34 Unbelievable History Facts

By James Israelsen, Associate Writer

Published October 4, 2025

The word "history" comes from the Greek historia, meaning "narrative" or "finding out."_[15]
The shortest war in history was the Anglo-Zanzibar War of 1896; it lasted 38 minutes._[18]
The discipline of history has many prehistorical precedents, such as the Greek logographers, the Jewish Torah, ancient Chinese annalistic traditions, and lists of kings and important events in ancient Egypt._[15]
Iceland has the oldest parliament in history: the Icelandic Althingi was first formed in 930 AD._[18]
One of Ancient Rome's most tyrannical emperors was Caligula, who once made his horse a senator._[13]
The study of history as a discipline, and how history is to be approached and written, is known as "historiography."_[15]
The Leaning Tower of Pisa had already started sinking on one side when builders began adding the second floor._[13]
Important early historians include Siam Qian of China, Hecataeus, Herodotus, and Thucydides of Greece, and Polybius and Livy of Rome._[15]
Once companies that sold flour heard that some people during the Great Depression wore flour sacks as clothing, they started making their sacks more colorful to help these "clothes" look better._[13]
The word "hooker" for a prostitute has its origins in the Civil War, when a General Hooker brought along prostitutes for his men._[13]
One of the most fascinating, complex, and accomplished figure in history is Napoleon Bonaparte, who reunited France after the Revolution of 1789, conquering most of Europe in the process._[5]

German philosopher G.W.F. Hegel called Napoleon "Spirit on Horseback"

The only Great Wonder of the ancient world to still be standing are the Pyramids of Giza._[12]
According to visitors to the temple, one of the ancient wonders of the world, a 40-foot Greek statue of Zeus, was actually wrong in its proportions, as compared to a human body._[12]
The ancient Greek writer Herodotus is often called "the father of history." His famous work "Histories" are a chronicle the Greco-Persian Wars._[15]
What "history" actually amounts to as an academic discipline, and how best to present and explain events from the past, are all matters of intense and ongoing academic debate._[15]

A generation which ignores history has no past and no future.

- Robert Heinlein

The 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial was a case where the state of Tennessee prosecuted a high school teacher for teaching the theory of evolution; 43 years after the trial, the Supreme Court of the U.S. ruled that telling a teacher not to teach evolution violated the First Amendment to the Constitution._[17]
"Black Tuesday" was October 24, 1929, when a crash of the stock market initiated the Great Depression._[17]
Adolf Hitler only became a German citizen in 1932, seven years after he renounced his Austrian citizenship._[17]

The city of Rhodes constructed the giant statue in honor of a military victory

One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World was the "Colossus of Rhodes," a giant statue of the Greek sun god Helios standing over the port into the city of Rhodes._[2]
The 1938 "Kristallnacht" was an anti-Semitic pogrom inspired by Nazi leader Joseph Goebells that resulted in the death of dozens of Jews._[17]
LSD was invented in 1943._[17]
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, was formed in 1949 in response to the threat of Russian communism._[17]
Many major historical disasters, such as the Chernobyl power plant failure and the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger, were partially due to fatigue and lack of sleep._[1]
Abraham Lincoln was a champion wrestler in his youth. He has even been recognized by the US Wrestling Hall of Fame._[19]
There is no evidence that French Queen Marie Antoinette ever said "let them eat cake."_[3]
Jeanette Rankin became the first woman to serve in the United States Congress in 1916--four years before women were granted the right to vote._[9]
The famous Egyptian Queen Cleopatra was actually most likely of Greek/Macedonian descent, though she may have been partially Egyptian._[10]

Cleopatra is held to have tested various poisons on prisoners in order to determine the most painless way to commit suicide

The first submarine used in warfare was the "American Turtle," a small submersible invented by David Bushnell, during the American Revolution, in 1776._[14]
United States President Andrew Jackson fought in many duels; estimates range from 5 to 100._[6]
During WWII, the Polish army adopted a brown bear named Wojtek into their ranks. The bear loved cigarettes and beer, and was promoted from private to corporal._[16]
Ernest Hemingway's younger brother Leicester started his own nation on a large raft that he named "New Atlantis."_[7]
After trading $3 billion worth of Pepsi-cola to the USSR in exchange for vodka, submarines, and other military hardware, the Pepsi company briefly had the 6th largest military in the world._[8]
The father of modern chemistry, Antoine Lavoisier, was executed by guillotine during the French Revolution._[4]
The "Hundred Years' War" between France and England was actually 116 years long._[11]