12. Occultist Aleister Crowley Had Syphilis and Gonorrhea
Aleister Crowley, born Edward Alexander Crowley, was a famous British occultist who claimed that he was the “beast” spoken of in the Biblical book of Revelation and gave himself the mark 666. Though reared as a Christian, Crowley rejected organized religion and became fascinated with the occult, particularly an esoteric group known as the Rosicrucians. He traveled to the United States during World War I and worked on propaganda for both Germany and Italy. Crowley returned to Britain during the 1930s and died destitute and in squalor. After his death, though, he became a cult symbol, particularly in the Thelema religion that he founded and of which he claimed to be a prophet. He is also credited with writing the Book of Satan. Today, he is reviled by some as the evilest man who ever lived.
While attending Tonbridge School in England, Crowley traveled to Glasgow, Scotland, where he claimed that he contracted gonorrhea from a prostitute. This notion led to him being expelled from the prestigious school. While attending university at Cambridge, his consorting with prostitutes led to him also contracting syphilis. It is unclear what the effects of the illnesses were on his overall health and well-being, but they may have contributed to mental illness and delusions.