The introduction of significant figures, especially political and military figures, has been an essential part of history textbooks for a long time. This paper tries to discuss three current versions of elementary school social studies textbooks, seeking to analyze the features of texts on political and military figures in Taiwanese history, and further discover whether there are any controversial elements in the content of textbooks. The results show that the criteria for selection of political and military figures in history textbooks seem to be that they have engaged in failed antigovernment uprisings, that they have established new regimes, or that they have improved the country’s development and prosperity. The main themes of discourse relating to these figures were their important achievements and their contribution to the nation, typically presenting them as monodimensional characters without flaw. Furthermore, a number of controversial issues are evident in the textbooks, including an emphasis on nationalist ideology, an absence of discussion of people of other nationalities, encouraging loyalty to the nation rather than to society, and the establishment of dichotomies between good and evil. These features are not helpful in cultivating the ability to think, and simply encourage students to rote learn content.