10 historical myths we still believe in

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

The Vikings adored horned helmets, Nero set a fire in Rome, and only well-fed babies could survive in Sparta.

1.300 Spartans stopped Xerxes

The epic battle of Thermopylae Gorge is best known for Zack Snyder's film 300. The name is not accidental: so many brave Spartans fought against the army of the Persian king Xerxes, which numbered approximately 100,000 fighters. Spartan athletes with naked press cubes died, but with their feat they rallied Greece before the onslaught of a cruel tyrant.

In reality, 300 Spartans, including King Leonidas himself, really fought with the Persians. But those who talk about their exploits usually forget that they were helped by at least four, or even six thousand allies - the inhabitants of Thespia and Thebes. So the heroes did not fight alone.

2. The Spartans threw children off the cliff

Some more about the brutal inhabitants of Sparta. Allegedly, they were so severe that they threw not strong and sturdy babies off the rocks. At least that's what Plutarch wrote in The 12 Great Philosophers. But there is no archaeological evidence that the Spartans purposefully killed children: no mountains of children's skeletons were found under the rocks of Laconia.

In Sparta, there really was a class of hypomeyons - citizens who were too poor or too weak. And, of course, they were not particularly respected, but they were not thrown off the cliff.

3. The pyramids were built by slaves

So, at least, Herodotus argued, Herodotus's "History". But he was wrong: excavations of the graves of the pyramid builders showed that they were free people.

They were fed beef, which was a delicacy for the Egyptians, and received medical attention. And finally, they were buried near the tomb of the pharaoh - an unheard of honor that slaves would not have been awarded. So the pyramids were built by free citizens. And no, they weren't aliens.

4. Nero burned Rome

No, he did not burn Rome and did not recite a poem about the death of Troy to the accompaniment of a lyre, watching the fire. According to the testimony of the historian Publius Cornelius Tacitus, who caught the fire as a child, Nero made every effort to stop the flame. He organized teams of firefighters at his own expense, supplied the victims with food and provided people who lost their homes with shelter in their palaces.

Finally, Nero developed a new urban development plan, with which fires no longer posed such a danger, and rebuilt Rome.

5. Vikings wore horned helmets

No, they didn't. There is no confirmation that the Viking war helmets had horns or wings. Not a single person in his right mind will put on a horned helmet in battle: if the enemy's weapons catch on the ledges, the warrior risks being seriously injured. However, there is evidence that Norse and German clergy sometimes wore horned helmets at religious ceremonies. But not in combat.

6. And cowboys are cowboy hats

A dashing guy in a cowboy hat, boots with spurs, with a whip and a revolver - a symbol of the Wild West! This image is familiar to everyone who has watched American Westerns at least once. But the inhabitants of the Wild West did not wear hats with curled brims.

This headdress was invented by John Stetson in 1865. And although over time it became very popular, nevertheless, real people from the Wild West most often wore bowlers, warm beaver hats, flat woolen caps, Mexican sombreros or caps. And the shooter and scout Wild Bill Hickok put on a ladies' flat hat in his famous photo. And you would try to make fun of him for such a choice.

7. Salieri poisoned Mozart

This story was made popular by Pushkin's tragedy "Mozart and Salieri". But in fact, Salieri had no reason to hate Mozart. He was much more popular and enjoyed the patronage of the emperor, was the court bandmaster, received a high salary and moved in the highest circles of society.

Salieri treated Mozart quite well and spoke well of his work. The great composer died not from poison, but from a disease - presumably chronic renal failure or streptococcal infection.

8. Catherine the Great died while having sex with a horse

The Russian empress was credited with incredible licentiousness: everyone knows about her many lovers. The love of Catherine II allegedly became the reason for her death: wanting variety, she tried to have sex with a stallion, and he crushed her. But this is fiction. Historians know that the ruler simply died in her bed after a long illness.

9. Marie Antoinette said: "If they have no bread, let them eat cakes."

No, I didn't. The phrase "Qu’ils mangent de la brioche" was first mentioned in Confessions by Jean-Jacques Rousseau in 1769, where he attributes it to a certain French princess. But Marie-Antoinette was then 14 years old, and she still lived in her native Austria. In addition, she was quite smart and well educated, donated a lot to charities and would hardly have blurted out such stupidity.

10. Napoleon was short

British cartoonists portrayed Napoleon as small and fat - it was believed that his height was 155 cm. Hence, probably, the nickname Little Corporal and the term "Napoleon's complex" came from. But in reality, Napoleon's height was 169 cm. And this is a completely normal average height - even today, when people for the most part have become taller.