25 of the Most Disturbing History Facts People Know

History is centered around humans. As such, it’s full of horrible, horrible things. Since our brains evolved enough to form coherent thought, we’ve been arguing over whose thoughts are the best, and it usually ends with somebody’s head bashed in with a rock. Learning about human history feels less like a college lecture and more like an autopsy.

But even for a species that’s extraordinarily cruel to itself, some people and empires really pushed the envelope. They found ways to mess up other humans that even most private military contractors would consider a little gauche. Unluckily, Redditors with history knowledge have shared some of the worst things humans have ever done to each other, and it’s hard to express how not good these things are.