April 7, 2004

NO CULTURE LEFT TO DEFEND:

Britons Need Sharp Lesson in History - Survey (Louise Barnett, 4/05/04, PA News)

The British are a nation of history dunces with many believing Adolf Hitler never existed, a new survey has revealed.

A quarter of those interviewed were not sure if the Battle of Trafalgar was a real historic event, while one in seven did not know the Battle of Hastings really took place, the survey showed.

Researchers found that many of the 2,069 adults questioned could not tell fact from fiction. More than one in 20 thought the sci-fi classic War of the Worlds, in which Earth is invaded by Martians, was a historical event.

Some even believed the Battle of Helm’s Deep from the Lord of the Rings trilogy and the Battle of Endor from Return of the Jedi actually took place.

Almost half of those asked thought William Wallace never existed and more than half believed King Arthur was real.

A quarter thought Robin Hood was a genuine historical figure, while one in 20 thought Conan the Barbarian was real.

Some of the respondents confused popular television series with fact, with some believing Edmond Blackadder and Zena Warrior Princess had existed.


What do you expect from a nation of Jedi Knight worshippers?

Posted by Orrin Judd at April 7, 2004 1:23 PM
Comments

Amazing! Only 5% felt that Conan the Barbarian was real.

And to think he was elected Governor of California just a month ago. How soon people forget.

Posted by: h-man at April 7, 2004 1:54 PM

Waitaminute...

Edmund Blackadder isn't real? I'm crushed.

I don't take this survey very seriously because, well, I doubt its respondents did either. And does anyone else find it odd that they misspelled both of those fictional names at the end there?

And who says King Arthur never existed, or, for that matter, Robin Hood. They both *may* have, we don't know either way.

Posted by: Timothy at April 7, 2004 3:57 PM

Sounds more like California Public School Casualties than Brits.

Posted by: Ken at April 7, 2004 6:40 PM

They don't worship Jedi Knights. They worship the Force.

Important difference.

Posted by: M Ali Choudhury at April 7, 2004 7:07 PM

There's more complete coverage of the survey here, and it's worse than the report above:

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/story.jsp?story=508517

9% think Churchill was fictional? 33% think Mussolini was fictional? 57% think the Battle of the Bulge never happened!?

Two thoughts: maybe some people were screwing with the interviewer's head, and maybe some were recent immigrants who'd never heard of these people and events and just guessed.

Posted by: PapayaSF at April 7, 2004 11:03 PM

Well Battle of the Bulge does sound like more like the name of a diet than a military encounter.

Posted by: M Ali Choudhury at April 8, 2004 4:49 AM

I was initially rather depressed about this report, until it emerged that the whole survey was rigged to get silly answers...

eg. people plumping for the correct answer in a multiple choice, and then being pressed by a pushy interviewer."are you sure it wasn't...etc), or, equally commonly, people larking around.

But then there's always been lies, damn lies, and general public surveys. Commissioners always get the answers they want.

Posted by: Brit at April 8, 2004 4:52 AM
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