On the TV, I heard them claim to have found a letter from about 1780, of a man writing to his mistress or wife

Question

or something, and it read "when I get home you're going to get a spanking on your gorgeous little a r s e". Did they really use such words back then? That sounds more like the 20th century, doesn't it?

Answer 1

@rse is an ancient word in English and has been part of the language since Proto-Germanic, at least. Its first written attestation is about the year 1000 in a glossary by Aelfric. What? You don't think people swore or talked about sex before the 20th century? Of course they did. Read the Canterbury Tales, the ones they don't include in the selections you read in high school. Chaucer would make Eddie Murray blush. I seem to recall that the Miller's Tale was especially ribald. Another book to read is the Decameron by Bocacchio (I spelled that wrong). WOW

Answer 2

"is a coarse word for the buttocks, in English first recorded circa 1400 (in arce-hoole), commonly used in Britain, Canada, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and many other Commonwealth countries. In the United States and parts of Canada, ass is used (both spoken and in writing) instead."

Answer 3

The man in question was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, no less, writing home to his wife Constanze - and the word he used was 'Arsch', in common use in German then and still today. If you really want to get into trouble in Germany, tell someone to "Leck mich am Arsch" (Lick my a*r*s*e).