Fake news in the Middle Ages: 10 legends that stand the test of time

Before dark web conspiracy theories, people had the tavern. Information in the Middle Ages traveled slowly, mutating with every retelling. What we now call urban legends back then were terrifying theological myths that thousands accepted as facts. Discover ten of the most famous medieval legends that shaped the worldview of Europe for centuries.

In the mid-13th century, there was a rumor that a woman had successfully disguised herself as a man, climbed the ranks of the Catholic Church, and reigned as Pope for several years in the 9th century.

According to the legend, John Anglicus was in fact an exceptionally brilliant English woman who mastered theology. Her secret was supposedly uncovered during a papal procession through Rome, when she went into sudden labor and gave birth right in the middle of the street. While modern historians believe the story is just satire or folklore, it was widely accepted as historical truth during the late Middle Ages.

The urban legend of a noble outlaw who outsmarted the corrupt sheriff of Nottingham and stole from the rich to give to the poor began circulating in oral ballads around the 14th century.

Modern audiences know him as a cheerful hero in green tights, but early medieval versions of Robin were much grittier, violent, and anti-clerical. Historians have spent centuries looking through court records trying to find a definitive Robin Hood. Most conclude he was a complex figure, the medieval manifestation of rebellion against an unfair system.

Originating in the late 12th century through the French romances of Chrétien de Troyes, the Grail was described as the sacred chalice used by Jesus Christ at the Last Supper, and later used to collect his blood during the Crucifixion.

The legend claimed that this vessel possessed miraculous healing powers, granted eternal youth, and provided infinite food. It became an obsession across Western Europe. Knights and nobles genuinely believed the Grail was hidden somewhere in a secluded castle, waiting for a perfectly pure warrior to find it.

Did a heroic king once rule Britain from a golden castle called Camelot, surrounded by a Round Table of knights? The legend of Arthur was popularized in the 1130s by Geoffrey of Monmouth’s History of the Kings of Britain, a mixture of vague fragments of real 5th-century Celtic warlords and doses of pure fiction.

Arthur became the gold standard for medieval chivalry. The urban legend expanded to include his magical sword Excalibur, the wizard Merlin, and the tragic betrayal by his queen, Guinevere. The myth was so powerful that English monarchs, including Edward I, used Arthurian imagery to legitimize their rule, even claiming to have discovered Arthur’s tomb at Glastonbury Abbey in 1191.

The idea of a magical spring capable of reversing aging and curing all sickness is an ancient one, but it became a dominant urban legend during the Middle Ages. The myth was blown up by the Alexander Romance, a fictionalized collection of stories about Alexander the Great that circulated in Europe at the time.

According to these tales, Alexander and his armies searched for the "Water of Life" on the outer edges of the known world. Medieval travelers and mapmakers speculated that this fountain existed somewhere in India or the mythical lands of the East. This legend laid the groundwork that, centuries later, would drive Spanish explorers like Juan Ponce de León to hunt for it in the Americas.

Medieval life was deeply preoccupied with sin, demonic temptation, and the supernatural. When people experienced terrifying nightmares or sleep paralysis, they didn’t have modern psychology to explain it. Instead, they blamed the incubus and succubus.

An incubus was a male demon believed to prey upon sleeping women, while a succubus was a female demon that seduced men. These entities weren’t just folklore, they appeared in serious medieval theological texts. Church scholars even argued about how these demons operated, warning that they could steal human material to create monstrous offspring.

Following the Assyrian conquest of the Kingdom of Israel in the 8th century BCE, ten of the twelve Jewish tribes vanished from the biblical narrative. In the Middle Ages, this historical mystery became a geopolitical urban legend.

European Christians and Jews alike shared the thought that the Ten Lost Tribes were living out past the edges of the mapped world. They were said to be trapped behind the mythical Sambation River, a river made of stones and sand that only stopped flowing on the Sabbath. A major component of this legend was the fear or hope that these millions of hidden warriors would one day cross the river.

The Wandering Jew is one of the most tragic urban legends of the time, first appearing in written European chronicles around the 13th century. The story goes that a Jewish shoemaker or guardsman named Cartaphilus (or Ahasuerus in later versions) taunted Jesus as he carried his cross to Calvary, telling him to hurry up. Jesus supposedly replied: "I am going, but you will wait until I return."

As a result, the man was cursed with immortality and doomed to walk the earth without rest until the Second Coming of Christ. Throughout the Middle Ages, people across Europe claimed to have met this sorrowful traveler, describing him as a knowledgeable man who spoke every language.

In the year 1212, a wave of religious hysteria swept through France and Germany. The resulting story became one of the most heartbreaking urban legends of the era: the Children’s Crusade. The popular tale stated that thousands of unarmed children, inspired by visions, marched toward the Mediterranean Sea, believing the waters would part for them so they could peacefully reclaim Jerusalem. When the sea failed to part, corrupt merchants supposedly loaded them onto ships and sold them into slavery in North Africa.

Beginning in the mid-12th century, rumors spread of Prester John, a wealthy Christian king who ruled a utopian empire somewhere in the heart of Asia or Africa.

The legend reached a peak when a forged letter, supposedly written by Prester John himself, circulated among European monarchs. The letter described a kingdom with rivers filled with gold, the Fountain of Youth, and a mirror through which the king could see his entire empire. During the Crusades, European armies hoped that Prester John’s legions would march from the East to save them.

In the shadows

You’ve been in the dark about these idioms. We’re here to change that!

Image: Jonatan Pie

The idea of "darkness" is used to describe mystery, risk, or even a little mischief. Have you ever noticed how many idioms there are for darkness? And what about where these sayings come from, or why have they stuck around for centuries? Today, we’ll take a tour through some of the darkest idioms tied to this concept, uncovering their roots and what they still mean in everyday life.

Image: Lindsey Bidwell

The phrase "dark horse" first appeared as slang in horse racing, where an unknown competitor could surprise the crowd by winning. Benjamin Disraeli, a British politician and novelist, popularized it in the 1830s. Today, we use it for people who come out of nowhere to impress, whether in politics, sports, or even at a family game night. Are you usually the dark horse?

Image: Paul Garaizar

This saying goes back to the days when darkness symbolized ignorance. To "keep someone in the dark" meant to deprive them of light and knowledge. It has roots in 17th-century English writing, and it stuck because the image is so simple: if you’re kept from the light, you can’t see the whole picture.

Image: Thomas Chan

The idea of something "casting a shadow" goes all the way back to ancient poetry, where shadows represented gloom, doubt, or even bad omens. Shakespeare often used shadow imagery to suggest suspicion or hidden truths. Today, we use this expression to refer to that negative impact, the shadow, that something else may have.

Image: Sasha Freemind

This expression comes from a French board game called "lourche," popular in the 1500s. To be "left in the lurch" meant being stuck in a hopeless position in the game. English speakers borrowed the phrase, and it evolved to describe abandoning someone when they most needed help. Quite gloomy, don’t you think?

Image: Andrew Hughes

For centuries, people believed one half of the moon was always hidden from view. That unseen hemisphere became a perfect metaphor for secrets or unknown territory. Even after space exploration revealed more about the moon, the phrase stuck around as a poetic way to describe the mysterious side of things.

Image: Andrew Neel

This one has an old-fashioned ring to it. In earlier times, saying you didn’t want someone to "darken your door" meant you didn’t even want them standing at your doorway and blocking the light. But today, it means visiting someone, even if that’s unexpected or undesirable for the homeowner. Remember, text before you darken someone’s door!

Image: Yᴏꜱʜ ʜ. Qᴜɪɴᴢᴇʟ

This phrase plays on the simple contrast between safety and danger. The sunny, well-lit side of the street feels safer, while the darker side symbolizes risk and shady dealings. It has been used both literally and metaphorically since the 1800s to refer to the less desirable path.

Image: Sven Mieke

The idea of a "black mark" dates back to the 1600s, when a literal black mark might be written beside someone’s name to show disgrace. Over time, it grew into a figure of speech for any stain on reputation. Even now, one mistake can be called a "black mark" against an otherwise good record. This one you might want to get away from, right?

Image: Jonathan Greenaway

Black sheep are beautiful, but back in farming days, black wool couldn’t be dyed like white wool, making them less valuable to farmers. By the 18th century, the term had wandered into family life to describe the odd member who didn’t fit expectations. Today, being the "black sheep" often carries a mix of humor and pride.

Image: NORTHFOLK

Accountants in the past literally used black ink to record profits and red ink to record losses. To be "in the black" meant your books looked good. Red, on the other hand, meant you were in debt. The phrase has been around since the early 20th century and is still shorthand for financial health, especially for businesses.