Drag king Riss Obolensky performs as drag king Norman Creebs during the Opening Cabaret at The London Clown Festival in London, Britain, on July 8, 2024. (Photo by Hollie Adams/Reuters)

The MS Princess Seaways battles through the waves off Tynemouth pier as gale force winds hit the North east UK on September 25, 2020. (Photo by Owen Humphreys/PA Images via Getty Images)

Fireworks go off while the beetle goes up in flames after being set on fire during the 11th annual Burning Beetle event on Saturday, January 20, 2024, at Pageant Park in Custer, S.D. The event was created in response to the Mountain Pine Beetle infestation a few years ago and continues to bring awareness to the impact of the beetles. (Photo by Matt Gade/Rapid City Journal via AP Photo)

An young Indian Jain devotee dressed as Lord Krishna participates in a religious rally organised on the occasion of Mahavir Jayanti in Kolkata on April 2, 2015. The most important religious holiday in Jainism, Mahavir Jayanti celebrates the birth of Mahavira, the last Tirthankara, which is generally accepted as 599 BCE. (Photo by Dibyangshu Sarkar/AFP Photo)

A Japan soccer fan reacts as she watches Japan's FIFA Women's World Cup final match against the U.S. in Vancouver, at a public viewing event in Tokyo, Japan, July 6, 2015. Japan lost the match 5-2 to the U.S. (Photo by Toru Hanai/Reuters)

A sеxy model poses for photos during the 2016 Guangzhou Sеx Culture Festival in Guangzhou city, south China' s Guangdong province on November 10, 2016. The festival has featured the latest developments and technologies of Adult toys and reproductive health products in the country. (Photo by Asia Wire)

Festival-goers wash on Shipyard Island, the venue of the 24th Sziget (Island) Festival in Northern Budapest, Hungary, 15 August 2016. The venue, one of the biggest cultural events of Europe, offers art exhibitions, theatrical and circus performances and above all music concerts from 10 to 17 August. (Photo by Szabó Gábor/Origo.hu)

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.