Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Debate The The Most Overrated Historical Figures

People Debate The The Most Overrated Historical Figures
man speaking in front of crowd

By now it's common knowledge that history is written by the winners.

But it's also written by the swooners, the myth-makers and exaggerators, the ones who turn a blind eye to the ugly parts of the bio.


Indeed, the “winners" have some selective imaginations.

The great heroes, for all the historically influential deeds, were hardly. Even the saints weren't.

u/HotfoxK asked, "Who is the most overrated figure in history?"

Hype Tomb

King Tut

Really wasn't all that of an important pharaoh and is only well known because a dude named Howard Carter found his tomb and showed his treasure around the world

u/benx101

Dial Down the Penis Talk, Man

Sigmund Freud

His impact on psychology is largely overstated and most if not all of his research and claims are not recognized by modern psychology.

A good equivalent would be comparing him to astrology. Fun to read and think about, but don't take it too seriously.

u/rdg-lee

Sounds Like Grad School

Thomas Edison

Guy was the absolute biggest douche and a good portion of his patents were stolen from his apprentices and students

u/Jackforreall

Frequently Disremembered Racism

FDR

First he interred Asian Americans, actual citizens. We complain about Trump and his detention centers, but they legally aren't allowed to be here. Not saying it is right, but you can't love FDR and complain about border camps.

He refused to accept Jews who he knew would be killed.

He helped create red lining that has caused most, if not all, of the systemic racism in housing.

u/h0sti1e17

Panic Move, Woodrow

Woodrow Wilson

He was a racist and a sexist, and was pretty incompetent with the whole WW1 treaty, where he basically got walked all over by Congress and the others in the Big 4.

u/GamerWrestlerSoccer

Hell of a Set of Jowls, Though

Winston Churchill

The guy had a couple successful years, even that's arguable. The rest was steeped in failure, bloodshed and ash.

u/greengiantsbaby

Not Exactly a Healer

Mother Teresa

She was a sadist who thought poor people were better off suffering because their was purity in their suffering or other such bullocks (making her status as a kindhearted person incredibly ironic).

u/Dash_Harber

Peace and Independence, For Some

Gandhi

He was a racist (he wrote letters to Hitler and they began with "Dear friend"), he forced his lady companions to have enemas daily.

u/TechnicalCase

One Fish, Two -- Wait, what?

Dr Seuss. He only started writing children's books because his porn didn't sell. He based his Grinch character on himself. Cheated on his wife while she was ill with cancer, she committed suicide over it, writing in her note to him that "I cannot conceive of life without you". He later married the mistress.

lovelyb1ch66

The Less Than Wonderful World of Disney


Walt Disney was a racist, sexist, Nazi-sympathizing plagiarist who stiffed his workers.

Virtually everything positive that has ever been attributed to the man was shamelessly stolen from someone else... up to and including Mickey Mouse, who was the creation of an animator by the name of Ub Iwerks. The fellow whose empire now controls a sizeable chunk of the world's entertainment was essentially a media-focused reincarnation of Thomas Edison.

RamsesThePigeon

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Jennifer Garner
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images; @jennifer.garner/Instagram

Jennifer Garner Just Pitched A New Sport For The Winter Olympics—And Fans Are Into It

The Summer and Winter Olympics are already pretty great, but Jennifer Garner believes the Winter Olympics could use one more sport to make it perfect.

While passing through Central Park, Jennifer Garner came across a group of women who were sledding down a shallow hill on none other than small, silver baking sheets.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elis Lundholm
IOC via Getty Images

NBC Apologizes After Commentators Repeatedly Misgendered Trans Winter Olympic Skier

The International Olympic Committee is still trying to figure out what their position on transgender inclusion looks like and how decisions are made regarding which events athletes compete in. In the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, Filipino boxer Hergie Bacyadan, a transgender man, had to compete in the women’s event because of their stage in their transition.

In the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics this year, per International Ski Federation regulations, Swedish moguls skier Elis Lundholm also has to compete in the women’s moguls event because he hasn't begun a masculinizing hormone replacement therapy regimen yet.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Jessica Tarlov and Jesse Watters
Fox News

Fox News Host Gives Jesse Watters Blunt Reality Check After Stranger Called Him A 'Fascist'

Fox News personality Jesse Watters got a brutal reality check from his colleague Jessica Tarlov when he shared a story live on The Five about his bewilderment after a stranger shouted "F.U. fascist!" at him while he was walking his dog in his neighborhood.

Watters previously lived in a Manhattan rental and currently lives in a $2.8 million mansion in Bernardsville, New Jersey—where at least one neighbor is not a fan of his.

Keep ReadingShow less
Patrick Morrisey
@ameliaknisely/X

GOP West Virginia Governor's Press Conference Goes Viral For Hilariously Awkward Typo On Sign

MAGA Republican Governor Patrick Morrisey decided to hold a press conference at the Meadowbrook Mall in Bridgeport, West Virginia, to ask voters to support state income tax cuts.

But his message was derailed by a detail no one on the governor's team, including the man himself, noticed.

Keep ReadingShow less
Mark Alford; Bad Bunny
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

MAGA Rep. Blasted After Saying Republicans Are Now 'Investigating' Bad Bunny's Halftime Show

In an interview with Real America's Voice, Missouri Republican Representative Mark Alford said House Republicans are now "investigating" rapper Bad Bunny's Super Bowl halftime show, claiming it "could be much worse than the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction" for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

The Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show, which was broadcast live on February 1, 2004, featured singers Justin Timberlake and Jackson. The show is infamous for the moment Timberlake exposed Jackson's breast for a moment.

Keep ReadingShow less