Buzz
Every significant historical event sparks a multitude of conspiracy theories. The ancient world is no exception, with numerous individuals convinced that iconic monuments and wonders were constructed by extraterrestrial beings rather than our forebears. Among the most captivating theories are those that delve into the lives of ancient figures who shaped the course of history.
10. Julius Caesar's Alleged Suicide
While it is widely accepted that Julius Caesar was murdered in the senate by those who feared his rise to dictatorship, some theorists argue that Caesar may have passively allowed his assassination. In a 2003 piece for The Sunday Times Magazine, historian Richard Girling proposed this idea, suggesting that Caesar’s struggles with temporal lobe epilepsy-induced seizures led to severe depression.
Girling elaborated on his reasoning in the article:
[Caesar] is the most illustrious figure on the planet, with the freedom to indulge in anything he desires, from a simple grape to an entire nation. Who would willingly end such a life? To understand this, we must consider Caesar’s age (56, considered elderly by the standards of his time) and his declining health. Historical records indicate that Caesar was severely afflicted by epilepsy.
If accurate, this theory could shed light on Caesar’s erratic behavior in his final days, as well as accounts of his fainting spells and digestive issues.
Some speculate that Caesar, aware of the rumors about an assassination plot, chose to embrace his fate. He had already named his grand-nephew Augustus as his heir in a revised will and disbanded his Praetorian Guard on the day of his murder, leaving himself unprotected.
By permitting the senators to end his life, Caesar could have evaded a prolonged, painful, and degrading decline, ensuring his legacy as a martyr and a victim of profound betrayal.
9. Caesarion as Jesus
We have previously explored the theory that Jesus Christ was a distorted or propagandized version of Julius Caesar’s life. Some argue it wasn’t Caesar who inspired Christ but his son Caesarion, born to Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen. Caesarion, born in 47 BC, was hailed as the king of kings and lord of lords. According to Plutarch, Cleopatra sent Caesarion to India via Ethiopia with a fortune, but he returned on his tutor’s advice and was executed by Augustus Caesar.
This theory suggests that the name “Jesus” derives from “son of Isis,” symbolizing Cleopatra’s divine connection to the Egyptian goddess. The three wise men were foreign envoys attending Caesarion’s coronation as pharaoh in 44 BC, and the star of Bethlehem was the renowned comet known as the sidus Iulium (“Julian Star”) or Caesaris astrum (“Star of Caesar”).
Caesarion was educated in the healing arts of the Egyptian mystery schools by Cleopatra. He escaped to India, the land of incarnate deities like Lord Krishna and Buddha, where he mastered Eastern mysticism. He was aided by Joseph of Arimathea, a Hebrew tin merchant, and his royal relative, Mary.
In India, Caesarion adopted the name St. Issa and later passed away in Kashmir. The story of Jesus Christ was crafted retrospectively, inspired by Caesarion’s spiritual legacy, as he embodied a lineage merging the royalty of Rome, Egypt, and Israel.
The theory also posits that Caesarion—and thus Jesus Christ—was a reincarnation of Alexander the Great, linked through the Macedonian lineage of Egypt’s Ptolemaic dynasty, founded by Soter (savior). Alexander’s spread of Hellenism across the Middle East paved the way for Christianity. Alexander died at 33, the same age traditionally associated with Jesus at his crucifixion. Ironically, the theory claims that Jesus’s suffering was karmic retribution for Alexander’s military campaigns.
8. Carthaginians in the Americas
The idea that Carthaginian Phoenician sailors reached America is centuries old. In 1784, French nobleman Count Antoine Court de Gobelin examined the inscriptions on Dighton Rock in Massachusetts and concluded they were likely made by Carthaginian explorers. Mark McMenamin, a geology professor, shares this view, citing Carthaginian maps depicting land across the Atlantic and potential Phoenician coins discovered in the US as evidence supporting the theory.
David Hatcher Childress, in his book Lost Cities of North & Central America, suggests that Carthaginians from Atlantic ports fled westward across the Atlantic to escape Roman retaliation after Carthage’s fall in the Third Punic War. They allegedly followed an ancient, secret trade route to Gulf of Mexico port cities, eventually becoming the forebears of the Toltecs, a warrior society that later dominated the Maya.
In 2014, PBS aired a program proposing that Peru’s Chachapoya people descended from Carthaginians and Celts who migrated to South America. This hypothesis is largely based on research by Hans Giffhorn, a retired cultural studies professor from the Universities of Gottingen and Hildesheim.
He argues that accounts by Diodorus and pseudo-Aristotle about finding a barren island beyond the pillars of Hercules confirm the Carthaginians had a covert path to Brazil. Supposedly, Carthaginian traders and Celtic soldiers used this route to evade the Romans and construct a stronghold. They sustained themselves by trading with indigenous tribes and eventually became the forebears of the Chachapoya people, who were noted for their fair hair.
7. The Battle of the Catalaunian Plains
In 451, the Huns encountered an unexpected coalition between the Roman Imperial army and the Goths, who had formed an independent kingdom in Aquitaine despite Roman objections. However, the looming threat of Attila compelled Roman emperor Valentinian III to join forces with the Goths, setting aside their disputes.
The two armies clashed at the Catalaunian Plains, battling intensely for dominance over a ridge. Led by General Aetius, the Romans managed to repel the Huns. However, Gothic king Theodoric fell in battle, and his son Thorismund narrowly avoided capture.
The fighting ceased at dusk. The Huns fortified their position with wagons, and Attila commanded a funeral pyre of burning saddles, declaring, “so that the ruler of so many nations should not fall into enemy hands.” The following day, the Romans and Goths merely blockaded the Hun camp. By the next day, both forces had withdrawn.
However, Fredegar, a seventh-century Burgundian historian, suspected foul play. He argued that Aetius orchestrated the battle, fearing a triumphant Gothic kingdom would pose as great a threat to Rome as the Huns. Fredegar claimed that after the battle, Aetius secretly entered Attila’s camp, warned him of approaching Gothic reinforcements, and offered to ensure their retreat in exchange for 10,000 solidi (Roman gold coins).
Aetius then allegedly approached Thorismund, promising to convince Attila to withdraw for another 10,000 solidi, while advising the young king to return to Toulouse and secure his throne. The battle’s inconclusive outcome meant neither the Huns nor the Goths achieved a decisive victory, both were temporarily neutralized, and Aetius pocketed a tidy sum of 20,000 solidi.
6. The Assassination of Alexander the Great
It has long been theorized that Alexander the Great and his mother, Olympia, were involved in the assassination of Alexander’s father, Philip II of Macedonia. This suspicion grew stronger as Philip’s killer was immediately executed, leaving no opportunity to reveal his motives or employers.
Alexander’s death in Babylon in 323 BC, following a night of heavy drinking, has also fueled conspiracy theories. Many historians argue that Alexander was poisoned with strychnine, orchestrated by Antipater, the Macedonian regent. Olympia had warned Alexander of Antipater’s ambitions, prompting Alexander to summon him to Babylon to strip him of power and potentially execute him.
Disgusted by Alexander’s claim of divinity, Antipater allegedly conspired to kill him with poison supplied by Aristotle, whose nephew Alexander had executed. Aristotle, knowledgeable about strychnine, knew its bitter taste could be concealed in undiluted wine. The poison was reportedly smuggled in the hoof of a mule ridden by Antipater’s son Cassander and administered by a discontented general weary of Alexander’s oppressive rule.
Ancient accounts add a dramatic twist to the conspiracy theory. Antipater allegedly sent his son to gather poisonous water from the mythical river Styx. The water was stored in a mule’s hoof, as it was said to corrode any material except animal horn. Modern researchers speculate that the river Styx, now called Mavroneri, contained limestone with the deadly bacterium calicheamicin, which could induce fatal fevers.
A joint study by New Zealand toxicologist Leo Schep and Scotland Yard detective John Grieve suggests that Alexander the Great died from powdered hellebore root, a medicinal substance lethal in high doses. If accurate, this implies Alexander’s death was not an assassination but a tragic medical error.
Historian Richard Stoneman, in an interview with History Today, finds the theory plausible. “Hellebore, despite its risks, was widely used by ancient physicians for its strong purgative properties,” he explained. “However, incorrect dosing was common, and Alexander’s doctors might have encountered an unfamiliar variant in Babylon—or misunderstood the Babylonian instructions.”
5. Plato and the New World Order
Regarded as history’s greatest philosopher and the pinnacle of Greek thought, Plato is also at the center of various conspiracy theories. Some claim he was inspired by Eastern traditions and laid the groundwork for Jewish mysticism, particularly kabbalah. While this seems benign, others take the theory further.
Allegedly, the Illuminati, Zionists, or both elevated Plato’s status in academic and political philosophy circles. They then aimed to use the utopian society outlined in The Republic as a blueprint for their envisioned New World Order.
They cite third-century BC Jewish philosopher Aristobulus, who stated, “It is clear that Plato borrowed from our laws and meticulously studied their components. [ . . . ] He was well-versed, like Pythagoras, who adopted many of our teachings and incorporated them into his own philosophy.”
Conspiracy theorists argue that Platonic philosophy underpins plans for a future global government, which would abolish marriage and family, enforce widespread eugenics, mandate education, and employ manipulative propaganda. This vision of a New World Order was advanced by thinkers like Kant, Hegel, Nietzsche, and neoconservative Leo Strauss. It also aligns with the ancient Jewish conspiracy theory, which traces back to proto-Zionists infiltrating the Babylonian Magi cult of astrology and magic.
4. Kong Lao’er
While Mao cautiously incorporated parts of Confucian philosophy into his early rhetoric and political ideology, he turned sharply against the ancient Confucian tradition during the Cultural Revolution.
China’s state media declared: “Although Confucius is dead, his corpse continues to emit its stench even today. Its poison is deep and its influence extensive.” This started a brief period in which the record of Confucius’s life was replaced with a narrative befitting Marxist historical theory, a legacy that the modern Chinese Communist Party now finds embarrassing.
A 1974 anti-Confucius poster referred to the ancient philosopher as Kong Lao’er, or Kong Number Two, a term that could imply a popular alcoholic beverage or male anatomy. The poster’s title roughly translates to “The Wicked Life of that Idiot Confucius.”
This theory posits that Confucius was the second son of a fading family of slave owners during China’s transition from a slaveholding to a feudal society. Allegedly, he aspired to revive the slaveholding elite’s power while pursuing the prestige of a government role. He earned his livelihood by managing state-owned fields, supervising livestock, and overseeing grain storage.
By the age of 30, he reportedly established a school to instruct the sons of aristocrats and officials on the significance of slavery. From a Maoist perspective, Confucian philosophy served as a tool to legitimize slavery and the ruling class’s oppression of the working class under the guise of divine will.
Confucius eventually became the director tasked with combating bandits, ruthlessly crushing revolutionaries advocating for slave liberation. However, he held the position for only a few months before being compelled to wander among China’s independent states, where feudal leaders disregarded his pro-slavery ideology. Former slaves also ridiculed and denounced him, labeling him a leech.
This account portrays Confucius as a failure who, on his deathbed, authored the Spring and Autumn Annals to manipulate historical records and secure his legacy. His death marked the end of the slave system, but his teachings were later adopted by reactionaries to further their own ambitions.
3. The Temple of King Solomon
The fabled Temple of King Solomon holds significant importance in Judaism, Christianity, and Freemasonry, making it a focal point in numerous conspiracy theories. Early Masonic authors claimed that their order originated during the construction of Solomon’s Temple. They believed King Solomon, King Hiram of Tyre, and the master craftsman Hiram Abiff were the first Grand Masters. These writers also asserted that Masonic orders, symbolic degrees, and initiation rites were initially established at the Temple and have been preserved with minimal alterations over the centuries.
Contemporary Masonic authors interpret this less literally but emphasize the spiritual significance of the symbolism. As stated in the Masonic Dictionary’s entry for “Temple of Solomon”: “Every Lodge symbolizes the Jewish Temple, with each presiding Master embodying the Jewish King, and every Freemason representing the Jewish craftsman.”
Anti-Masonic authors offer a different interpretation. They suggest that Solomon, Hiram, and Hiram Abiff were practitioners of the occult, each holding one syllable of a divine and potent Word of God, which they used in a ritual upon the Temple’s completion. The true Word is believed to have been lost after Abiff’s murder before the Temple was finished. Conspiracy theorist Amitakh Stanford claims two of the syllables are “KIR” and “WHAH,” but the third remains undiscovered. This is seen as fortunate, as he alleges the Word can invoke the forces of darkness linked to the Anunnaki Elite and the Demiurge.
Certain Christian conspiracy theorists argue that Jesus dismantled Solomon’s Temple and nullified the authority of the Levitical priests who resided there. Thus, the link between Freemasonry and the Temple is viewed as proof of occult deception and an outdated allegiance to the Old Testament’s First Covenant. They claim modern Masons aim to reconstruct the Temple (replacing the Islamic Dome of the Rock currently on the site) to serve as the Antichrist’s throne. Allegedly, the Freemasons and Illuminati are orchestrating Middle Eastern events to trigger a devastating war, paving the way for a new construction project and a satanic, enlightened Christ figure.
On the other hand, author Philip Gardiner contends that Solomon’s Temple never physically existed and was instead a metaphorical and religious symbol. He argues that the technological capability to construct such grand stone edifices did not exist during that era.
2. The Black Xia and Shang
Advocates of the Afrocentric historical theory assert that the earliest settlers of the Chinese mainland were black Africans. They are believed to have traveled from the Fertile African Crescent through Iran. These theorists claim that Huangdi, the legendary founder of Chinese civilization, was originally named Hu Nak Kunte, a name connected to the Kunte surname prevalent among Africa’s Manding people.
This theory references early anthropological studies that classified the original inhabitants of southern China as “Oceanic Negroids.” However, this outdated racial term was inaccurately based on physical resemblances between sub-Saharan Africans and dark-skinned Melanesians, rather than genetic evidence.
The Xia and Shang dynasties are specifically linked to African origins, while the Zhou dynasty is regarded as the first “Mongoloid” dynasty, established by the Hua people. Researcher Clyde Winters argues that early Chinese language and symbols were closely tied to Manding vocabulary and scripts. This linguistic comparison is somewhat flawed, as it contrasts modern Chinese with modern Manding, ignoring the fact that ancient Chinese was likely spoken differently, and Manding languages were heavily influenced by the medieval Mali kingdom.
Winters contends that both ancient Europe and China were dominated by black civilizations until the ancestors of modern Chinese and Europeans emerged and conquered them. He cites the Zhou dynasty’s reference to the Shang as limin (“black-headed people”) as evidence of their African heritage. In truth, this term was used by ancient Chinese elites to describe peasants, who often had darker skin from laboring outdoors.
1. Moses and Akhenaton: The Same Person?
The Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaton is renowned for his unsuccessful effort to establish a monotheistic solar religion. Some theorists propose that he and the prophet Moses were the same individual. Biblical references hint at Moses’ possible Egyptian origins, with his Hebrew name, Moshe, resembling the Egyptian terms mesu or mose, meaning “son.”
Ahmed Osman suggests that Akhenaton, born in a royal palace as the son of Amenhotep III, faced assassination threats from Amun priests due to his mother, Queen Tiye, not being the legitimate heir. He was secretly taken from the palace and raised in his Israelite grandfather’s household. Later, Akhenaton studied in Heliopolis and moved to Thebes, the capital, at the age of 16.
Akhenaton developed a romantic relationship with his half-sister Nefertiti, the rightful heir to the throne, and was appointed coregent by Amenhotep. He provoked the Amun priests by constructing temples dedicated to Aten, his newly introduced solar deity, and eventually erected a grand temple in Amarna.
These actions sparked a rebellion after Amenhotep’s death, as Akhenaton rejected other Egyptian gods, removing Amun’s name from temples and tombs and oppressing the clergy. Facing widespread opposition from the priesthood and populace, Akhenaton fled to the southern Sinai with his followers. He spent 25 years there, forming an alliance with the Shasu (Midianite) Bedouins.
Akhenaton later returned to Egypt to confront Pharaoh Ramses, but Ramses’ power was overwhelming. Planning a second exodus to Canaan to establish a base for future conquests, Akhenaton was intercepted by King Seti I’s army, Ramses’ son. He died on a mountain during this confrontation.
The tale of the monotheistic pharaoh’s failure and exile was allegedly reshaped into the story of Moses, laying the foundation for Judaism. Osman claims that many Old Testament figures were actually Egyptian and that the Ten Commandments were inspired by Spell 125 from the Egyptian Book of the Dead.
An alternative theory suggests that Akhenaton’s monotheism merely influenced Moses’ teachings and his prophecies about a single god.
