Scandal
Bankes was eventually exiled from his home in England in 1841 due to homosexual indiscretions which led him to flee seeking refuge after being caught in compromising circumstances with a guardsman in Green Park in London. In that day and age, sodomy was considered a grave crime in England and carried with it the death penalty – the last executions in England for sodomy had occurred only six years earlier, in 1835.
Even though he was unable to return to Kingston Lacy, he continued to collect from abroad, sending his collections to be displayed in his beloved home. It is believed that he secretly visited Kingston Lacy to admire his home and collections before his death in Venice.
Read more about this topic: William John Bankes
Famous quotes containing the word scandal:
“A famous theatrical actress
Played best in the role of malefactress.
Yet her home-life was pure
Except, to be sure,
A scandal or two just for practice.”
—Anonymous.
“Gossip is charming! History is merely gossip. But scandal is gossip made tedious by morality.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)
“We must cultivate our garden.
Furia to God one day in seven allots;
The other six to scandal she devotes.
Satan, by false devotion never flammed,
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—Horace Walpole (1717–1797)