Paint-splattered revellers take a break at the Notting Hill carnival in West London in the last decade of August 2022. (Photo by Andy Hall/The Observer)

Kenya's Reynold Cheruiyot (centre L) and Britain's athlete Jake Wightman fall after crossing the finish line in the men's 1500m final during the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo on September 17, 2025. (Photo by Jewel Samad/AFP Photo)

Olympic gold medalist Arisa Trew of Australia competes on the vert ramp during the second day of “Exposure 2025” an annual all-girls skateboarding contest in Encinitas, California, U.S., November 2, 2025. (Photo by Mike Blake/Reuters)

Models prepare backstage before a presentation as part of Fashion Weekend Plus Size Summer 2015 collection show in Sao Paulo, July 25, 2015. (Photo by Nacho Doce/Reuters)

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.

A woman holds a cutout of President Donald Trump's face at a rally in Washington in support of Trump called the “Save America Rally” on January 6, 2021. (Photo by Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo)

People celebrate on a street in the neighborhood of Born, as the state of emergency decreed by the Spanish Government to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) gets lifted in Barcelona, Spain, May 9, 2021. (Photo by Nacho Doce/Reuters)

A man stands on a jetty on the fog-shrouded Victoria Harbour Wanchai in Hong Kong, China, 22 March 2022. Fog is common in Hong Kong in spr​ingtime when the territory is affected by alternate cold and warm air. (Photo by Jerome Favre/EPA/EFE)