5 Fake Documents That Changed History — For A While

Famous forged papers from Hitler, Shakespeare to Jack the Ripper.

Source: Image by author Made From Public Domain Images

If you think that forgery is relatively a new concept, then it’s certainly not the case. Such practice is older than you think.

History is a big bowl containing mixed ingredients like literary forgery, hoaxes, and fake documents. Many of the papers were considered authentic until they were later proven to be fake.

Paper documents existed for a long time such that they governed every aspect of society, from communication to literature and governance.

Since those times, several people willingly created duplicated versions of famous documents and even completely altered the paper to reap personal rewards.

Here are some dramatic stories about historical forgeries with their climaxes — the time when the fraud was eventually exposed:

1. The Protocols of the Elders of Zion

Source: Sergei Nilus / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

Every forgery carried a solid motive — and it was not always for financial gains. People have forged the documents for committing some of the…