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.

The winners of The London’s Natural History Museum's prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year for 2013 have finally been unveiled. Selected from almost 43,000 entries from 96 countries, the winners offer a glimpse of the stunning array of natural beauty on our planet. Photo: Canada: “Lucky pounce”. “Anticipating the pounce – that was the hardest part”, says Connor, who had come to Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA, in search of wildlife as much as the spectacular landscape. He had found this fox, his first ever, on his last day in the park. It was so absorbed in hunting that Connor had plenty of time to get out of the car and settle behind a rock. It quartered the grassland, back and forth, and then started staring intently at a patch of ground, giving Connor just enough warning of the action to come. When it sprung up, Connor got his shot. And when it landed, the fox got his mouse. (Photo by Connor Stefanison/Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2013)

Thai LGBT community participates in Gay Freedom Day Parade in Bangkok, Thailand on November 29, 2018. (Photo by Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters)

Soldiers on exercise in Kenya. The image, by Sergeant Dek Traylor, is among the section winners in the UK Army Photographic Competition 2018. (Photo by Sergeant Dek Traylor/PA Wire Press Association)

Miss Fantasy performs on the stage of The Nest club during the Vogue Nights Jozi Ball, an event dedicated to the gender-fluid culture in Marshalltown, Johannesburg on September 24, 2022. (Photo by Luca Sola/AFP Photo)

Amar, who is one-and-a-half years old and a Syrian refugee living in Turkey, looks on as the search for survivors continues in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake in Kahramanmaras, Turkey on February 13, 2023. (Photo by Suhaib Salem/Reuters)

Chloe Lewis attends “The Ony Way Is Essex” season finale filming in Wintney, Hook, England on October 29, 2017. (Photo by Beretta/Sims/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Kenichi Ito runs on his arms and legs on a race course on his way to setting the Guinness World Record fastest time for the 100-meter dash on all fours at Komazawa Olympic Park Stadium in Tokyo Thursday, November 14, 2013. The 30-year-old Japanese finished in 16.87 seconds Thursday, shaving more than half a second off his 2012 run of 17.47. (Photo by Shizuo Kambayashi/AP Photo)