For sure there was. Too many followers after his death for there not to be.
The problem is from there, who was he really?
Many of the things like the raising from the dead, virgin birth were attributed to others namely the Roman God Mithra. Also there were prophecies prior to his birth that a "Messiah" was coming and he would do certain things.
The real problem in getting to the truth is what we have to go on is so little. The Roman Catholic church ran all religion, learning and teaching from 300 AD until very recently, in historical terms. They decided what went into the bible, what people read and taught. To stray from
their interpretation often could result in this.
Which went on until the 17th Century.
The last burning by the Catholic Church in Latin America was of Mariana de Castro, Lima, 1732
One of the problems was the burning of documents saying anything the Roman Catholics didn't like and didn't fit their warped views. However Manuscripts like the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Gnostic gospels and writings are coming to light showing more of the truth.
I watch too much TV and on my way back to watch more.