20 Historical Facts That You Would Find Hard To Believe

An unusual collection of facts related to human history has emerged. These facts were shared to a new reddit thread that was shared asking the community, “What is a historical fact that seems unbelievable?” The thread quickly gathered a variety of responses from true facts, to obviously made up stories to intense debates on the validity of some of the answers. The team at Bored Panda have verified the facts themselves and we’ve listed the most popular and bizarre entries that you’re sure to find surprising and interesting, down below.

#1

Image source: ABITIN, Madelgarius

Albert Einstein turned down the presidency of Israel.

#2

Image source: ScrollWithTheTimes, theroyalfamily

Elizabeth II was on the throne for over a quarter of the United States’ existence.

#3

Image source: Ennion, Steven Tom

In 1972, as much as 26 feet of snow fell on small towns in Iran killing 4000 people.

#4

Image source: storm_walkers

Ancient Thebes once assembled an elite military force consisting of 150 pairs of gay male lovers. They were believed to fight better because they wouldn’t want to act cowardly or unmanly in front of their boyfriends. They went undefeated in war for years.

#5

Image source: Almadel1970, Chris Waits

That there was a molasses flood in Boston in 1919 that was 25 feet high and killed 21 people.

#6

Pope Gregory IX declared war on cats.

He believed that cats were agents of devil worshippers.

Image source: ABITIN

#7

Image source: HoeingForYieldNSFW, Secret Pilgrim

Fax machines were invented in 1843, well before the telephone.

#8

Image source: A6ixD_, Midnight Believer

If we held a minute of silence for every victim of the Holocaust, the world would be silent for 11.5 years. It’s crazy to visualize the mass amount of human loss from this event.

#9

There was a convent of French nuns that just began meowing one day for no particular reason.

Image source: PerfectBussy98

#10

Image source: rgrtom, Vidal Balielo Jr

The first battle of the American Civil War was fought on land owned by a Mr. Wilmer McLean. After the battle he decided to move further out in the country to avoid the war…where four years later Gen. Lee surrendered to Gen. Grant in Mr. McLeans house. The war started and ended on his property.

#11

Image source: Jmen4Ever, WGN News

The last “official” civil war widow died in 2020.

#12

Image source: AverageJoeDynamo, Diliff

University of Oxford is older than the Aztec Empire.

#13

Image source: ImaginaryAfternoon0, Joe Passe

King George III known as the ‘Mad King’ apparently suffered severe mental illness the majority of his life. He was tied to chairs, gagged, bled, left in freezing rooms to try and ‘treat’ him.

In 2005, DNA testing on his hair found extremely high levels of lead and arsenic. Medications he was being given for other ailments sent him insane for a slow likely painful death

#14

Image source: Skwerilleee, Johann Jaritz

The last execution by guillotine was in the 70s

#15

Image source: UJMRider1961, meaduva

Read about this a few years ago:

In 1943 a group of German sailors on a U-Boat emplaced a weather station on the Canadian coast (Labrador) so the Germans could more accurately predict the weather for military operations (since weather in the Northern hemisphere generally moves west-to-east.) The weather station was marked with fake signs indicating that it was a Canadian military facility and for unauthorized personnel to keep out.

The weather station was eventually discovered by the Canadians….

…In 1977.

#16

Image source: HunterRoze, oatsy40

It took 60 million years for nature to develop bacteria that could digest trees. In fact that is where coal comes from

#17

Image source: GNTB3996, VasenkaPhotography

There were archaeologists in *Ancient* Egypt studying about *even more* ancient Egypt.

#18

Image source: TDeath21, mcdlttx

We live closer in time to TRex than TRex did to Stegosaurus. Dinosaurs were here forever.

#19

Image source: AnaisGiovanna, hippopx

The entire country of Malta was awarded the George Cross for its efforts in WWII. It’s still on their flag.

#20

Image source: Derpygoras, Scott WilcoxsonScott Wilcoxson

The first 200 000 years or so of being highly sentient human beings are lost in history. We only know the last circa 2000-4000 years from texts.

The first recorded joke – a fart joke that is 4000 years old – uses the term “since time immemorial” (or the sumerian version). Even though one should not take that literally, it suggests that you could travel back in time to find people consider their civilization ancient already.

And it was. When that joke was written down in cuneiform, the pyramid of Djoser had already been standing for 700 years. And when **that** pyramid was built, the city of Catal Höyuk was 3000-5000 years old!

And still, that was built during *the latest 2.5% of human history*.

We have lost so goddam much that it hurts to think of it.