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Did 300 years of history never happen at all?

Did 300 years of history never happen at all?

Proponents of the Phantom Time Hypothesis say the 'Dark Ages' after the fall of the western Roman empire never happened at all

A weathered scrapbook page displays an old black-and-white illustration of a crowned pope holding a staff, printed over faded calendar or newspaper text

Rob Attar

Published: September 1, 2026 at 11:48 AM

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The period after the fall of the western Roman empire is often known as the ‘Dark Ages’, due to an apparent shortage of historical evidence. Why might this be? Well, according to proponents of the Phantom Time Hypothesis, the explanation is simple: these centuries never happened at all.

In this episode of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Dr Philipp Nothaft from the University of Oxford joins Rob Attar to discuss the idea that these centuries were invented by powerful people for their own purposes – and that, ever since, we've all been inadvertently colluding in their fictional calendar.

Authors

Rob AttarHead of content and editor of HistoryExtra magazine

Rob Attar is head of content and editor of HistoryExtra magazine