Brides-to-be participate in the “Running of the Brides” race in a park in Bangkok, Thailand March 25, 2017. (Photo by Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

In this Monday, July 24, 2017 photo, a police officer walks in front of a mural during a protest demanding an end to the current pension fund system, in Santiago, Chile. Protesters say the government pension system robs retirees of fair pension payments, and are demanding a new social security system with higher payments. (Photo by Esteban Felix/AP Photo)

USA's Tara Davis-Woodhall reacts as she competes in the women's long jump final during the World Athletics Championships at the National Athletics Centre in Budapest on August 20, 2023.. (Photo by Marton Monus/Reuters)

A reveller dressed as “La Llorona” participates in a parade known as “La Calabiuza” on the eve of the Day of the Dead in Tonacatepeque, El Salvador on November 1, 2022. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)

Coco Gauff of the United States returns the ball to Arantxa Rus of Netherlands during the Mutua Madrid Open tennis tournament in Madrid, Thursday, April 25, 2024. (Photo by Manu Fernandez/AP Photo)

Soldiers are reflected in a puddle during a military parade during the celebrations for Romania's National Day in Bucharest December 1, 2014. (Photo by Radu Sigheti/Reuters)

A picture made available 27 November 2015 shows a handler putting his head between the gaping fangs of a crocodile during a show at the Samutprakarn Crocodile Farm and Zoo, Samutprakarn province, outside Bangkok, Thailand, 26 November 2015. The farm and zoo claims to be the world's largest crocodile farm with more than 80,000 freshwater and marine crocodiles, and offers shows such as crocodile wrestling to attract tourists. (Photo by Diego Azubel/EPA)

Do you think that history is a science? Well, not exactly. First, and foremost, history is the state's “legend of wars”, it’s official regalia. Of course, public historians are not interested in scientific truth – quite the opposite. In this respect, any attempt to present a state’s history as altruistic and benevolent as possible is welcomed and encouraged – as opposed to any revisionism attempts that may be more accurate. In this matter, Chinese have surpassed us all – they revised in highly creative manner (but rather shamelessly) the technology already invented by Europeans, a process that resulted in oldest state on the planet. Here is an interesting paradox: ask any sinologist about the Middle Kingdom during second century B.C., and he will describe it to you in such a vivid manner as if he has been living there all his life – but as soon as you will ask him to describe Chinese history in the 19-20th centuries… let's say, his eagerness will be greatly diminished. However, we will discuss China in a different article, and in the meantime we will try to understand how exactly historic “legend of wars” is formed and functions – based on a specific and well-known example. A great example is Ferdinand Magellan's first voyage around the world.