Legends, Lies & Cherished Myths of World History

SHENKMAN, Richard

ISBN 10: 006016803X / ISBN 13: 9780060168032

Published by Harper Collins, New York, 1993

About this Item

Black & white line drawings by George J. McKeon; 301pp.

Seller Inventory # 905821

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Legends, Lies & Cherished Myths of World History
• Publisher: Harper Collins, New York
• Publication Date: 1993
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 006016803X
• ISBN 13: 9780060168032
• Binding: Hard Cover
• Illustrator: MCKEON, George J.
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Near Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine
• Seller catalogs:
  • Firsts
  • History
  • Humor

About this title

Synopsis

A humorous take on world history debunks the myths that surround Cleopatra, Nero, Robin Hood, King Arthur, Joan of Arc, and other historical icons

From the Back Cover

Whistleblowing historian Richard Shenkman skewers the nonsense we were all taught about the world's revolutions, religions, heroes, and inventors in a whirlwind tour of history.

Queen Victoria may have usually worn black, but she loved to drink and party.

The English were conned during World War II. Winston Churchill's famous "finest hour" radio broadcast was not delivered by Winston Churchill but by Norman Shelley, an actor hired to be Churchill's stand-in.

Marie Antoinette did not say, "Let them eat cake," Churchill didn't coin the phrase "the Iron Curtain," and Caesar never said, "Et tu, Brute?"

Scandal in the English monarchy is nothing new: Fifteen kings fathered children out of wedlock. One queen helped depose her husband so her lover could take his place. Three English kings were gay.

Eclectic, eccentric, edifying, and fun, Richard Shenkman's eye-opening revelations prove that much of history is indeed "but a fable agreed upon."