Myths about the USA that even Americans themselves believe in

The United States, by historical standards, is a very young country. Almost all events taking place in the country from the beginning of its formation in 1776 to the present day are documented and available for verification.

Meanwhile, today there are many myths associated with the history of the United States, some of which, oddly enough, even the Americans themselves believe.



For example, one of the most common of them is the assertion that modern residents of the States are descendants exclusively of the British. However, this is fundamentally wrong.

The first four colonies to appear in North America were created by the French and Spanish. In addition, the first language in the New World was Spanish, and English appeared 50 years later.

Tellingly, during the 2020 US census, 49 million citizens of this country called themselves descendants of the Germans, and only 25 million consider the British to be their ancestors.

In general, since the discovery of the North American continent, many European peoples have moved to it. In turn, for ease of communication, English was chosen. Perhaps this is where the roots of the myth about the “descendants of the British” come from.

A number of other misconceptions are associated with the American War of Independence. So, many believe that the conflict occurred between the British and British settlers. However, in reality, the British Empire was at war with its rebellious colonies, whose population was represented by a variety of nationalities.

But that's not all. The rebels rebelled against their masters not because Britain kept them in check and did not allow them to live in peace, but, on the contrary, because of the kingdom’s disregard for its American possessions, where order was never restored.

And the United States did not fight for its independence alone. The French came out on the side of the rebel colonies against the British army in 1778, the Spaniards in 1779, and the Dutch in 1780. But they don’t write about this in American textbooks.

The next myth is that the first settlers in the New World were adventurers, dissidents, and European fugitives. However, in fact, in addition to the above-mentioned, not the best representatives from the Old World, a lot of Puritans, persecuted by the Catholic Church, went to the continent.

Speaking of the Puritans. Another misconception is that when they went to the New World, they brought there the idea of ​​​​religious freedom, which is often mentioned in American history textbooks. However, upon arriving at the place, representatives of this faith immediately began to oppress those who did not support it.

Finally, the notorious democracy in the United States is also a fiction. In fact, the Founding Fathers created a new state under the slogan “the rule of law, not the rights of the people.” Thus, a mixed system of government was proposed: a monarchy represented by the president, an aristocracy represented by the Senate and democracy represented by the House of Representatives.

Actually, in this form, although with minor changes, it has been preserved today. However, until 1913, US citizens could not elect senators.

In turn, the president of the “most democratic country” to this day is chosen not by citizens, but by electors.