This is a list of famous historical figures diagnosed with or strongly suspected as having had syphilis at some time. Many people who acquired syphilis were treated and recovered; some died from it.
Many famous historical figures, including Charles VIII of France, Christopher Columbus, Hernán Cortés of Spain, Benito Mussolini, and Ivan the Terrible, were often alleged to have had syphilis or other sexually transmitted infections. Sometimes these allegations were false and formed part of a political whispering campaign. In other instances, retrospective diagnoses of suspected cases have been made in modern times. Mental illness caused by late-stage syphilis was once a common form of dementia. This was known as the general paresis of the insane.
| Cesare Borgia (1475–1507), Italian Cardinal | Strongly suspected of having syphilis | ||
| Gerard de Lairesse (1641–1711), Dutch painter and art theorist | Congenital syphilis | ||
| Edward Teach (1680–1718), West Indian pirate | Better known as Blackbeard. Died in battle against Robert Maynard[1] | ||
| Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz (1721–1773), Prussian cavalry lieutenant general | Died from syphilis[2] | ||
| Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848), Italian opera composer | Neurosyphilis[3] | ||
| Charles Baudelaire (1821–1867), French poet[4] | |||
| Lola Montez (1821–1861), Irish dancer, courtesan, mistress of Ludwig I | Died from syphilis[5] | ||
| Leland Stanford (1824-1893), American politician & robber baron | Retrospectively diagnosed or suspected to have died of syphilis.[6] | ||
| Camilo Castelo Branco (1825–1890), Portuguese writer | Died by suicide on account of blindness caused by neurosyphilis. | ||
| Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910), Russian writer | Suspected to have had syphilis[7] | ||
| Alphonse Daudet (1840–1897), French novelist | |||
| Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900), German philosopher | Cause of death disputed, but syphilis or mercury poisoning from syphilis treatment are leading theories. | ||
| Bram Stoker (1847–1912), Irish author | Cause of death listed as "Locomotor ataxia 6 months", presumed to be a reference to syphilis.[8] [9] | ||
| Guy de Maupassant (1850–1893), French writer[10] | The big one! [''J'ai la vérole! enfin! la vraie!''] ... I have the pox [...] and I am proud of that by God | And I have the greatest contempt for the bourgeois." (Guy de Maupassant, Letter to Robert Pinchon aka LaToque, 2 March 1877.) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tongzhi Emperor (1856–1875), Emperor of Qing Dynasty | Suspected to have had syphilis | ||
| Mikhail Vrubel (1856–1910), Russian painter[11] | |||
| Frederick Delius (1862–1934), English music composer | Died from syphilis[12] | ||
| Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901), French painter[13] | |||
| Eugen Sandow (1867–1925), German bodybuilder | Suspected to have had syphilis[14] [15] | ||
| Vladimir Lenin (1870–1924), Soviet politician | Retrospectively diagnosed or suspected to have died of syphilis.[16] | ||
| Karen Blixen (1885–1962), Danish writer[17] | |||
| Adolf Hitler (1889–1945), German dictator | Suspected to have had syphilis[18] [19] [20] | ||
| Al Capone (1899–1947), American gangster | Died from syphilis[21] | ||
| Lavrentiy Beria (1899–1953), Soviet politician & serial rapist | Admitted before his execution he had been treated for syphilis. | ||
| Alger "Texas" Alexander (1900–1954), American blues singer | Died from syphilis[22] | ||
| Howard Hughes (1905–1976), American aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, investor, philanthropist and pilot. | Diagnosed with neurosyphilis in 1932.[23] | ||
| Idi Amin (1928–2003), Ugandan dictator[24] |