15
votes
2answers
212 views
What would a Norseman in the early 11th century have worn as daily clothing?
Most of the Norse clothing we know about seems to come from burials. However, in many cultures, bodies dressed for burial are wearing either "good" clothes, or special clothes for the dead. Is there ...
5
votes
2answers
86 views
Did people have better nutrition before agriculture?
A lot of proponents of new diets, e.g. Paleo, Primal, Atkins argue that grains have made people unhealthier and life expectancy was much better before the transition to agriculture.
Some research ...
5
votes
2answers
127 views
Were servants killed and entombed in Egyptian pyramids?
I remember reading somewhere that along with the earthly possessions of the pharaoh, their favorite servants were also killed and entombed inside the pyramids.
Is this true?
9
votes
1answer
116 views
Completeness of Old Parish Registers in the 1700s
In England, local churches were required to keep registers of all baptisms, marriages and burials. Are there any studies that show how complete these records generally were, in particular in relation ...
8
votes
1answer
80 views
Why did the Arabs start the 1973 War during Ramadan, and did it affect their performance?
The Arab-Israeli War in 1973, besides the Jewish Holiday, also took place during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, during which practicing Muslims observe mandatory daytime fasting. Did this affect ...
8
votes
1answer
170 views
Was Churchill a poor HR manager?
The key problem in the delegation of authority is to match the delegatee's character and experience with the tasks appointed to him/her. I got an impression that Churchill's record in this field is ...
7
votes
1answer
95 views
How were small swords worn in the 18th century?
Quick summary:
How was the small sword (or dress sword) fastened to the body?
What are the different ways of wearing it?
Looking at many drawings from this period, a good bunch of them depicts men ...
7
votes
1answer
52 views
Which Japanese military officers helped Ho Chi Minh?
According to Wikipedia, in 1946 during negotiations between the French and Ho Chi Minh,
One demand by the French was the return to French custody of a number of Japanese military officers (who had ...
7
votes
1answer
328 views
What factors contributed to the rise of national monarchies in the high middle ages?
I'd be the first to admit that I don't exactly know much about this topic and the initial research I've done on it has simply led to greater confusion. My current understanding (which I'm pretty sure ...
6
votes
1answer
62 views
where can I find digitised versions of Japanese war documents in original Japanese?
I was wondering where can I find digitised versions of Japanese war documents in original Japanese?
I can read Japanese but I cannot seem to find any primary sources that relate to the Japanese army ...
5
votes
1answer
157 views
Did the Safavid rulers require all subjects to convert to Shi'a Islam?
On one hand I've read that Shi'a Islam was the only religion allowed in the Safavid empire. On the other hand, the empire contained parts of Armenia and Georgia, but Armenians and Georgians are ...
3
votes
1answer
62 views
What uniform did the Supreme State Arbiter of the USSR wear?
What uniform did the Supreme State Arbiter (главный государственный арбитр) of the USSR wear?
I think I saw it on a site before but I cannot find it now.
3
votes
1answer
65 views
Did New Imperialism differ in nature from earlier Imperialism?
In Wikipedia, there is an article about New Imperialism, which refers to the territorial or colonial expansion during 19th-20th century. The article also says that the qualifier "New" is to contrast ...
3
votes
1answer
49 views
Are there non-russian sources related to how Rurikid Dynasty became rulers of Russia?
Most of the information - at least as taught in Russia - related to how Rurik Dynasty became rulers of Rus is based on "Повѣсть времяньныхъ лѣтъ" ("Tale of Bygone Years", aka "Primary Chronicle").
Is ...
2
votes
1answer
128 views
Is there a known society without cult of love?
Was there ever a society in which sex was viewed either as a functional necessity, duty before the gods or pleasure without any admiration of love?
-1
votes
1answer
176 views
Was Hitler's genocide of the Jews “different” from other mass killings?
Hitler allegedly killed six million Jews during the "Holocaust." Stalin allegedly killed millions of Ukrainians during the 1933 "Harvest of Sorrow" (Conquest). Mao allegedly killed tens of millions of ...
2
votes
0answers
113 views
Since the 20th century, how many diplomats from all countries have been killed during peace time?
Given the recent death of Ambassador Stevens I was curious how many diplomats have been killed when their country was not involved in a major war, a la, WW1, WW2, the Korean War, and Vietnam? I know ...
2
votes
0answers
77 views
Is there any speech dialogue on record on Palestine independence day given by the Great Britain Prime minister?
Is there any speech dialogue on record on Palestine independence day on 1988 given by the Great Britain Prime minister?
I know that Great Britain was once a proud supporter of Palestine.
2
votes
0answers
51 views
How is Bad-Tibira written in Sumerian?
Bad-Tibira is one of the oldest recorded cities in the world. The Sumerians believed it was the second city to exercise kingship (after the more famous Eridu). I can't find the Sumerian spelling of ...
2
votes
0answers
40 views
How accurate is the Historical evidence use in the book Non-Zero?
Someone recommended the book Non Zero. It looks very interesting but one well written negative review points out that while the author's previous book (The Moral Animal) was well researched and ...
2
votes
0answers
33 views
Is there any research on specific details of ancient/medieval blacksmithing related to microelements added via plants?
I have seen the following claim a couple of times before (all in Russian popular science type sources). However, I was never able to find historical OR scientific/technology research directly backing ...
1
vote
0answers
14 views
The manuscript Summa Logicae (William of Ockham)
The Summa Logicae (Latin, in English it's the Sum of Logic) is a textbook on logic by William of Ockham (1323). There are articles about the Summa Logicae in Wikipedia and in Logicmuseum.
It was ...
1
vote
0answers
36 views
Do Navy Seals die in training?
I didn't know where to ask this but i've heard that sometimes Navy Seals die during traing? Is this true? The same goes fro Green Berets.
1
vote
0answers
50 views
Was Horst Tappert a member of the SS?
According to Spiegel Online sociologist Jörg Becker uncovered a document showing Tappert - 1, 2 - had been a member of the SS, whereas Jan Erik Schulte, an expert on the history of the SS, says ...
1
vote
0answers
55 views
Did General Morillo unwittingly allude to a cause of Spain's decline in 1816?
In ordering the execution of a famous scientist, Francisco de Caldas, during the war for South American independence, Spain's General Pablo Morillo was quoted as saying "Spain does not need wise men" ...
1
vote
0answers
53 views
How could ancient people determine the winter solstice was occurring?
How could astronomers in the ancient world determine that the winter solstice was occurring? According to whoever edited the Wikipedia article on the winter solstice, it's too hard for modern ...
1
vote
0answers
27 views
Did most colleges in the United have semesters that began in September and ended in January during the 1890s?
I have been researching college calendars from the 1890s and have found that their semesters are very different from most "modern" semesters in the United States. Here are two examples: ...
1
vote
0answers
21 views
Skis for water were tried in the German troops as sort of ski-yaks, is there more information?
During WW2 the German Army experimented with a sort of floating set of skis for water. In essence a kayak for each foot and a pole with a paddle on either end for balance and propulsion. (I have tried ...
1
vote
0answers
25 views
When was the electric iron introduced to the state of Georgia?
I am aware that the electric iron was invented in 1882 by Henry W. Seely, but I would like to find out when rich and middle-class Georgians started using it.
1
vote
0answers
43 views
Did the USSR push Syria into war with Israel in 1982?
Did the USSR push Syria into war with Israel in 1982? Did they push other Arab countries into war with Israel ever?
Was there ever instance when the USSR succeeded to push a country with reluctant ...
1
vote
0answers
24 views
Was Ley ever married to Rudolf Hess's sister?
A book I am reading claims that Robert Ley was married to a Margarita Hess, Rudolf's sister. But I am finding it surprisingly hard to find an independent confirmation of this fact - or even to find ...
1
vote
0answers
39 views
When and by whom was the Tirupati Tirumala temple in India built?
India's second wealthiest temple, Tirupati Tirumala Venkateswara Temple does not seem to have a clear history about its origin. The Wikipedia entry does not provide proper details on who exactly built ...
1
vote
0answers
72 views
What was the death toll of non-Americans in the Vietnam War?
How many Vietnamese and Cambodians were killed in the Vietnam war? How many civilians, and how many soldiers? What are the best sources on this question?
1
vote
0answers
28 views
What was the main diet of pre-agricultural Asians?
The modern Asian diet is based mostly around rice. Was rice a major part of the paleolithic Asian diet? Did they know how to process and eat rice before agriculture?
Aside from meats, what were other ...
1
vote
0answers
74 views
It wasn't thought that Jesus was Jewish until the Renaissance?
Anthony Grafton claims that "the Christian discovery of a Jewish Jesus began not in the 19th century but in the Renaissance"; elsewhere, "Sixteenth and seventeenth-century scholars came to see, as ...
1
vote
0answers
27 views
What were the major objections that Augustine had with Jerome's translation of the Septuagint?
I was having a discussion with someone who insisted that one of the major reasons I thought that Augustine objected to Jerome's translation of the Septuagint was completely not true. He argued that ...
1
vote
0answers
31 views
Were there rules about the number of retainers for the Achaemenid Empire?
In Rome, magistrates (and later the emperors too) each had a fixed number of lictors, according to the rank of the office they held. Is a similar regulation of the number of retainers according to ...
1
vote
0answers
27 views
What was Vyshinsky's position about extrajudical repressions in the USSR?
Vyshinsky was the prosecutor-general of the USSR who is mosly known for his participation in the Moscow show trials of the 1930s.
But what was his position regarding the extrajudical repressions?
1
vote
0answers
91 views
What is so special about the location of Mexico City?
Since 1325, the area we know today as Mexico City has held some sort of cultural or historical bond. The bond is so strong that, no matter what, no matter how bad a shape the country gets, they ...
1
vote
0answers
72 views
Did the The Fiend/Monster with 21 Faces produce mass hysteria in Japan?
According to the Wikipedia entry of the Monster with 21 Faces (also named as "Fiend" in some sources), it started just after the very publicized Glico Morinaga case and it
... captured the ...
1
vote
0answers
70 views
What involvement did Jonathan Edwards have with the Conspiracy of 1741?
According to this article:
Rev. Jonathan Edwards delivered the hellfire and brimstone "spider" sermon, "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" in Enfield, Connecticut on July 8, 1741. This topical ...
1
vote
0answers
20 views
Were there more robberies of “commercial” or “personal” nature in 19th century in USA?
Is there any statistics showing which trips on highways were statistically safer from being robbed in 19th century USA?
the "commercial" ones (e.g. banks or government moving money) which offered ...
1
vote
0answers
38 views
Was there a race to patent the use of Freon as a home refrigerator coolant?
Thomas Midgely, Jr.'s hands were in two of the most detrimental scientific breakthroughs of the 20th century: the proliferation of leaded gasoline and the use of Freon (a chlorofluorocarbon) as a ...
0
votes
0answers
4 views
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 ...
0
votes
0answers
8 views
How did India join the Soviet block during the cold war?
How did India end up joining the Soviet pole during the Cold Wars and Pakistan joined US pole?
0
votes
0answers
8 views
How successful was the western and Russian policy not to export arms to Pakistan over the years?
Western countries and Russia blocked arms sales to Pakistan.
Are they successful enough to block arms supply to Pakistan?
Who are the main partners of Pakistan relating to weapons supply?
-1
votes
0answers
53 views
Was Ayatollah Khamenei a KGB spy before the 1979 revolution?
(1) Was Ayatollah Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, a graduate of the Patrice Lumumba People’s Friendship University in Moscow?
(2) If the answer to (1) is 'yes', then is there evidence he had ...
-1
votes
0answers
36 views
Have there been historical precedents for Ecuador's defaulting on Odious Debt?
Rafael Correa, president of Ecuador in 2008 defaulted on Odious debt in 2008. Have there been precedents for this before - specifically for the global south; and within the Global North? Has the USA ...
-3
votes
0answers
47 views
When did the Arabs become a religious group?
Immediately after the Mohamed death the Arab conquests began and they proceeded with extraordinary rapidity.
But in "History of Western Philosophy" Bertrand Russell wrote
"The Arab Empire was ...
