5
votes
0answers
149 views
How did the bureaucratic culture of Great Britain affect its response to the protests over the Stamp Act of 1765?
I'm writing a paper on the era of the Stamp Act (1765) concerning primarily the clash of legal cultures between what was then the Colonies of North America and the mother country, Great Britain.
You ...
5
votes
0answers
60 views
How did Pancrace Royer die?
Pancrace Royer was well known French harpsichordist who published a book in 1746. He died in 1755, but I can't find the cause of death (would probably be easier if I knew French). Does anyone know of ...
4
votes
0answers
74 views
Was there a state in history where influence of sport fans on politics was greater than in medieval Byzantine Empire?
It is known that sport fans got prominent role in Byzantine politics. Initially there were four teams: the greens, the reds, the whites and the blues. But later the reds and the whites were adsorbed ...
4
votes
0answers
40 views
What family or other connection bound Chiang Kaishek and Cai Yuanpei, two ideological opposites?
Politically, Nationalist China's Chiang Kaishek must be considered a "strange bedfellow with Cai Yuanpei. Chiang was a disciplined, narrow-minded conservative of the type one might expect from a ...
4
votes
0answers
50 views
Why were women excluded from the succession line in the Meiji constitution?
Article 2 of the Meiji consitution (full text here) says:
The Imperial Throne shall be succeeded to by Imperial male
descendants, according to the provisions of the Imperial House Law.
A ...
4
votes
0answers
85 views
How sophisticated was Paris in 1500 CE?
I'm helping my HS daughter find sources from which to form an opinion on the following question: "Which city was more sophisticated in 1500: Tenochtitlán or Paris?" for a research paper.
She needs at ...
4
votes
0answers
31 views
Pre-1950s views of West European Socialist parties on the welfare state
The eminent Robert Paxton writes in a recent article, somewhat in passing:
Continental European Marxists opposed piecemeal welfare measures as
likely to dilute worker militancy without changing ...
4
votes
0answers
54 views
What scholarly positions exist evaluating Thatcher's competence and the desirability of her government's policies?
I am aware of a variety of normative accounts of the desirability of Thatcher's politics in the social domain; and of the broad opinions regarding her competence (generally highly competent, poll tax ...
4
votes
0answers
44 views
How did Bedouins exercise tribal governance?
According to the Wikipedia article Bedouins travel together in groups of 1-2 family units however in the same article it mentions the presence of a Tribe who share common descent and are led by a ...
4
votes
0answers
27 views
How did ancient Nomadic communities conduct trade?
Given that nomads are always on the move, how would you conduct trade with one another? Or maybe a better question did they even conduct trade with one another?
Were there always cities/villages ...
4
votes
0answers
30 views
Where would I find Graham Bell's kite experiment data?
I'm looking for experimental data (lift, drag, pull, etc...) of Graham Bell's tetrahedral kite. As he was a scientist and inventor I thought that he might have written some quantitative data down on ...
4
votes
0answers
59 views
Quote from Troy, 1194 BCE?
The following is from Heinlein's Starship Troopers (1959):
Youse guys think this deleted outfit is a blankety-blank nursery. Well, it ain't! See?
—Remark attributed to a Hellenic corporal ...
4
votes
0answers
53 views
Plate armour worn by men-at-arms fighting on foot 1380-1415
Im interested in how much plate and what exactly plate elements have been worn by men-at-arms/soldiers at the turn of the 14th century in different parts of Europe.
Ive already established that a ...
4
votes
0answers
38 views
Were does Tifinagh come from?
Because all of my knowledge of Tifinagh came from the Wikipedia article, I was quite puzzled to read this.
For those of you that just don't bother checking, the author describes the different ...
4
votes
0answers
68 views
What are the historical reasons for religious and political negative attitudes towards homosexuality?
First of all, let me say that I know this is a very delicate issue. In no way should my question be seen as an attempt to endorse negative attitudes towards the LGTB community. I am seeking objective, ...
4
votes
0answers
58 views
What is the current consensus on the origins of the Brahmi script?
There seem to be two hypotheses about the origin of India's Brahmi script: It developed either from the Aramaic script or the Indus Valley script.
Is there any scholarly consensus regarding which of ...
4
votes
0answers
129 views
What weapons did Yue Fei used against the Jin Cavalry
One of my Chinese friends said that the Jin troops rode 5 horse at once and charged as a very heavy cathaprac.
Yue Fei used a special halberd and cut off the horses legs. The riders fell off their ...
3
votes
0answers
38 views
Epoch of an item with anchor symbol with the letters N and D
I found in an antique shop in France the item seen below and would like to know more about the age and origin and material based on the logo/mark.
The seller told me it is from the Napoleon III epoch ...
3
votes
0answers
20 views
Origin of land-lottery system
A report from 1894 describes the Musha'a land tenure system in the Arab villages of Palestine: the agricultural lands of the village are considered common property, and they are divided each year ...
3
votes
0answers
50 views
How many firearms were owned by civilian population between 1836 and 1912 in USA?
How many firearms in total were owned by civilian population between 1836 and 1912 in USA (cumulatively, not simultaneously)?
The timeframe is what I would consider "Old West" timeframe, but starting ...
3
votes
0answers
43 views
Patriotism and how it contributed to the recruitment process in WW1
I know that a lot of people joined the army (and the navy) in World War 1 due to patriotism – the will to fight for your country. This shows that a lot of people, even those who were unemployed or ...
3
votes
0answers
61 views
What was done to prevent electoral fraud in Texas following the controversial 1948 election?
In his second attempt at the Senate in 1948, Lyndon Johnson narrowly defeated Coke Stevenson in the Democratic primary when a box with 202 votes, largely in favour of LBJ, was found late in the ...
3
votes
0answers
47 views
Why did Carter force the Shah toward a more open political atmosphere in Iran?
Why did Jimmy Carter force Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi toward a more open political atmosphere in Iran? (This policy led to change the regime in Iran, and transformed it into an enemy of the United ...
3
votes
0answers
57 views
History of terrorist organizations designations/undesignations by Israel
In 1948, Israel passed the Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance, which allows it to officially designate organizations as terrorists in the Official Gazette.
What organizations have been designated this ...
3
votes
0answers
87 views
Harvard Architecture: How did Harvard Mark I separate data and instruction?
How did Harvard Mark I separate data and instruction?
I have read the article in Wikipedia but I didn't understand how data and instruction was separated using a punched paper tape. It said
...
3
votes
0answers
47 views
Why have wheat and rice been consumed in different forms?
Historically, wheat has been ground into bread, while rice has been boiled and consumed in "granular" form. Corn has been consumed both ways, "on the cob," and in corn bread.
Why is that?
3
votes
0answers
48 views
Proportion of population that works in agriculture (1000 - today)
I wonder what the proportion of people was that worked in agriculture (growing food and raising livestock, not processing food in a factory plant) throughout the past centuries in Europe and also, to ...
3
votes
0answers
38 views
Roman consuls under Roman rex
Wikipedia says that the consuls were initially the king's counsels judging from the name of the office. I wonder whether it is the fact and is there any reliable evidence for consuls under reges?
3
votes
0answers
41 views
Who invented and marketed the first “clip on” headphones?
Headphone style terminology seems dodgy at best, but I'm trying to determine what company first sold this style of headphone in the US:
I've seen them variously described as "on the ear," "clip on" ...
3
votes
0answers
25 views
What was the character of the Sylva Sylvarum that differentiated it from previous works?
The Sylva Sylvarum (1627) is recognized as the first 'treatise on natural history'. Some regard it as the most-complete work, for its day.
But as early as 70AD, other works existed, such as Pliny's ...
3
votes
0answers
45 views
How do ideologies tend to fare after the regime upholding them falls apart?
My question is very general, but I'm not sure how to phrase it differently.
I'm thinking about the end of Apartheid in South Africa, the end of fascist regimes in Europe and Asia, and the end of ...
3
votes
0answers
207 views
Latest recorded government sanctioned use of scaphism or cyphonism (torture)?
Scaphism, also known as "the boats", and cyphonism both seem to involve smearing an individual in honey and exposing them outdoors to insects for a prolonged period of time as a form of torture. ...
3
votes
0answers
58 views
Gylfaginning a redacted worldview of Norse beliefs?
Intro
Gylfaginning - a part of the Younger Edda, is one of the most important scriptural sources in defining the Norse worldview.
Background
Gylfe, a mythical king of Sweden, wondered how the ...
2
votes
0answers
46 views
+50
In England, how many Jews died during the persecutions of the crusades during 1190-1200?
As is well known Steven Runciman, a British historian known for his work on the Middle Ages, definitively clarified what the Holy War had been: "The Holy War itself was nothing more than a long act of ...
2
votes
0answers
38 views
Who was Charles Kingston O'Mahony?
I've read his book The Viceroys of Ireland and am trying to find out more about him. The book was published in 1912 and I can't find any more information about him.
I was able to dig up references to ...
2
votes
0answers
93 views
Why did Emperor Nero kill his mother and others?
Why did Nero kill his own mother? Was it true that she was dangerous to the point where it was "her life or his?" Did he have "good" reasons (in the sense of being understandable or acceptable at the ...
2
votes
0answers
27 views
Cost of producing posters in world war 1
I know that a lot of posters were printed out during World War 1, but am confused by the cost for the government to produce all these, a google search normally yields some results - but this time it ...
2
votes
0answers
23 views
1972 textbook by Charles University professor on Thirty Years War
Just yesterday I came across a textbook citation on the Thirty Years War.
Here is what I (think I can) remember about the book in question: the author was professor at Charles University in Prague, ...
2
votes
0answers
42 views
Did Marco Polo really play Weiqi (Go)?
Somebody told me that until the twentieth century Marco Polo was the strongest westerner ever to play go (weiqi). Is this true? I can't find any reference to it. Googling Marco Polo and go doesn't ...
2
votes
0answers
54 views
Kazakhstan and anti-capitalism in the 1990s
What drove anti-capitalist sentiments from Kazakh intellectuals and economists in the 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union?
It is my understanding that Kazakhstan was a low level ...
2
votes
0answers
39 views
What were the relative contributions of oral & literary education in 5th century BCE Athens?
I've read an article about Plato's Academy and how knowledge was spread in Athens in the middle of 5th century BCE. It was thought that knowledge was spread through speaking (orally). But some ...
2
votes
0answers
40 views
How has enforcement of the USA-Mexico border changed over time?
Illegal immigration into the United States across the USA-Mexico border has been a big hot-button issue in recent years.
As many people here may already know, a person from Mexico wishing to travel ...
2
votes
0answers
45 views
How did Churchill and Stalin intend to translate the percentages in the “Percentages agreement”?
In "percentages agreement", Stalin and Churchill allegedly divided Southeastern Europe to sphere of influences of the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union. According to Churchill's account quoted by ...
2
votes
0answers
59 views
Did the Indo-Greeks play a crucial role in promoting Buddhism?
Did Buddhism become a widespread religion primarily due to the political support of the Indo-Greek rulers of India who favored it in opposition to Jainism?
2
votes
0answers
28 views
Are “I, II, III, …” versions of archaeological versioning of layers unique to Troy?
When reading about archaeological research of Troy, one can see that archeologist distinguish between different discrete numbered layers (Troy I => Troy IX).
Is that a standard approach in archeology ...
2
votes
0answers
42 views
Riveted mail - flat or round rings? Die cut rings mixed with riveted ones?
I'm interested in the chainmail worn in the 14th and 15th century. As far as I know, almost all chainmail found in Europe has been riveted and woven 4 in 1. But I hear that there were chainmails made ...
2
votes
0answers
74 views
Homosexuality in ancient Sparta
I have been told that this was ilegal under the law that
No man shall submit to another
However, this does not sound to me like it is banning homosexuals, perhaps banning one from being a ...
2
votes
0answers
42 views
Egyptian Ushabti and their uniquness
I know what a shabti is, but what is the uniqueness in shabti that makes it valuable. I tried searching shabti, but all I got is: "They are small man like clay figures who come to life to serve their ...
2
votes
0answers
87 views
Ted Nugent and draft dodging
I've asked whether this is in scope: Are draft-dodgers in scope?. I'm not sure,but I'll crack on anyway.
Too what extent did Ted Nugent dodge the draft for Vietnam. He certainly did receive ...
2
votes
0answers
56 views
Which recent revolutions resulted in a major redistribution of wealth from the rich to the poor?
What are some of the recent examples of a violent large-scale redistribution of wealth?
