The French spy who lived as both a man and a woman

A closer look

If you think modern gender politics are complicated, meet Charles d'Eon de Beaumont, an 18th-century French spy who casually infiltrated the Russian court as a woman and later fought fencing duels in a dress. When d'Eon was exiled to London, they blackmailed the French King by threatening to release secret invasion plans. To defuse the situation, the French government officially declared d'Eon a woman and paid for a brand-new wardrobe, provided they promised to stop wearing military uniforms. Londoners literally ran illegal betting pools on d'Eon's anatomy until the day they died.