Everyone Knows These Famous Historical Figures, But Some Experts Doubt They Ever Existed

“To be, or not to be? That is the question.” These words are almost as famous as the man who wrote them: William Shakespeare. But what if we told you that there are experts out there who doubt the English playwright’s very existence? And he’s not alone. There are, in fact, numerous massively important historical figures who may never have actually walked this earth. Read on and prepare to be shocked!

20. Mulan

Thanks to the 1998 cartoon movie and recent live-action adaptation, millions of us are familiar with the story of Mulan. Yet the character’s origins tend to be less well-known for those of us outside China. In fact, she can be traced back to a poem written around 1,500 years ago!

Just another folk story?

According to Time, The Ballad of Mulan emerged as a folk story in northern China – back when the region was ruled by the Wei dynasty. It’s been theorized that this poem may have been formulated as a reaction to the increasing autonomy that women were experiencing at the time. So, the character of Mulan wasn’t necessarily real and instead may have been a representation of females from that era and place. Pretty neat, right?

19. William Tell

William Tell is a hugely important figure in Switzerland. Why? Well, he assassinated the brutal Austrian leader Albrecht Gessler in the 14th century and a resulting rebellion led to the Swiss Confederacy’s foundation. Details of the story vary, but it’s believed that Tell had refused to honor Gessler’s rule. And as a result, he was forced to fire an arrow at an apple placed on top of his child’s head.

The famous shot

Tell didn’t miss the apple shot, but he would later go on to murder Gessler and helped inspire the movement for Swiss independence. Naturally, his influence on the national psyche is quite profound. Yet in reality there’s no solid evidence that the apple incident ever happened! And we don’t even know if William Tell ever existed.

18. Pythagoras

Even those of us who aren’t mathematically minded are probably still vaguely aware of the Pythagoras’ Theorem. This lesson of high-school math states that the square of a right-angled triangle’s longest side is the same as the squares of the other sides added together. The calculation is known as a² + b² = c². Yep, now you remember!

Where'd it come from?

Pythagoras’ Theorem is, of course, hugely important. Though its origins have actually been called into question. There are some historians who believe that the Greek thinker’s contributions to math actually originated from other sources. And many even question whether he was even a real person! Simon Critchley wrote in The Book of Dead Philosophers, “Sadly, it is now almost universally assumed by classical scholars that Pythagoras never existed.”

17. Helen of Troy

According to ancient Greek lore, Helen of Troy was the most alluring woman on Earth. She was married to the Spartan king Menelaus, but she left him for Paris – prince of the Trojans. This then led to the decade-long Trojan War. It’s quite the tale, but is any of it real?

Looking at the records

According to reports, there’s nothing to suggest that Helen’s exploits ever happened – nor even that such a female ever existed. She’s a woman rooted in mythology, with plenty of contradictions and inconsistencies in her story. But as we can see from her longevity, none of this diminishes the character’s cultural significance.

16. John Henry

Many of you will be familiar with the American folk story that revolves around John Henry – a steel worker who was once a slave. The folklore describes how he took on a mechanized steam drill in a man-versus-machine race to see who could build a railroad tunnel first. He was successful, the story goes, but upon finishing he fell down and died.

Fact or fiction?

John Henry’s tale is remembered even today, but according to NPS, he himself is a fiction. That said, the soaring figure still serves as a symbol for all the African-Americans who worked and sometimes died constructing West Virginia’s railroads. And the incalculable contribution of these men is remembered through tales and songs about John Henry.

15. Homer

The ancient Greek poet Homer is revered today as the genius behind a pair of humanity’s most revered tales. Homer’s Odyssey and the Iliad are pivotal to our conception of narrative – potentially more than any other works of literature. The poet, then, has been widely regarded as one of history’s most influential individuals.

Fact of the matter

The thing is, though, there’s every chance that Homer never really lived. And his work may have been the amalgamation of multiple ideas and thinkers over time. Writing in his book Why Homer Matters, expert Adam Nicolson reflected, “[He] is a foundation myth, not a man nor of the natural world, but of the way of thinking by which the Greeks defined themselves, the frame of mind which made them who they were.”

14. Pope Joan

According to the Vatican, every person who’s ever served as pope has been male. But one story from the ninth century says otherwise! The medieval legend states that a woman dressed up in men’s clothes in order to begin training as a cleric. She soon emerged as a leader of the Catholic Church after being elected to the highest position possible. For those of you who don’t know, this woman was Pope Joan.

Bad PR

Pope Joan retained her position for a couple of years, but she was eventually caught out after going into labor and sadly passing away during child birth. It’s a pretty fantastical story, of course, and there’s no real evidence that it ever actually occurred. So, why would somebody make it up? Well, according to History.com, the female pope was probably just a fabrication created by people with a vendetta against the Catholic Church.

13. Confucius

The influence of Confucius on Chinese and East Asian culture really cannot be overstated. This educator and philosopher is said to have lived around 2,500 years ago in the modern-day Chinese province of Shandong. But given the long timeline involved here, specific details can be a little sketchy!

Something's not adding up

The oldest documented report about the life of Confucius actually dates to around four centuries after the man allegedly died. That’s a pretty big gap in time, right? And it means that the accuracy of such an account is questionable at best. Depending on who you ask, what Confucious actually did in life also depends on the source. Nevertheless, it doesn’t make the work attributed to him any less profound.

12. St. Christopher

St. Christopher has many different things associated with him. He is, after all, the patron saint of epileptics, fruit traders, surfers and people on their travels. That’s a mixed bag, but we don’t really know much about the man himself. In fact, even the Catholic Church has given us room to doubt his existence!

Imperfect descriptions

The Catholic calendar once marked more feast days dedicated to certain saints than it does today. But after reforms in the 1960s the calendar was trimmed down – with less saints being celebrated. St. Christopher’s day was one of the dates chalked off, and this was mainly because his descriptions were quite imperfect. The Church certainly didn’t state that the man wasn’t real, but it did classify his story as “legendary.”

11. William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare’s identity has actually been called into question since the 19th century, according to Time magazine. It’s definitely a fringe opinion, but in recent times even champions of the playwright’s work have questioned his authenticity. Shakespeare actor Derek Jacobi and ex-artistic director of Shakespeare’s Globe Theater Mark Rylance released a “Declaration of Reasonable Doubt.” This document – created by the Shakespeare Authorship Coalition – says there’s a decent chance that other people may have been behind these historical works.

All the work of one person?

The suspicions about Shakespeare revolve around the fact that relatively little is known about him. There’s a broad consensus among scholars that he came from Stratford-upon-Avon in England and that he died there in 1616, but other details are pretty elusive. Doubters, therefore, believe that there’s no solid proof that one man wrote all the works attributed to Shakespeare. Fascinating stuff, right?

10. Sadie Farrell

If stories are to be believed, Sadie Farrell was among the most infamous lady gangsters in 19th-century New York City. Known for her tendency for head-butting her foes in the belly, she picked up the nickname Sadie the Goat. Apparently, the woman was violent – fond of attacking and robbing sailors in particular.

No evidence

The thing is, though Sadie the Goat appears in the book Gangs of New York, there isn’t much else to suggest that she ever really existed in real life! No known newspaper articles reported on such a woman’s activities, and you’d think the yellow press of the time would’ve had a field day with a story like that. Sadly, it seems that she’s probably just a work of fiction.

9. Jesus Christ

There’s long been a broad consensus among researchers that a man known as Jesus did once live. Of course, whether or not this person matched up to the descriptions in the New Testament is quite another question. But generally speaking, many scholars have tended to accept that he existed in one form or another.

Made up of stories

Yet there are those who question the very existence of a figure known as Jesus. Such people allege that the existing evidence of his life is questionable, as no contemporary or eyewitness accounts exist. According to The Washington Post, any descriptions we do have are mostly biased. Plus, it’s possible that many of the records of Jesus’ life were edited by Christian scribes throughout the centuries.

8. Lycurgus

The man known as Lycurgus has quite the reputation – credited with turning ancient Sparta into a mighty military state. According to legend, Lycurgus was responsible for a series of wide-ranging reforms that totally transformed Spartan society. The most significant of these measures, perhaps, was the training scheme he created for soldiers.

Societal shifts

Historians tend to agree that the changes in Spartan society that are attributed to Lycurgus really did occur. Though was he the person who instigated these reforms? And to take it one step further, did he even exist? We actually don’t know the answer to either of those questions!

7. Uncle Sam

The image of Uncle Sam has been an enduring icon of America and its government for centuries. But was there ever a real-life man, or was he a total fabrication for the sake of propaganda? Well, it turns out that the genuine history is a little patchy.

Character coming to life

Uncle Sam is thought to trace back to a man named Samuel Wilson, according to History.com. This man worked in the meat industry, which was supplying beef to soldiers in the War of 1812. Newspapers reported on this story and the image of “Uncle Sam” soon spread. How much did Wilson resemble the figure we all know, though? Well, the caricature took on a life of its own, that’s for sure!

6. King Arthur

King Arthur of Camelot is a figure who has inspired a great number of fantastical stories and adaptations. But was he a real person? Did a British monarch named Arthur really lead his soldiers to war against the invading Saxons? Yep, it’s a debate that’s raged for centuries now in historical circles.

Too many battles, not enough time

History.com notes that the evidence pointing towards King Arthur’s genuine existence is dubious at best. After all, his name only appears in historical records many centuries after the Saxon invasion of Britain actually occurred. A Welsh historian called Nennius was apparently the first to write about King Arthur. But he claimed that the royal had fought in a series of 12 battles in so many places and time periods that it would have been impossible for him to have been in all of them.

5. Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind

Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind was said to be the toughest, best-looking lady of the whole American frontier. She could beat an alligator in a fight and even resided with a group of wild bears. Sally Ann even went on to marry Davy Crockett, who’s still remembered today as the King of the Wild Frontier.

Hard to believe

But if Sally Ann’s life seems a little hard to believe, there’s a good reason for that. In short, she’s reportedly a totally made-up creation! Her husband Davy Crockett, on the other hand, is absolutely real, though elements of his story have themselves been mythologized.

4. Jack and Rose

James Cameron’s Titanic is one of the most successful movies of all time. The disastrous tale of the eponymous ship’s tragic sinking is utterly gripping. But it was made all the more poignant because of the love story of Rose and Jack – played by Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio respectively.

Kernel of truth

The attention to detail in Titanic is exquisite, but a huge amount of the plot was entirely made up. In fact, the whole love story involving Jack and Rose was written for the sake of pulling viewers into the film. Neither character was real, though elements of their personalities were inspired from genuine figures.

3. Sun Tzu

Despite being written in China thousands of years ago, The Art of War remains a pivotal work for understanding the nature and tactics of conflict. Its author Sun Tzu’s reflections on the subject are incredibly eloquent, yet they also exhibit a distinct pragmatism. Sun Tzu, then, must have been a very wise man indeed.

Ideas confirmed

But what if we told you that Sun Tzu may not have existed at all? History.com notes that many scholars believe there never was such a man, and that The Art of War is actually a compilation of ideas from several people spread out over time. The truth may never be revealed, but that ultimately does nothing to undermine the brilliance of the text.

2. Adam and Eve

People’s opinion as to whether or not Adam and Eve really existed will often come down to their religious beliefs. Having said that, even some Christian scholars have now spoken out about their disbelief in the story. Take Trinity Western University biologist Dennis Venema, who has studied the subject extensively.

Just not likely

Venema is also a senior figure within The BioLogos Foundation, which is an organization that seeks to bring the Christian faith together with science. And according to him, the Adam and Eve story doesn’t add up at all. Asked by NPR whether we all descended from those people, Venema said, “That would be against all the genomic evidence that we’ve assembled over the last 20 years, so [it’s] not likely at all.”

1. Robin Hood

He robbed from the rich and gave it to the poor. We all know Robin Hood, right? According Bennett A. Brockman’s book Children and the Audiences of Robin Hood, the legendary English outlaw first appeared in the poem Piers Plowman in the 1370s. But the story has evolved endlessly since those days, and we’d hardly recognize the figure described in those texts today.

Though is there any evidence to suggest that there was ever actually a real Robin Hood? Well, it seems unlikely. Historian Joseph Hunter has looked into the figure and found that he’s mentioned several times throughout history in different parts of England. This suggests that the name “Robin Hood” was actually an alias utilized by multiple different criminals over the years!