Phantom Time Hypothesis
The\xa0phantom time hypothesis\xa0is a historical\xa0conspiracy theory\xa0asserted by Heribert Illig. First published in 1991, it hypothesizes a conspiracy by the\xa0Holy Roman Emperor\xa0Otto III,\xa0Pope Sylvester II, and possibly the\xa0Byzantine Emperor\xa0Constantine VII, to fabricate the\xa0Anno Domini\xa0dating system retroactively, in order to place them at the special year of AD 1000, and to rewrite history[1]\xa0to legitimize Otto's claim to the\xa0Holy Roman Empire. Illig believed that this was achieved through the alteration, misrepresentation and forgery of documentary and physical evidence.[2]\xa0According to this scenario, the entire\xa0Carolingian period, including the figure of\xa0Charlemagne, is a fabrication, with a "phantom time" of 297 years (AD 614\u2013911) added to the\xa0Early Middle Ages.