History Facts for Kids
Incredible facts from the past
The magnetic compass was invented in China around the 11th century AD and used at first for feng shui — aligning buildings and graves — before sailors realised it was perfect for navigation.
The oldest surviving photograph was taken in 1826 or 1827 by French inventor Nicéphore Niépce. It shows a view from an upstairs window and required an exposure time of several hours.
Contrary to popular belief, Roman gladiatorial fights rarely ended in death. Gladiators were expensive to train and feed, so killing one was wasteful. Most fights ended when one fighter was injured or surrendered.
Theatre was invented in ancient Greece around 500 BC. Greek theatres were built outdoors on hillsides and were acoustically designed so perfectly that audiences of 14,000 people could hear every word.
Isaac Newton developed his theory of gravity around 1666 when he was just 23 years old, while sheltering at his family home to escape the Great Plague in Cambridge.
Romans counted years from the legendary founding of Rome in 753 BC. The year we call 1 AD was, to a Roman, the year 754 AUC — meaning 'in the year of the city founded'.
When Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on the Moon on 20 July 1969, an estimated 600 million people — about one-fifth of the world's population at the time — watched on television.
The pirate Blackbeard would weave slow-burning fuses into his beard and light them before battle, surrounding himself in smoke and sparks to terrify his enemies into surrendering without a fight.
Ancient Egyptians played a board game called Senet over 5,000 years ago — one of the earliest board games ever discovered. Sets have been found in tombs, suggesting it was also played in the afterlife.
In 1930, Mahatma Gandhi led the famous 388-kilometre Salt March to the sea in protest against British taxes on salt in India — a peaceful act of defiance that inspired millions and drew global attention to India's independence movement.