What are some historical events that turned out completely different than expected?

The most obvious example is probably the death of Suleiman the Magnificent in 1566. The Sultan, who’s considered both one of the greatest rulers of the Ottoman Empire and one of its greatest conquerors, died during the Siege of Szigetvár, a battle in modern day Hungary. <br><br>The news of his death was kept secret for 48 days until finally allowing the news to spread. Despite the fact that keeping this news secret meant the Ottomans would have to pretend that Suleiman was still alive, it worked and the Ottomans wouldn’t announce his death until his son had arrived in Constantinople to take the throne.<br><br>A much more recent example is the death of Mao Zedong, who died on the 9th of September, 1976. The news of Mao’s death wasn’t made public for a few days, again to allow for proper succession of power. <br><br>Finally, and this isn’t really relevant but I find it interesting, on the 27th of August, 1857, a meteorite landed in what is now modern day India. The meteorite, named after the town it landed in, was used by Indian rebels as a sign that their rebellion would be successful.