Locke had  “endeavoured to embroil me with women”.


More on Isaac Newton:
https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn3676-einstein-and-newton-showed-signs-of-autism/
http://mentalfloss.com/article/81487/15-observational-facts-about-isaac-newton
http://mentalfloss.com/article/23631/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-isaac-newton
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2005/jan/18/schools.uk2