10 Historical Myths That People Still Believe

Debunked

There are some stories that we hear repeated on TV or in movies or books that just seem to gather more steam as time goes on—but some are so compelling that people refuse to stop re-telling them, even after they’re been debunked. For some reason, people still believe these historical myths to be true, even though they’ve been proven wrong.

Catherine The Great

Catherine the Great had immeasurable power and influence—as well as enemies. Between her naysayers and the men who shaped the history books, choosing to downplay or belittle her, it’s no wonder that a vicious rumor spread about the ruler.

Alexander Roslin, Wikimedia Commons

Catherine The Great’s Final Moments

For centuries, people whispered that Catherine the Great died while she was doing the deed…with a horse. Others said she died on the toilet. However, that’s an easy misunderstanding. She passed on after having a stroke, in the toilet—AKA, another word for bathroom.

Romanov Empire, Picryl

The Flat Earth Theory

Okay, while we’re not here to argue with conspiracy theorists, one thing that people commonly think is that Medieval people believed the world was flat, and it took Isaac Newton to prove them wrong. But that’s not actually how things went.

John Scott, Wikimedia Commons

Medieval Misunderstandings

People in the Medieval era did not believe the earth was flat. Because they could see the curve of the horizon from any high viewing point, they already knew it was round, and didn’t need a fancy math guy to tell them that.

Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons