Top 7 Historical Myths You Most Likely Still Believe (And What’s Behind the Interesting Truth)
History is more than dry dates and old paintings. It’s a narrative we share with ourselves about who we used to be – and now and then, we get that narrative utterly wrong. We hold onto stories that seem true, usually because they’re dramatic, uncomplicated, or flat-out satisfying. But the actual past is generally murkier, odder, and frequently much more engaging.
Let’s debunk some of the most enduring historical myths you probably were taught in school or picked up in pop culture. Prepare to rethink what you believed you knew!
Myth #1: Columbus Demonstrated the Earth Was Round (And Everybody Else Believed It Was Flat)
- The Legend: Daring, innovative Christopher Columbus fought against flat-Earth believers who were superstitious to set out his bold journey west to Asia, cementing once and for all that our world is a sphere.
- The Truth: European (and other) scholars had been aware of the Earth’s roundness for centuries prior to Columbus. Ancient Greeks Pythagoras and Aristotle proved it. Eratosthenes even measured its circumference quite accurately around 240 BC! Medieval intellectuals and educated folks widely believed it. Columbus’s actual argument wasn’t the shape of the Earth, but its size. He grossly underestimated it, believing Asia was much nearer sailing west. He disagreed with experts who believed the journey was too far (they were nearer to right!). His achievement was a result of running into an unfamiliar continent, not establishing the Earth to be round. The “flat Earth” legend largely was created by 19th-century authors such as Washington Irving to try and make Columbus a greater hero.
- Why We Think It: It’s a quintessential tale of the underdog – one genius against ignorant crowds. It reduces a complex historical period to a tidy victory of intelligence.
Myth #2: Napoleon Bonaparte Was Extremely Short - The Story: Napoleon Bonaparte, the great French Emperor who conquered Europe, was notoriously short – a “little corporal” making up for his small stature with huge ambition.
- The Reality: Napoleon was really around 5 feet 6 inches (168 cm) tall. That was average or even a bit above average for a Frenchman in his day! The confusion arises from several sources. First, his nickname “Le Petit Caporal” (“The Little Corporal”) was probably a term of endearment for his relative youth and friendliness with soldiers, not his height. Second, British propaganda continually depicted him as short and childlike to belittle him. Third, French units were slightly different from British (he was listed as standing 5 pieds 2 pouces – French inches and feet – which British observers confused with their own shorter units). He frequently had very tall Imperial Guards around him, so he appeared shorter in paintings and accounts.
- Why We Think So: The “short man syndrome” cliche is psychologically satisfying. It fits a tale of ambition driven by insecurity. And the propaganda photos were phenomenally effective!
Myth #3: Vikings Wore Horned Helmets - The Legend: Ferocious Viking marauders overrunning shores always wore their fearsome helmets bristling with huge horns or wings.
- The Truth: There is no archaeological record whatsoever that Vikings ever used horned or winged helmets in combat. No single intact Viking Age helmet (c. 750-1100 AD) has horns. Practicality alone speaks against it: horns would be clumsy, catch on rigging or branches, and offer a easy handle for an opponent to grab and upset the wearer. The rare ceremonial helmets discovered in Scandinavia before the Vikings (such as the extraordinary Vikso helmets of around 900 BC) did sport horns, but they were not Viking. The myth of the horned helmet was overwhelmingly created by 19th-century opera set designers and artists (most prominently Wagner’s Ring Cycle) looking for a showy, “barbaric” effect. It persisted because it was cool and intimidating.
- Why We Believe It: Pop culture is strong! From cartoons to sports mascots, the visual is instantly recognizable and visually appealing. Reality (plain iron or leather caps) is less exciting.
Myth #4: Salem Witch Trials Involved Burning Witches at the Stake - The Story: Dozens of accused witches were burned alive at the stake during the notorious Salem witch trials of 1692 in a whirlwind of religious hysteria.
- The Reality: Although the Salem witch trials were actually a ghastly case of mass hysteria resulting in the executions of 20 innocent individuals (19 hanged, one pressed to death with stones), none were burned at the stake. Burning was most closely linked to executions for heresy in continental Europe, particularly during the Inquisition. English common law (which Massachusetts adopted) mandated hanging as punishment for witchcraft convictions. The Salem victims were hanged on Gallows Hill. It is probably a conflation of Salem with the broader European witch hunt across centuries to associate this with burning.
- Why We Believe It: Burning witches is a potent symbol of irrational fear and religious extremism. It’s become a shorthand for persecution, blurring the specific legal and cultural details of different times and places.
Myth #5: Marie Antoinette Said “Let Them Eat Cake” - The Story: In the face of reports that peasants were starving and had no bread to eat, the amazingly decadent out-of-touch French Queen Marie Antoinette cynically joked, “Qu’ils mangent de la brioche” (“Let them eat cake”).
- The Reality: No reliable evidence exists that Marie Antoinette ever made this comment. It first surfaced in philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Confessions (composed c. 1766, published 1782), where he gives it a vague credit to “a great princess” – many years before Marie Antoinette (who came to France in 1770) became queen. Such tales were told of other princesses and nobles many years prior. It was probably cruel revolutionary propaganda designed to discredit the monarchy by showing the young queen as cruel and uncaring about the misery of the people. According to historical evidence, Marie Antoinette was actually engaged in charitable activities, although undoubtedly led a life of tremendous privilege.
- Why We Think So: It perfectly captures the supposed arrogance and decadence of the French aristocrats on the brink of revolution. It’s such a damning quote it feels too good (or bad) not to be true.
Myth #6: Van Gogh Cut Off His Entire Ear - The Story: Tormented painter Vincent van Gogh, in a state of madness after a fight with fellow artist Paul Gauguin, severed his whole ear and gave it to a prostitute.
- The Reality: Van Gogh did mutilate his ear grotesquely during a mental breakdown in December 1888, but he merely removed the bottom part of his left earlobe, not the whole ear. The precise details continue to be debated, but the prostitute myth is probably overblown. New scholarship indicates that he might have presented the fragment to a cleaning woman at a brothel or a maid at a local tavern for safekeeping, not as an amour. The “whole ear” legend continues partially because of dramatic artistic portrayals and the sheer shock value.
- Why We Think So: The act itself is so outlandish that having him cut off the entire ear adds to the sensationalism and composes the story of the ultimate “mad genius.” The detail about the prostitute adds to the sensationalism.
Myth #7: Lady Godiva Rode Naked Through Coventry - The Story: The virtuous Anglo-Saxon Lady Godiva, in protest of her husband Leofric’s heavy taxing of the Coventry people, rode naked on horseback down the streets of the town. The people, in deference, all remained indoors with their shutters closed. Only “Peeping Tom” ventured a peek and was blinded.
- The Reality: Lady Godiva (c. 990 – 1067) was an actual historical figure, a wealthy Countess who was esteemed for her religiosity and almsgiving. The first written reference to the nude ride is in the chronicle of Roger of Wendover more than 150 years after her death. There is no contemporary proof of it. Though she and her husband Leofric were indeed wealthy benefactors to monasteries (founding Coventry Abbey), the actual tale of the naked protest is very likely a posthumous legend, perhaps combining folklore motifs about influential women or perhaps misreading earlier religious processions. The “Peeping Tom” component wasn’t added until the 17th century!
- Why We Think So: It’s an inspiring tale of courage, compassion, and humility beating oppression. It is a merging of nobility, scandal, and moral lesson in one un-forgottable picture (and makes for fabulous chocolate bar advertising!).
Why Do These Myths Persist?
These myths endure because they tend to be functional. They have the ability to:
- Simplify Complex Events: (Columbus vs. the Flat Earth).
- Give Simple Explanations: (Napoleon’s ambition = short man syndrome).
- Give Dramatic Imagery: (Burning Witches, Horned Vikings).
- Serve as Moral Lessons: (Lady Godiva’s sacrifice, Marie Antoinette’s hubris).
- Affirm Our Biases: (About the “backwardness” of the past or the failings of the mighty).
The Takeaway: History is a Conversation
Unlearning these myths is not about making history dull. It’s about valuing its actual complexity, humanity, and otherness. The actual stories surrounding these myths – the medieval scholars who understood the world to be spherical, the emperor of average height, the practical Viking, the victims who were hanged (not burned), the queen who was misquoted, the artist’s own half-mutilation, the benevolent countess turned legend – are usually much more complex and informative than the simplistic stories we tell.
History isn’t fixed; it’s being re-explored and reinterpreted as we learn new evidence and pose new questions. So when you hear the next “well-known” historical tidbit, particularly one that sounds slightly too neat or sensational, stop to look deeper. You’ll be surprised at the interesting reality hiding behind the myth.
Which of these myths surprised you the most? Are there any others that you’ve heard and wonder about? Post them below – let’s keep busting myths!
