this post was submitted on 22 Nov 2025

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213

What's your favourite story from history that is actually false or exaggerated? (lemmy.ca)

submitted 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) by FreshParsnip@lemmy.ca to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

107 comments fedilink hide all child comments

My favourite is the story that there was mass panic over a radio broadcast of War of the Worlds where everyone thought a real alien invasion was happening. I heard this story as a kid and really thought this was a cruel prank played by the radio station.

In reality, they made it clear at the beginning of the broadcast, and twice during, that it was fictional. Not that many people were listening and most of the people who were, were aware it wasn't real. A few idiots freaked out and it somehow turned into a story of mass panic. It was propaganda by newspapers to discredit radio.

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[–] frezik@lemmy.blahaj.zone 21 points 3 days ago (3 children)

There was a gap in [some military capability] during the Cold War, and the USA was losing it. Almost anything you stick in there, Russia was behind. They sometimes implied otherwise, but it's rare that they ever were. Occasionally, they used everything they had to just about match.

By the 1960s, their navy was pretty good, though. Don't let anyone tell you they were just a bunch of vodka drunk idiots. Not at that time, anyway.

At the opposite end of what this thread is about, Dr Strangelove is far more correct than it should be.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 19 points 3 days ago

I like the part where we saw the MiG-25, freaked out because it looked very capable, built the F-15 to actually exceed those capabilities, and then only found out after the fact that the MiG-25 wasn't nearly as good as we thought.

[–] SaraTonin@lemmy.world 8 points 2 days ago

Similar to the Strangelove example - although not about history - know what medical professionals consistently say is the TV show which not only had the most accurate medicine, but also best depicts the social paradigm of working in the medical sector? Scrubs.

[–] decipher_jeanne@lemmy.blahaj.zone 7 points 3 days ago

The cruiser gap as an example. Was never real, it only existed because of the US Navy classification system of time.

The US Navy would call ships frigate or destroyer leader when they had the size and capabilities of a cruiser in the Soviet navy. The 1975 Ship reclassification cleared it up and also made organization much easier than the dozens of confusing hull designation.

[–] neidu3@sh.itjust.works 24 points 3 days ago (1 children)

While Wojtek serving in the Polish army during the invasion of Italy is true, a lot of his exploits are exaggerated. I still love it though.

Him helping out is confirmed, and if I remember correctly, the story of him carrying artillery shells is among the confirmed ones. And yes, he did in fact drink beer. But no, he didn't smoke cigarettes, on the account of being a bear. He ate them, though.

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[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 16 points 3 days ago (1 children)

So many apocryphal stories are just the best...

At a dinner party, someone accused Winston Churchill of being drunk.

"That may be, madam, but you're ugly, and I'll be sober in the morning."

Likely never happened.

But the one that breaks my heart is that there is no evidence Carthage was salted after being destroyed.

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[–] inlandempire@jlai.lu 23 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (10 children)

Marie Antoinette saying let them eat bread or something

From her point of view it sounds incredibly based, it would probably have just been ignorance though. I'm still glad she died because of that patronising comment that she kind of didn't actually say

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[–] lemmie689@lemmy.sdf.org 7 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

The Androleteirai, destroyers of men, aka The Amazons.

[–] over_clox@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Jesus, Jews, Jerusalem, January, June, July...

The letter J wasn't invented until the year 1524...

[–] DosDude@retrolemmy.com 20 points 3 days ago (1 children)

There have and will probably be letters used in the future to pronounce certain letters we use differently in words. To make things easier and legible. Caesar for example was written "GAIVS IVLIVS CAESAR". The J and U were not used, yet they were pronounced.

So, while technically correct, it did exist in some form.

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[–] rob_t_firefly@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Which is why in Latin, "Jehovah" starts with an "I."

[–] hakunawazo@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

[–] starlinguk@lemmy.world 5 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Meanwhile, when Ghostwatch was on, people panicked even though it had been announced as a "Play on (BBC) One" for weeks.

I think it's still on YouTube somewhere.

[–] SaraTonin@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago (1 children)

One woman famously sent the BBC a dry cleaning bill because her husband had literally shat himself

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