Alan Bray (13 October 1948 – 25 November 2001) was a British

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

and

gay rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , 3 ...

activist. He was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

and had a particular interest in

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

's relationship to

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

Early life

Bray was born in Hunslet, Leeds, to a working-class family. His mother died when he was 12, an event that profoundly affected his relationships. He attended Leeds Central High School, where he met his lifelong friend Graham Wilson. He attended

Bangor University , former_names = University College of North Wales (1884–1996) University of Wales, Bangor (1996–2007) , image = File:Arms_of_Bangor_University.svg , image_size = 250px , caption = Arms ...

and spent a year at an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

seminary before beginning a career in civil service.

Gay rights activism

He became involved with the

Gay Liberation Front Gay Liberation Front (GLF) was the name of several gay liberation groups, the first of which was formed in New York City in 1969, immediately after the Stonewall riots. Similar organizations also formed in the UK and Canada. The GLF provided a ...

in the 1970s and actively campaigned for gay rights. His interest in sexual politics influenced his work on history, which culminated in two books. His groundbreaking book ''Homosexuality in Renaissance England'' was published in 1982. His second book, ''The Friend'', was published posthumously.

Legacy

The Roman Catholic Caucus of the Gay and Lesbian Christian Movement, of which Bray was a member, instituted a series of Alan Bray Memorial Lectures on Catholic theology and homosexuality. British historians Michael Hunter,

Miri Rubin Miri Rubin (born 1956) is a historian and Professor of Medieval and Early Modern History at Queen Mary University of London. She was educated at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the University of Cambridge, where she gained her doctorate and ...

, and

Laura Gowing Laura Gowing is professor of early modern history at King's College London.Palgrave Macmillan Palgrave Macmillan is a British academic and trade publishing company headquartered in the London Borough of Camden. Its programme includes textbooks, journals, monographs, professional and reference works in print and online. It maintains off ...

, 2005), a collection of essays inspired by Bray's idea of finding some universal component of homosexuality within the experiences of intimacy and friendship without "locating a discourse that identifies persons as homosexual." Nick Rumens' ''Queer Company: The Role and Meaning of Friendship in Gay Men's Work Lives'' (

Ashgate Ashgate Publishing was an academic book and journal publisher based in Farnham (Surrey, United Kingdom). It was established in 1967 and specialised in the social sciences, arts, humanities and professional practice. It had an American office in ...

, 2011), is also inspired by Alan Bray's scholarship.Nick Rumens, ''Queer Company: The Role and Meaning of Friendship in Gay Men's Work Lives'', Ashgate, 2011, p. 29 Valerie Traub (''Thinking Sex with the Early Moderns'') is amongst many subsequent

LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

scholars who have engaged with and been inspired by Bray's scholarship.

Bibliography

*''Homosexuality in Renaissance England'' (Gay Men's Press, 1982) *''The Friend'' (

University of Chicago Press The University of Chicago Press is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including ''The Chicago Manual of Style'', ...

, 2002) *''The Clandestine Reformer: A Study Of The Rayner Scrutinies'' (1988)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bray, Alan Historians of LGBT topics LGBT historians 1948 births 2001 deaths LGBT Roman Catholics English LGBT writers Roman Catholic activists Gender studies academics 20th-century British historians British gay writers