Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story imagines what the early years of the 18th Century royal’s sex life might have been like – but is it accurate?
The UK’s Vagina Museum did a deep dive on Twitter into just what kind of kinky stuff people – particularly King George III and his wife – were into back then, to see if the Netflix series was close to reality.
And its findings might surprise you.
Is Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story based on reality?
The Netflix spin-off series is a prequel to Bridgerton, a popular drama about 19th Century love, renowned for its sex scenes. The new release dramatises Queen Charlotte’s story, as she is a side character in the main series, and imagines how she fell in love (and lust) with King George III in 1761.
Charlotte and George really did exist, even though a lot of the other characters in the Bridgerton world are fictional. They were the grandparents to famous Queen Victoria, meaning our current royal family are actually descended from the couple (no matter how raunchy they may or may not have been).
The two royals are remembered for being genuinely fond of one another, and it’s clear they did have quite a lot of sex considering they had 15 children, 13 of whom survived into adulthood.
And in the show, this translates to serious amounts of steamy moments – including a scene where George performs oral sex on Charlotte.
But as Lady Whistledown, the town gossip and the show’s narrator, reminds viewers in the programme, the show is not a history lesson and just based loosely on what we know with a fun and romantic twist.
The Vagina Museum explained in a Twitter thread on Wednesday: “We are sorry to say that there is no conclusive historical evidence either confirming or denying whether King George III ate pussy, and so we need to investigate the surrounding circumstances.”
Why is it likely they did engage in oral sex?
The Vagina Museum went on to conclude that their marriage seemed happy, and that they clearly copulated a lot, hence all of their children. However, children are not made from cunnilingus, as we all know.
Still, “just because they definitely had penis-in-vagina sex at least 15 times, doesn’t prove that George III ate pussy,” as the Vagina Museum elegantly put it.
But, the Museum noticed that accounts show how the royal couple were “physically affectionate” in public, regularly exchanging small kisses – suggesting they were attracted to each other.
“It’s also worth noting that 15 children is a little excessive for securing an heir, and that Charlotte herself ended up pretty tired of spending so much time pregnant,” the experts explained on Twitter.
So, what about ... oral?
Well, as the museum notes, this was a well-known sexual practice in history – and there are plenty of sketches from within Charlotte and George’s lifetime which show people really knew what it was. It was even nicknamed “larking”.
The Museum also pointed out this no evidence suggesting this would have been prohibited for those in the upper echelons of society.
It said: “Cunnilingus within a heterosexual marriage wasn’t prohibited by law, or by religion. It also wasn’t listed among the medicalised, pathological perversions.
“It might have raised some eyebrows if George III and Queen Charlotte weren’t making any babies together and *only* engaging in oral sex, but they were doing their duty and being fruitful and multiplying.”
It concluded that there’s “absolutely nothing to suggest” that this is something they didn’t do – although we will of course, never know for sure.
Perhaps Golda Rosheuvel, who plays Charlotte in the 19th Century scenes, puts it best in her interview Harper’s Bazaar: “Our Queen Charlotte is based on and inspired by a real person but is a fictional construct.
“We have made a beautiful, fantastical show with the hope that it makes people stop and wonder, ‘Actually, who was this remarkable woman?’ and go to find out more.”
And wonder we will.