ADVERTISEMENT

Learning history can be a transformative experience. It can challenge your long-held beliefs and assumptions about societies, their culture, and humanity in general.

Discovering that what you've been taught is not the (whole) truth, and that events you thought were isolated incidents are actually part of a broader pattern is jarring. But as uncomfortable as it may be, this process can liberate you, providing you with a new level of clarity and understanding.

So let's take a look at a Reddit post, created by user u/FlickTheSwitch167 that asked everyone "What historical fact have you learnt that ruined everything you ever thought you knew about this life?" And it has received a fair share of insightful replies!

This post may include affiliate links.

#1

50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World The more we find out about Native Americans, the more I realize the entire history of the United States is complete white-washed b******t.

Dredly , Andrew James Report

Final score:
712points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
RELATED:
    #2

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World I mean, I was pretty young when I learned about the Holocaust. I'm german, and we take this topic really seriously of course. It dawned on me then that the world wasn't as innocent as I thought it was back then. But I'm glad I learned about it at that young age. I was able to gain interest in that topic, and that's pretty important considering the latest events in the East of Europe. And it's important for my generation to really understand and grasp the horrors of the 3rd Reich to ensure that this won't happen again. Sadly it seems not all countries get educated that well in this topic. Not listing any names, there are many countries that now start to go into a rather fascist direction, which is more than concerning.

    Robo--FED , Pixabay Report

    Final score:
    598points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    maggzbennett avatar
    Maggz Bennett
    Maggz Bennett
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It worries me, as a Brit, that after defeating the Nazis in WWII (along with the rest of the allied forces, of course), we are now effectively being led by politicians with a very similar ideology, especially when it comes to immigration etc. The conservatives do not represent the whole of the British people.

    Vote comment up
    270
    270points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #3

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World Ghandi was a hypocritical pieces of s**t.

    Mother Teresa stole loads of money and left people to die.

    Siori777 , NPR Report

    Final score:
    581points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    jenniferdmann avatar
    Alecto76
    Alecto76
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I propose creating a church built around the teachings of St. Mr. Rogers.

    Vote comment up
    72
    72points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #4

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World I'm from Texas, born and raised.

    I found out within the past few years that the Texas Revolution was mainly due to Mexico outlawing slavery and Texas... not wanting to do that.

    So everyone at the Alamo essentially died to preserve slavery. Yay.

    1337bobbarker , Britannica Report

    Final score:
    557points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    beescoliosis avatar
    freakingbee (they/them)
    freakingbee (they/them)
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    i have lived in texas my whole life and i didn't know this even though i took texas history last year-

    Vote comment up
    153
    153points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #5

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World The church began the vow of celibacy for priests, not for any Biblical reasons, but so the priest didn’t have a spouse or any offspring who could inherit his wealth. This way the Church inherited all of it.

    KilgorePTrout , RODNAE Productions Report

    Final score:
    527points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #6

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World That we domesticated pigeons thousands of years ago and then decided we didn’t want them anymore. People treat them like vermin after we relied on them for so much (food, messengers etc)

    The pigeons you see in your cities are not wild, they’re abandoned.

    pizzkat , Quang Nguyen Vinh Report

    Final score:
    501points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    abovethenormdesign avatar
    Jane Cortez
    Jane Cortez
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The ending of the last sentence, ‘ abandoned.’ Pigeons are actually highly intelligent!

    Vote comment up
    137
    137points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #7

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World Old norse runes were found carved up like 20 feet in a cave- when they were translated, they just said "this is very high"

    God I love people aksjsj

    FireEnchiladaDragon , Kalle Gustafsson Report

    Final score:
    470points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #8

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World African kings were the ones who advertised their people as work force/labor to the world.

    They died regretting those decisions.

    Amasero , Damian Patkowski Report

    Final score:
    450points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #9

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World “It says here in this history book that luckily, the good guys have won every single time. What are the odds?”


    - Norm MacDonald

    bookon , Prateek Katyal Report

    Final score:
    391points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    naomianderson_1 avatar
    king raven
    king raven
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    History books are written by the winners, I'd love to see history through the loser's pov.

    Vote comment up
    175
    175points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #10

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World When I got older and realized the countless atrocities the United States has committed. Genocide, collusion, bombing our own cities. I used to feel a sense of safety knowing that I lived with the good guys and we stood for justice. That feeling is fleeting

    FireFromThaumaturgy , Brett Sayles Report

    Final score:
    382points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    thislifemelodic avatar
    Austin Sauce
    Austin Sauce
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Not to mention overthrowing other democracies around the world. Read up on Iran.

    Vote comment up
    137
    137points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #11

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World Ancient Antarctica was actually a rainforest, a lush and verdant paradise, filled with flora and fauna.

    Despite the interesting fact that there was a whole continent of animals who lived on this planet that we’ll never know about - as their remains are locked beneath miles of ice - it blew my mind that Antarctica only fully froze over about 35 million years ago, despite breaking from its supercontinent ~ 180 million years ago.

    That means Antarctica supported independent life for ~ 145 million years, which ruined any sense I have for time and perspective. We really are specks on this planet.

    oohaaahz , Pixabay Report

    Final score:
    375points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    hea_c avatar
    StrangeOne
    StrangeOne
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There's a large lake somewhere under the permafrost in the middle of the continent. Who knows if there's any aquatic life still living in there or if there's any frozen over that is unique to that lake.

    Vote comment up
    89
    89points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #12

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World If you look at the history of mankind, you quickly see that nobody ever learned from our history.

    Plastik-Mann , Eugene Zhyvchik Report

    Final score:
    373points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #13

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World Can't remember the exact quote but it went something like, If the entirety of human (Homo) history was condensed into a 500 page book, modern anatomical humans wouldn't show up until page 450, and homosapiens wouldn't build empires until page 490, the atomic bomb and the foundation of Rome would be on the final page and only a paragraph apart. And yet in all of this the vast amount of technological advancements from the discovery of the atom to the modern day would fit in the last few sentences, of the last paragraph of the last page. And people wonder why we are reckless, we're still effectively great apes, but with shiny toys.

    JitterySuperCoffee , Max Mishin Report

    Final score:
    368points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #14

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World The inventions of Nikola Tesla and what little Edison actually invented himself

    0odreadlordo0 , Renewable Energy Report

    Final score:
    346points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #15

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World The Irish famine was an opportunity the British took to commit genocide against the Irish. They were intentionally starved, while other crops were shipped off island to the British citizens.

    Nintendorian , Tomasz Filipek Report

    Final score:
    338points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    aerose101 avatar
    Amanda Rose
    Amanda Rose
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yes. I have a degree in Irish Studies and this was brought up early and often throughout the course of my degree. It was overwhelming at times to read the individual stories and statements.

    Vote comment up
    122
    122points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #16

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World Leopold of Belgium,treated congo as "his personal property"
    And people who failed to collect enough Cocoa had thier hands/the hands of their kids cut

    And france forced Haiti (one of the poorest countries ever) to take a loan from a french bank,to pay the french government "a compensation for kicking the french occupation and slave traders out"
    They paid it for nearly 100 years,
    I knew humans could be s**t but somehow i thought there was a limit

    Technician-Efficient , Britannica Report

    Final score:
    293points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    baca-strings avatar
    Strings
    Strings
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Never assume any limits to the depth of human depravity or stupidity

    Vote comment up
    165
    165points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #17

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World 95% of native people before Columbus died of diseases brought by explorers. That's 19 of 20 people, for two continents.

    HarryHacker42 , Andrew James Report

    Final score:
    293points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    joellen_washburn avatar
    JayhawkJoey
    JayhawkJoey
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Columbus was a pr!ck, and all he brought were disease and misery.

    Vote comment up
    156
    156points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #18

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World There was a Spanish explorer that first visited the Inca empire and saw lots of prosperous cities and a great civilisation, and told his peers about it when he returned home. But when other folks went to visit the siad cities they found nothing but jungle and thought the explorer lied about his story. The fact that blew my mind is that nowadays we discovered that his story was true and the people he encounterd died from diseases brought into the new world and the cities and civilization they build were consumed by jungle in the spam of a few years

    Manu82134 , Pixabay Report

    Final score:
    277points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #19

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World I grew up in a conservative hometown. When I was in late college, I began to learn how the Bible is essentially a long game of telephone and one where the members playing telephone purposefully exagerrated and changed what they repeated to the next person.

    The Bible was written by men who never met Jesus, who got their information about Jesus from other people, in a time period that relished mystics and it was normal to change facts, did not have any understanding of "facts" in general or reliability. The men also changed what they wrote about Jesus based on political changes at the time.

    HighestTierMaslow , Aaron Burden Report

    Final score:
    277points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    baca-strings avatar
    Strings
    Strings
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    You forgot about simple mistranslation. There's a bunch of that too

    Vote comment up
    165
    165points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #20

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World I spent a lot of time at the library in my early 20's and learned that the Old Testament isn't very old and some of the oldest stories are just copies or much older Sumerian myths. The Exodus has no real world evidence whatsoever, and the Egyptians ruled over the holy land for thousands of years without ever mentioning the Hebrew people until the Bronze Age Collapse.

    zhivago6 , Tim Wildsmith Report

    Final score:
    267points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    jnjulian1983 avatar
    JessieJ&LilyLovebug
    JessieJ&LilyLovebug
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    And that whole baby in the Nile story was REALLY common among the "important" people.

    Vote comment up
    81
    81points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #21

    The Japanese murdered more Chinese than the Germans did Jews. We praise Japan for their society and technological advances and despise the Germans because of Hitler. Whats worse? The Japanese boiling babies or the germans corraling jews into gas chambers? Yet the Japanese don't get much mainstream attention for all their atrocities.

    phatNdangeris Report

    Final score:
    255points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    katehaslam avatar
    SkyBlueandBlack
    SkyBlueandBlack
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We don't despise the Germans any more than we despise the Japanese. Neither Nazi Germany nor Imperial Japan survived past 1945.

    Vote comment up
    65
    65points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #22

    As an African, probably learning about all the empires and developments on the African continent. Things that fly in the face of the claim that Africans were backward savages.

    We probably know more about the empires in the northern parts of the continent but other developments like the Kingdom of Zimbabwe and Mapungubwe, the latter whose discovery was kept hush-hush because it didn't fit in with the narrative that justified continued colonization of Africans.

    There's another more newly discovered civilization, named the BoKoni, that's still subject to all sorts of rumours just because it couldn't have been Africans that did that.

    That even the "huts" some Africans lived in were a proactive choice because of certain advantages they held such as their ability to deal with the local climate and not simply because that's all they knew.

    A bunch of little things that make history seem a lot less "black and white".

    Cuiter Report

    Final score:
    237points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    jnjulian1983 avatar
    JessieJ&LilyLovebug
    JessieJ&LilyLovebug
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Also, Timbuktu. I took a couple of courses from a woman who became an Urban Anthropologist, in Africa. This teeny, tiny Jewish woman from Connecticut (as she described herself) received quite a few raised eyebrows when she voiced her career intentions. She spent years in Africa studying urban cultures, and of the past cities, before most people even recognize that people in Africa were capable of great civilization. The knowledge was there, but most people didn't want to hear it.

    Vote comment up
    84
    84points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #23

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World Victorian era London was a terrible place to be alive as a member of the working class. If I recall correctly. You could pay a penny to sit indoors on a bench but no sleeping! Two Pennies and you could swing your arms over a rope and sleep standing up or if you made hella money that day you could pay 4 Pennies and sleep in a coffin. The water is undrinkable and children expected working hours were 12 to 18 a day starting at 4 yrs old. By those standards a lot of us would look like royalty to them.

    UnicornBrainsRPointy , mikedashhistory Report

    Final score:
    221points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #24

    I once heard a saying that goes *“if you trace someone’s ‘land’ back far enough in time, it was bought in blood.”*

    pizzabox53 Report

    Final score:
    209points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #25

    Prior to 1976 student loan debt could be discharged immediately after graduation by filing for bankruptcy. Then the "education amendments of 1976" stipulated that student loans could not be discharged in bankruptcy until five years of repayment, barring proof of "undue hardship." 1984 this was extended to cover private student loans as well. The "crime control act of 1990" extended the period before which bankruptcy proceedings could commence to 7 years after repayment began. And in 1991 the six year statute of limitations on collection was finally eliminated after it had been enacted in 1985. By 1998 there was a big push to eliminate any methods of discharging student loans via bankruptcy and seven years later, in the year 2005, all qualified student loans (including most private) were excepted from discharge with the passage of the "bankruptcy abuse prevention and consumer protection act."

    Since then there have been a few attempts to give modern college educated people the same fighting chance that the old college educated folks had, but to little avail. Many of the same boomers that vote against helping college grads get out of exorbitant debt are the same ones who had their own college education funded by taxpayers. Still think those old folks in politics have the people's best interest in mind?

    nobody_in_here Report

    Final score:
    203points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    david2074 avatar
    David
    David
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The problem here isn't stopping people from intentionally abusing the bankruptcy process to bail on student loans. The problem is the cost of a college education (in the US) in the first place.

    Vote comment up
    21
    21points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #26

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World There are graffiti that got preserved in Pompei and Herculanum. Because they didn't have paper, public announcement were directly painted on the walls.

    Some of those graffiti are on par with what you can find on the toilet's wall of trucker's stop. "i f****d the barmaid", "Felix f***s like a god", "Take of your clothes and show us your hairy privates"

    chinchenping , Andy Holmes Report

    Final score:
    199points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #27

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World That Oxford University is older than the Aztec empire.

    Daohor , Jose Lorenzo Muñoz Report

    Final score:
    187points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    keirasmom17 avatar
    Awkward Momma Panda
    Awkward Momma Panda
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Okay bored panda, I don’t really like being ‘that guy’, but… This is a photo of a Mayan architecture (temple at Chichen Itza), not Aztec.

    Vote comment up
    290
    290points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #28

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World Learning about the depth and breadth of slavery in human history was a real eye-opener. We have really detailed documents from more modern history to show WHY that idea is so heinous, but it's always been a significant part of cultures all around the world serving as anything from a social construct to the very currency of war and with autonomy ranging from that of livestock to that of a low caste. Evidence of slavery predates written records and is even included in the code of Hammurabi where it was already an established institution and we still haven't stamped it out today, April 10th 2023, where slavery affects an estimated 46 million people (that's more than the total population of California, and approximately the population of Spain). It's crazy how awful humans have always been to one another and that we still can't seem to hold each other accountable for basic human rights, despite indelible proof.

    FridayInc , British Library Report

    Final score:
    185points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    joellen_washburn avatar
    JayhawkJoey
    JayhawkJoey
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Humans and a few monkeys are the only species, I believe, who kill for reasons other than survival. Our big brains do us little favor.

    Vote comment up
    30
    30points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #29

    No one outside of America thinks the Puritans were a bunch of sweet, oppressed, morally-pure goody-goodies.

    Beth_Harmons_Bulova Report

    Final score:
    184points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    lyone_fein avatar
    Lyone Fein
    Lyone Fein
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Puritans were clearly religious fanatics. They were thrown out of 3 separate places.....England, Holland, Brazil.....before settling in New England at a time of year when it was too late to plant a crop.

    Vote comment up
    27
    27points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #30

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World When I learned that NASA had discovered over 100 billion GALAXIES and seeing the image to put into perspective that our entire solar system is only about the size of a coin compared to our galaxy which in relation would be the size of the United States.

    We are so incredibly small within the universe.

    Edit to add: Here’s a [photo](https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2021/hubble-gazes-at-a-galactic-menagerie) of just a snippet of the various galaxies. Keeping in mind, we haven’t even ventured outside of our solar system which is within our Milky Way galaxy, just a grain of sand in context to the universe.

    cheeseburghers , NASA Report

    Final score:
    177points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #31

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World That Napoleon wasn’t cartoonishly short. All those cartoons were a lie…

    DudebroggieHouser , POLITICO Report

    Final score:
    172points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #32

    British rule of India caused at least 10 famines yet we almost hear nothing about it

    PLutonium273 Report

    Final score:
    170points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    rachelainsworth avatar
    Rachel Ainsworth
    Rachel Ainsworth
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The issue is more complex than this. Famine occurred on the Indian subcontinent in the areas ruled by English interests AND in areas ruled by Indian princes. It was also the English who first studied how to prevent famine and came up with the Indian Famine Code guidelines that were modernised by the Indian government..

    Vote comment up
    11
    11points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #33

    It broke me the first time I learned that the library of Alexandria burnt down, and the scholars at the time still were trying to decipher parchment from even older and more ancient civilizations. I heard that and instantly realized we don't deserve our own intelligence

    JayBisky Report

    Final score:
    170points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #34

    That, during WW2, all the other countries did not help the Jews escape from Nazi Germany, but on the contrary, closed their borders! For instance, the St. Louis was denied at a number of ports, until they finally had to return to Denmark, which was under Nazi occupation. They COULD have let those Jews on board in, say, Cuba or Florida or wherever!

    P44 Report

    Final score:
    154points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #35

    That when the pyramids were being built, mammoths were walking the earth. Woolly mammoths lived there until 1700 BC. The Great Pyramid was completed around 2560 BC.

    two- Report

    Final score:
    147points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    artturf avatar
    XenoMurph
    XenoMurph
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "Lived there" don't you mean "here"? Gotcha, you scaly skinned lizard alien people!

    Vote comment up
    69
    69points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #36

    As someone who grew up going to an evangelical church at least 2 times per week, Alan Turing's story is the one that made me re-examine what I thought I knew about homosexuality being immoral/unnatural/sin. I was probably 19 or 20 at the time.

    It's probably the most pivotal thing that led me to question more about my faith despite it being so vitally important to my parents.

    vorin Report

    Final score:
    137points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    kenbeattie avatar
    Ken Beattie
    Ken Beattie
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I think the two things that convinced me religion wasn't real was original sin (ie: a baby wouldn't automatically get into heaven) and that dogs wouldn't be there either. I was pretty young at the time but it was like "you're saying this place is perfect", "Yes", "But my dog won't be there.", "No he doesn't have a soul". "Well I'm out".

    Vote comment up
    120
    120points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #37

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World More of a fun one, but lighters predate strike matches by a couple centuries. They originated from repurposed flintlock pistols that ignited tinder shoved in the barrel that were set aflame by the trigger mechanism.

    Kataphractoi , Kelly Report

    Final score:
    136points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    missal_warrior_0c avatar
    and_a_touch_of_the_’tism
    and_a_touch_of_the_’tism
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That actually makes a lot of sense… kinda sad that we have more advancements from weapons than other useful items.

    Vote comment up
    26
    26points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #38

    I always grew up thinking that something like 50-75% of all white Americans owned slaves during the 1700s/1800s, my mind was kind of blown when I learned that it was closer to 1-3% of Americans.

    edit: for context since this comment has received some upvotes..

    25% of white families in the south likely owned a slave. In a few southern states (Mississippi for example) that number is closer to 45-50%. However, I was speaking about all Americans and not just those in the south.

    It's possible if not likely that the overall number of whites in America owning slaves were closer to 5-10% rather than 1-3%, however my point stands that I always assumed it was closer to 50-75%.

    Obi2 Report

    Final score:
    135points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    conocuinn avatar
    Con O Cuinn
    Con O Cuinn
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Think about it. The majority of white immigrants arrived in the US during the 19th century. Most white Americans are only 3-5 generations away from being immigrants, whereas black Americans' families had been there at least double or triple that time.

    Vote comment up
    53
    53points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #39

    I saw this in a WWI documentary. It's not so much a "historical fact" as much as "holy s**t I never thought about that"

    We are taught that during the Great War, the allies were the good guys and the central powers were the bad guys. There were no good guys. Both sides used chemical warfare, both sides experimented with new tactics, both sides tortured and killed each other.

    thunderball500110 Report

    Final score:
    135points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    conocuinn avatar
    Con O Cuinn
    Con O Cuinn
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    WW1 was basically a family squabble between European royal families. Except instead of throwing plates or slamming doors, they sent millions of poor people to their deaths

    Vote comment up
    146
    146points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #40

    That I'd been living in the same society with all of those people who hatefully protested racial segregation in the 60s. They just went into hiding when it became socially unacceptable to wear your bigotry loud and proud. I no longer wonder what makes such a person as I get to watch the actual people announce their bigotry loud and proud today. Ignorance was bliss.

    magicmom17 Report

    Final score:
    131points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    richewhite avatar
    Riche White
    Riche White
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    As a white male growing up in the south I always wondered why if the klan was so proud of what they represented why did they hide behind the hoods? Show your faces, you cowards!

    Vote comment up
    142
    142points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #41

    Willing to see Japanese folks to share what they learnt about the relationship between Korea. From what Japanese were taught in school, they “industrialized” Korea when they actually colonized and tortured millions of Koreans.

    theberrymelon Report

    Final score:
    122points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    sean-mccrimmon avatar
    Zephyr343
    Zephyr343
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The Koreans were ruled by almost everyone multiple times over the centuries. The Korean War Museum has an entire timeline of who ruled them when you first step inside the building. It is sad but really educational.

    Vote comment up
    36
    36points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #42

    That the Middle East was once then center of knowledge and learning, particularly Bagdad. As well as the amazing extent and advanced civilizations in South and Central America prior to the 1500s.

    i__Sisyphus Report

    Final score:
    118points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #43

    Ruined in an interesting, not bad way: ancient Greek and Roman polychromy.

    The Parthenon temple looked a bit like Disneyland.

    ipakookapi Report

    Final score:
    117points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    lyone_fein avatar
    Lyone Fein
    Lyone Fein
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    All those lovely white marble statues used to painted lots of colors!

    Vote comment up
    55
    55points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #44

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World Being raised in all catholic schools it was really surprising to me to learn that a lot of sections in the bible and a lot of religious practices were instated by people who basically decided so and justified it with ideas that were hammered to fit whatever they said

    Like it wasn't always that priests had to be celibate. Some pope decided that they should be and that was that but really all it would take to reverse that is a pope to say otherwise and a bunch of cardinals to support it. And it doesn't really matter what religious texts say, since the chuirch basically controls the "official interpretation", they can say whetever they want

    edit: to the based redpilled people out there being all "oMg dId YOu ThINk rElIgionS aRe ReAL", yeah no, the surprising part was to learn how easily the church can change any aspect of their dogma when they actually manage to agree on it. And if their own texts refute said change, they can just say "oh we looked at it again and it actually means we are right now"

    madkeepz , Ajayjoseph Fdo Report

    Final score:
    112points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    jnjulian1983 avatar
    JessieJ&LilyLovebug
    JessieJ&LilyLovebug
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Thus Martin Luther's rebellion, and the Protestant Movement...which really changed nothing, because most people still rely on other people to tell them what the Bible says and what it all means. But at least it is no longer illegal or heretical to translate it into any language, and to read it for one's self, if one is so inclined.

    Vote comment up
    36
    36points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #45

    Not necessarily a historical fact but more of a fact of history; out of everything we know, there is so much more we don't know and simply never will know.


    Even worse, the a lot of the things we believe we know are from commonly accepted theories that are held onto by elitist, ageing historians which only become refuted and debunked as they literally die off. The field of history as much as history itself is so ridiculously fascinating.

    OriVerda Report

    Final score:
    110points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    paulpienkowski avatar
    Paul Pienkowski
    Paul Pienkowski
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is why I think Heaven has a giant library. So we can learn what we missed, if we want to. Hear that, God? Books! I want books in Heaven.

    Vote comment up
    6
    6points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #46

    The real reason chainsaws were invented. F**k that.

    blaze1911 Report

    Final score:
    103points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #47

    Not really ruined, but have you read Ben Franklin's diaries and s**t? Dude was a dirty horn dog.

    Dark_Azazel Report

    Final score:
    103points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    richardgraham avatar
    Richard Graham
    Richard Graham
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Bed Franklin had an estimated 60 children out of wedlock. I think Franklin was the real Father of our Country.

    Vote comment up
    100
    100points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #48

    That Cleopatra is closer in time to us than the construction of the pyramids.

    llc4269 Report

    Final score:
    89points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #49

    That African Americans were "bred" once the slave trade was banned. I was so sad once I learned that. Those poor people. I cry sometimes when I think of that. No wonder there is so much hate.

    no_onion_no_cry Report

    Final score:
    87points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    baca-strings avatar
    Strings
    Strings
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There is a reputedly haunted plantation house where they still have the "breeding" records. Supposedly, one male slave had been used at stud for several hundred children

    Vote comment up
    42
    42points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #50

    95 percent of our species' history is lost forever.

    MoOsT1cK Report

    Final score:
    86points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    mikefitzpatrick avatar
    Mike Fitzpatrick
    Mike Fitzpatrick
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Judging by much of the examples above, that may not be an altogether bad thing.

    Vote comment up
    63
    63points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    Continue reading with Bored Panda Premium
    Unlimited content
    Ad-free browsing
    Dark mode
    #51

    I was raised as a Christian (C of E, UK) and was a fairly gullible child.

    I *loved* so many of the Bible stories - especially Moses being delivered the 10 commandments direct from God. Now, I know this makes no sense but hear me out - I assumed that the Bible had arrived this way too. I believed the book was delivered by God as a miracle.

    When I learned that humans had not only written the books but also chosen what books were to be included (excluding 20 or so Gospels) my world collapsed. I was about 13 at the time but that was it. The entire foundation collapsed in an instant and my belief followed.

    SuperfluousPedagogue Report

    Final score:
    33points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    andydouglass_1 avatar
    Best Behave
    Best Behave
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    You weren’t gullible you were a child educated by adults who had n either never questioned, or suppressed their own doubts. Don’t be too hard on them, they were bent up in a similar way

    Vote comment up
    22
    22points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #52

    The top spire of Empire State Building was designed for docking blimps

    Gifford_Roberts Report

    Final score:
    32points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    aerose101 avatar
    Amanda Rose
    Amanda Rose
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    During construction in October 1930; the USS Los Angeles, ZMC-2 and a J-class blimp seen overhead Zeppelin_b...a9a615.jpg Zeppelin_bij_Empire_State_Building_in_aanbouw_-_Zeppelin_near_the_Empire_State_Building_under_construction_6943970242-643b825a9a615.jpg

    Vote comment up
    12
    12points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #53

    that the beach boys made up kokomo and that it is not a tropical caribbean island

    epicgamer-724 Report

    Final score:
    31points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #54

    People are stupid…historically

    WTF_Bridgett Report

    Final score:
    31points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    ruthhempsey avatar
    Beruthiel45
    Beruthiel45
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It might interest you to know that after a period of increased average intelligence due to better life conditions, average intelligence in America has stopped increasing and has plateaued and lowered in the last 50 years. Researchers don't know why. Yet.

    Vote comment up
    4
    4points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #55

    in ancient Rome, they once had a horse as a senator... **neighs**

    DoraKennedy Report

    Final score:
    27points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #56

    50 Historical Facts That Have Completely Ruined The Way These People See The World That up until the 1980s newborn babies used to get operated on without anaesthesia because it was believed they couldn't feel pain.

    Edit: spelling fix

    Edit 2: you experts can calm your tits now. I may not be a doctor, but that doesn't make the history of it any less disturbing...

    studyinthai333 , Christian Bowen Report

    Final score:
    26points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #57

    Learning about the link between leaded gasoline and violent crime made me question free will.

    Mogster2K Report

    Final score:
    26points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #58

    1. At one point in time, multiple different species of Homo Sapiens existed and were all probably killed off by Homo Sapien Sapien, i.e. us.

    2. Most mammal species went for a couple millions of years before their extinction, which means we're basically at the starting quarter of Human Species and not the finale.

    3. Most current dictatorships and brutal regimes in the world were aided or created by the Americans in some way who just threw money and weapons at third world countries and watched them be burned down as they suck out the resources that country had.

    4. Most post-WW2 Independance Struggles of colonies succeeded not because of their tenacity, but due to Europe being driven into a depression after back to back wars.

    5. Most historical figures are a******s whose assholery was never documented.

    mayonnaiser_13 Report

    Final score:
    26points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    lyone_fein avatar
    Lyone Fein
    Lyone Fein
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    On #1. If you do a DNA test, you will probably see that the other species were in fact not killed off. They lost their distinct identities via interbreeding. Many of us still have a small percentage of Neanderthal DNA in us, and other strains as well. These show up on these tests.

    Vote comment up
    7
    7points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #59

    That Paul Revere did NOT do the midnight ride. He was captured. It was another dude altogether, but his name wasn’t as poetic, I guess.

    Knowing_Loki Report

    Final score:
    22points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    robertdavis_3 avatar
    Robert Davis
    Robert Davis
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sybil Ludington was a 16 year old girl who actually made a "midnight ride" to warn of the British arrival rode all night until collapsed from exhaustion.

    Vote comment up
    2
    2points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    See Also on Bored Panda
    #60

    Hitler isnt even in the top 3 of mass killers

    Briffy03 Report

    Final score:
    21points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    deniseb_ avatar
    Denise B.
    Denise B.
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The main horror, besides the obviousness of the deaths, of Nazi Germany compared to, say, Ghengis Khan, is the cold, literally calculating, meticulous record-keeping, scientific approach to mass murder. They were the first to employ time-management efficiency studies to carrying out genocide. And perhaps the only allegedly cultured people from the nation of Bach and Goethe to save the hair, shoes, eyeglasses, and gold fillings ripped from victims' teeth. All this in the 1930s and 1940s, not the 1540s or 1340s, makes Hitler and company serious contenders for "worst."

    Vote comment up
    16
    16points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #61

    Sporus

    A young slave boy Nero had castrated and then married

    wootmon12 Report

    Final score:
    20points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #62

    Nanking.

    ChipTheOcelot Report

    Final score:
    20points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    jeroenmulder_1 avatar
    Jeroen Mulder
    Jeroen Mulder
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The Nanjing Massacre (simplified Chinese: 南京大屠杀; traditional Chinese: 南京大屠殺; pinyin: Nánjīng Dàtúshā, Japanese: 南京大虐殺, romanized: Nankin Daigyakusatsu) or the Rape of Nanjing (formerly romanized as Nanking[note 2]) was the mass murder of Chinese civilians in Nanjing, the capital of the Republic of China, immediately after the Battle of Nanking in the Second Sino-Japanese War, by the Imperial Japanese Army.[2][3][4][5] Beginning on December 13, 1937, the massacre lasted six weeks. The perpetrators also committed other war crimes such as mass rape, looting, and arson.[note 1]

    Vote comment up
    17
    17points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #63

    Drilling down in to the history of armed conflict, there are no good guys.

    New_Guava3601 Report

    Final score:
    19points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    sofacushionfort avatar
    sofacushionfort
    sofacushionfort
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Option A: posters hasn’t done the deep drill as claimed, is just playing the worldly cynic. Option B: poster sees Zelensky and Putin as two sides to the same coin.

    Vote comment up
    13
    13points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #64

    that guillotines weren't to sharp (and even less sharp after some use) . several attempts were needed to decapitate a person, in a horribly and painfully way.

    canelashrimp Report

    Final score:
    18points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #65

    Good men do not become rulers that history remembers.

    whywasthatagoodidea Report

    Final score:
    17points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    khallkhall avatar
    Khall Khall
    Khall Khall
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There's that comment about 'push this button and win $1m. But someone else dies. And billionaires push that button every day' this is what kings and most rulers did too. They're almost all sociopaths. The greatest 'heros' of history were probably all monsters. Everyone of them.

    Vote comment up
    13
    13points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT
    #66

    The Caspian Sea has a second coastline deep underwater. It was a freshwater lake originally before it was flooded by the Mediterranean Sea. That appears to be the origin story for Noah’s flood. That was the beginning of the end of Christianity for me.

    Edit: I’m told it’s the Black Sea, not the Caspian.

    inactiveuser247 Report

    Final score:
    16points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    lyone_fein avatar
    Lyone Fein
    Lyone Fein
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    There is a terrific book on this topic, written by a couple of geologists. Noah's Flood by Ryan and Pitman.

    Vote comment up
    9
    9points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #67

    How Gravrilo Princeps just happened to run into the Archduke after his groups previous failed assassination attempt makes me think he was a time traveler.

    https://www.thecollector.com/gavrilo-princip-ww1/

    Logiwonk_ Report

    Final score:
    12points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    kenbeattie avatar
    Ken Beattie
    Ken Beattie
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    More like he was the Mr Bean of assassins. Stumbling and bumbling into a world changing event.

    Vote comment up
    17
    17points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View more commentsArrow down menu
    #68

    That Akbar was a ruthless king.
    He probably became wiser as he grew old. But in his early age he was neither liberal nor secular.

    Lopsided-Spend-8513 Report

    Final score:
    11points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    tim_martin avatar
    Tim Martin
    Tim Martin
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    He was an Admiral not a king, also very good at discovering traps.

    Vote comment up
    31
    31points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    #69

    The Colonel died years before I was born, which means the guy in the suit at KFC I met when I was a kid wasn't the real Colonel.

    Kiyohara Report

    Final score:
    10points
    Add photo comments
    POST
    david2074 avatar
    David
    David
    Community Member
    1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Wait until you hear about how the honey packets have been changed to honey flavored corn syrup.

    Vote comment up
    7
    7points
    Vote comment down
    reply
    View More Replies... View more commentsArrow down menu
    ADVERTISEMENT

    Anyone can write on Bored Panda. Start writing!

    Follow Bored Panda on Google News!