“There is an apocryphal tale that in the 1885 legislation re-criminalising male homosexuality, lesbianism was also due to become a crime, but Queen Victoria did not believe it existed in England, thinking instead it was some strange French perversion. Whether that is true or not, it is clear that the lack of legislature meant a degree of freedom for lesbians in their courtship that wasn’t there for gay men. Although, regrettably, it also meant that the history of lesbianism is also sadly lacking.”
