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King Henri III of France had a favourite group of young courtiers - his \u2018mignons\u2019 (or \u2018cuties\u2019, \u2018sweeties\u2019, or \u2018\u2018darlings\u2019) - known for dressing in an effeminate and eye-catching style. On 27th April, 1578, they\xa0 engaged in a bloody duel with a rival gang in a battle that came to be known as \u2018The Duel of the Mignons\u2019.\nWas it a \u2018beautiful\u2019 battle, a classical allusion to Roman combat, as some scribes argued? Or, as the King himself concluded, a pointless - and rather farcical - loss of life?\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explore Henri\u2019s \u2018mummy\u2019s boy\u2019 reputation; reveal how many Frenchmen slaughtered each other in this fashion during the five bloody decades from 1575; and explain why, when turning up at a sunrise duel, it\u2019s always best to remember your dagger\u2026\xa0\nFurther Reading:\n\u2022 \u2018King Henri III and His Mignons\u2019 (The Gay & Lesbian Review, 2020): https://glreview.org/article/king-henri-iii-and-his-mignons/\n\u2022 \u2018On this day in history: Duel of the Mignons, 1578\u2019 (The Modern Historian, 2012): http://modernhistorian.blogspot.com/2012/04/on-this-day-in-history-duel-of-mignons.html\n\u2022 \u2018The King's darlings - The Mignons\u2019 (Whitehall Moll History Clips):\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBfrDLUkmEY\n#France #1500s #Royals #Strange #LGB\nFor bonus material and to support the show, visit\xa0Patreon.com/Retrospectors\nWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:\xa0podfollow.com/Retrospectors\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders.\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices