Here Are 10 Downright Unsettling Tales From History That Prove Everything You Learned In School Was A Lie

As the quote goes, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." But what if the past wasn't taught in the first place? Oftentimes, history books completely overlook or sanitize uncomfortable truths from history...

Open book with a feather pen resting on its pages, set on a wooden surface
Anna Gorin / Getty Images

So, recently, when Redditor u/Turbulent_Archer_727 asked, "What's one historical fact that they won't teach you in school?" The replies sent me down a rabbit hole of research. From nonconsensual experiments and procedures to plots to overthrow the government and declare war — here are 10 historical facts your teachers definitely didn't want you to learn about:

Warning: This post contains mentions of racism, death, animal death, drugs, war, and forced sterilization.

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1.Many people at the Alamo were, in fact, forgotten:

The image shows the Alamo at night with its historic stone façade illuminated by lights

2.The Irish potato famine was, in part, caused by the British government:

Illustration of a distressed boy and girl in ragged clothing, labeled "Boy and Girl at Cahera," depicting hardship

When the "blight" was discovered, contemporary reports stated that within a few days, freshly picked potatoes would turn into slimy "mass[es] of rottenness." "Famine fever" soon struck the country — which was the common name for a whole host of ailments, including scurvy, dysentery, cholera, and typhus. It is estimated that around one million people died during the Great Irish Potato Famine, and another two million emigrated to either Great Britain or North America.

Shortly after the famine began, Irish leaders petitioned Queen Victoria and Parliament to repeal the restrictive "Corn Laws." Their petition was granted, but by then, it did little to offset the burgeoning crisis. In the spring of 1847, the British government attempted to provide relief to the Irish by establishing work programs and soup kitchens.

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However, an official apology from the British government wasn't issued for another 150 years when Prime Minister Tony Blair gave a statement of remorse for his country doing "too little" during the crisis.

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3.The 13th amendment wasn't ratified in one U.S. state for 130 years:

Historical illustration of a crowded legislative assembly room with people raising hands, possibly signifying a vote or debate

4.The Battle of Blair Mountain:

Historic photo of miners in a coal mine, equipped with tools, working in a dimly lit underground setting with rocky walls

On August 24, Keeney and Mooney made a last-minute attempt to call a ceasefire to the oncoming mine war after Henry Bandholtz, General of the War Department, assured them that violence would prove disastrous for the miners and union members. However, after two miners were killed in a skirmish with Sheriff Chafin's forces, all hope of a ceasefire was lost.

Within four days, over 10,000 miners and union members swarmed the Logan County border to exchange gunfire with coal company sympathizers. The battle waged on until September 4, when federal troops became involved. Death tolls have never been confirmed, but estimates vary widely from somewhere between 16 and 100 people killed during the five-day battle.

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Now considered a pivotal point in the fight for worker's rights in America, at the time, the Battle of Blair Mountain was considered an enormous loss for the miners. The state of West Virginia charged Keeney, Mooney, and 20 others with treason, as well as hundreds of other union members and miners with murder — however, nearly all were acquitted. The legal fees associated with these trials emptied the wallets of the UMW, which impaired their organizational efforts throughout the rest of the decade.

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5.Tuskegee Experiment:

Five men stand outdoors in front of a rustic building with a gas pump. One man holds a cane, and a dog rests nearby. They wear hats and casual work clothes

When the study began in 1932, there was no proven cure for syphilis; however, 15 years later, Dr. Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, which became the standard treatment for the disease. Despite the newly discovered and proven cure, medical treatment was still withheld from the men in the Tuskegee Experiment. It was later determined that not only had dozens of men died due to the withholding of medical treatment, but countless wives and children had also been unknowingly infected.

An elderly man speaks at a podium during an awards ceremony, while a man in a suit applauds in the background. An American flag is visible

6.The World War II pet cull in England:

A man kneels beside a truck labeled "PDSA," holding leashes of two bandaged dogs while another dog sits on his lap wearing a cape

When war was officially declared on September 3, 1939, pet owners flocked to veterinarians to have their animals euthanized. The mass euthanasia only worsened after the Blitzkrieg began in September 1940. Contemporary journalist Susan Day urged readers of the Daily Mail: "Putting your pets to sleep is a very tragic decision. Do not take it before it is absolutely necessary."

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One of the biggest reasons families euthanized their pets was because rations weren't allotted for animals. Some wealthy individuals, such as the feline-loving Duchess of Hamilton, acted against the cruelty and created a sanctuary for animals who needed a safe home. The duchess began sending staff to London's East End, where they eventually rescued hundreds of unwanted pets.

However, it wasn't enough to save them all. Within the span of one horrific week, an estimated 750,000 pets were killed. The British Zoo also took part in these measures by culling all of their poisonous animals in the event they escaped after a bombing raid. Fortunately, humane societies later stepped in and prevented more senseless pet deaths.

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7.The Business Plot:

An older man in a suit sits in a wicker chair, holding a newspaper in a room with wicker furniture and a lamp on a table
An older man in a suit sits in a wicker chair, holding a newspaper in a room with wicker furniture and a lamp on a table
Person in a suit poses in front of a large, striped fabric backdrop
Person in a suit poses in front of a large, striped fabric backdrop

Bettmann / Bettmann Archive, PhotoQuest / Getty Images

Throughout America's history, there have been many, many attempts to overthrow our democracy — including "The Business Plot," a little-known coup in 1933 that involved right-wing financiers plotting to overtake the government, depose the newly-elected FDR, and install Marine Corps. Major Smedley Butler as dictator of the United States.

During this time, the country was feeling the full effects of the Great Depression; as author Sally Denton explained to NPR, "There were suggestions that capitalism was not working, that democracy was not working." This caused many to look to other forms of government — including Communism, socialism, and even fascism — as a way to pull America out of its woe-ridden state.

Denton noted that the financiers "thought they could convince Roosevelt to relinquish power to basically a fascist, military-type government." How close we came to this fascist dictator-run state is often debated. Still, it should be noted that this wealthy group of conspirators had already supplied the "coup d'état" with millions of dollars and weapons before attempting to recruit Maj. Smedley Butler for the role of dictator. Luckily, however, Butler viewed this as an act of treason and immediately reported it to Congress.

The following year, Butler testified under oath before the Special Committee of Un-American Activities; however, no one involved in the proposed coup was prosecuted for treason.

The final congressional report stated, "There is no question that these attempts were discussed, were planned, and might have been placed in execution when and if the financial backers deemed it expedient."

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8.Project MK-Ultra:

Close-up of a typewriter typing the word "CIA" on a sheet of paper

Other experiment participants, such as Ken Kesey, author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, willingly volunteered to be studied for Project MK-Ultra while he was a student at Stanford University. Kesey later became an advocate of LSD and began hosting hallucinogenic-fueled parties known as "Acid Tests" — one of the factors behind the introduction of mainstream psychedelic culture in the late 1960s.

However, after funding and conducting studies at major universities, LSD — as well as MDMA, heroin, meth, "magic mushrooms," and a whole host of other drugs —  were deemed too unstable to be used in the field.

The project was exposed in 1974 after New York Times journalist Seymour Hersh published a story about the CIA's nonconsensual mind control experiments and illegal spying operations. President Gerald Ford, in an attempt to tackle the newly reinvigorated distrust of the government following the Watergate Scandal, then formed a committee whose sole purpose was to investigate illegal CIA activity within the United States.

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9.Operation Northwoods:

People standing in the rain, holding protest signs about Cuba, including "Hands Off Cuba" and "Leave Cuba Alone."

These proposals shockingly earned the approval of all of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. They even went so far as to land on the desk of President Kennedy's defense secretary, Robert McNamara, who resoundingly rejected them.

Operation Northwoods lived in the shadows for another 30 years and was only declassified due to the John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992; however, the documents weren't common knowledge until 2001 when author James Bamford released his book Body of Secrets.

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10.The forced sterilization of Native American women:

A woman sits outdoors holding a baby wrapped in a blanket. She wears a patterned jacket and a dress with floral designs

In 1977, Maria Sanchez, chief tribal judge on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation, spoke to the United Nations Convention on Indigenous Rights in Geneva to tell them that Native American women were still being targeted by sterilization, which she called a "modern form" of genocide.

With impacts such as lasting mental health struggles and divorce, the effect of these procedures is still being felt in Native American communities today. While forced sterilizations haven't been a major headline in nearly half a century, author Jane Lawrence explained a chilling reality, "Sterilization abuse has not been reported recently on the scale that occurred during the 1970s, but the possibility still exists for it to occur.”

Suggested by: u/Jeramy_Jones

Did any of these facts surprise you? What are some other heartbreaking historical facts that aren't taught in schools? Let us know in the comments!