a castrated person. See the article Castration.—The word is formed from ευνούς, q. d. lecit curam habet, “guardian or keeper of the bed.”

In Britain, France, &c. eunuchs are never made but upon occasion of some disease, which renders such an operation necessary: but in Italy they make great numbers of children, from one to three years of age, eunuchs, every year, to supply the operas and theatres of all Europe with singers. M. de la Lande, in his Voyage d’Italie, affirms, that there are public shops at Naples where this cruel operation is performed, and that over the door of these shops is inscribed Qui si castrano ragazzzi. But Dr Burney informs us, that he was not only utterly unable to see or hear of any such shops during his residence in that city, but was constantly told, both by the natives and English settled there, that the laws against such a practice were so numerous and severe, that it was never performed but with the utmost secrecy.

In the eastern parts of the world, they make eunuchs in order to be guards or attendants on their women. The feraglio of the eastern emperors are chiefly served and guarded by eunuchs; and yet, from good authority, we learn, that the rich eunuchs in Persia and other countries keep feraglios for their own use. Those who, out of an imprudent zeal to guard themselves from sensual pleasures, made themselves eunuchs, were, by the council of Nice, condemned and excluded from holy orders. There are several severe prohibitions in Germany against the making of eunuchs; and in France an eunuch must not marry, not even with the consent of the woman.

Though the practice of castration is detestable in every point of view; yet there appears no real foundation for the injurious opinion generally entertained of eunuchs, viz. that they are all cowards, and devoid of genius for literature or any solid study. “As to genius (says the author last quoted), I never found those of the first class in music deficient in intellectual abilities for more serious studies. Indeed I have seen real genius and disposition for literary pursuits, in more than one great opera singer; and as for composition, and the theory of music, not only the best fingers of the Pope’s chapel ever since the beginning of the last century, but the best composers, are among the sopranos, in that service.” With respect to the operation affecting the mind so much as to deprive it of all fortitude in times of danger, there is great reason to doubt the fact: most of the generals of eastern monarchs having been at all times of this class; and the bravest stand that ever was made against Alexander the Great was at Gaza, under the command of one of Darius’s generals, who was a eunuch. Ammianus Marcellinus gives an account of Menophilus, a eunuch, to whom Mithridates intrusted his daughter; which proves the possibility of such unfortunate persons possessing a heroism equal to that of the most determined Stoic.

It is very certain, that the ancients never supposed eunuchs to have been men of inferior intellects, or that they possessed less vigour of mind than other men. At least the Perians were not of this opinion; for Herodotus relates, that when they had taken possession of some Ionian cities, παίδες τι τους ευελπίδας ἀνάγκαιον εἰσπράξαντο, εἰς τὰς καὶ ἐπὶ τοὺς αὐτοὺς ὑπόχρεον εὐελπίδας. It is certain, however, Herodotus, in relating the melancholy story of Hermotimus, says, that παῖδες τοῦτο βασιλεύοντες ἀνάγκαιον εἰσπράξαντο, εἰς τὰς καὶ ἐπὶ τοὺς αὐτοὺς ὑπόχρεον εὐελπίδας. Among the barbarians, the eunuchs are more valued than other men, on account of their universal fidelity.” It appears from this passage of Herodotus, that in Persia eunuchs were far from being objects of contempt; and were even frequently promoted to the highest honours. This was indeed the case with Hermotimus. We find in Agathias, who was one of the Byzantine historians, that a general in the Roman army, named Narjes, was a eunuch. This was in the latter ages. In Plutarch’s Life of Artilides, Themistocles is related to have chosen an eunuch, whose name was Arnaes, from among his prisoners, to send on a secret embassy to Xerxes. This surely may serve to show, that mental imbecility was not supposed by the Greeks to be the characteristic of eunuchism. The same story of the confidence placed in Arnaes, who was one of the Persian king’s eunuchs, is related also in the life of Themistocles. Aristotle paid such high respect to Hermias, who was a eunuch and governor of Atarnea, which is in Myisia, that he even offered sacrifices in honour of him; as Lucian informs us in his Dialogue entitled Eunuchus. This regard of Aristotle for Hermias has been often celebrated, and is mentioned by Suidas, Harpocratis, and others.