11 Seriously Bizarre Conspiracy Theories

Okay, what if we told you that it's not 2015 and that the year is actually 1718?

Don't worry, you haven't taken a knock to the head and you aren't about the snap out of it to discover that George I is on the throne and there isn't cure for polio. 

No, this is due to something called the Phantom Time Hypothesis.

According to this theory, the period between 614 ad and 911AD simply didn't happen. The history buffs amongst you will have noted that it covers pretty much the whole of the "Dark Ages" (in Britain at least), and includes the lifespan of Charlemagne.

The general idea behind the theory is that the events that supposedly occurred in that 303-year period were either misattributed or even fabricated. 

Why? Well some people suggest that the Holy Roman Emperor Otto III fudged the dates so that he would be on the throne during the significant 1000 AD millennium, so he had a team of chroniclers "make up" 300 years of history to give his reign a boost.

Believers in the conspiracy also point to the limited amount of solid dating evidence found in Europe for that period, including just a few vague writings, as evidence that it was simply invented.

Unfortunately, what the conspiracists have failed to take into account that fact that the world does not simply consist of Western Europe. 

During the supposed historical "black spot", Far East Asia and the Middle East were flourishing, merrily recording astronomical movements, allowing us to objectively date their achievements and events against the movements of the planets and stars. Bad luck guys.