William Tell

Despite being a national hero in Switzerland, there is no concrete historical evidence that William Tell ever existed.

The earliest written account of the story appears in a 15th-century chronicle called the "White Book of Sarnen", more than a century after the events are supposed to have taken place.

Furthermore, the act of the hero shooting an apple from his son's head stems from the saga of Toko, who was a servant of the Danish King Harald Bluetooth, who died in 985. Likewise, Toko's story was written down more than two hundred years later, in the epic tale "Gesta Danorum".

Many historians view William Tell as a purely legendary figure, though his story was deeply embedded in Swiss national identity by the time of its writing.

Crossbow bolts were stabilized by vanes made from parchment, wood or even metal. Feathers, as depicted in the film, were generally not used. Also, crossbows usually took 30 to 60 seconds to reload and were thus exclusively used as sniper weapons.

The crossbows shown made use of steel, while in fact the bows at the time were made from wood, or they were glued composite bows (animal horn and wood).