0
votes
3answers
134 views
What was the practical reason for East Germany to reunify with West Germany?
Why did the East German government decide that they should join the West? Was it their economical decline, political turmoil or anything else?
5
votes
1answer
125 views
Did the Carthaginians have the option of sending Hannibal to Sicily?
Sicily was a major focus of the First and Second Punic Wars. The first Punic war ended with Carthage handing over major grain-growing areas on the island, and the port of Lilybaem to Rome as spoils of ...
4
votes
1answer
48 views
Was Pawiak prison in Warsaw originally for political or general prisoners?
I was reading about Pawiak prison in Warsaw and the general consensus appears to be that it was built between 1829 and 1835 during a time of Russian occupation. It seems clear that after the January ...
7
votes
2answers
196 views
Did the Gallic army besieged in Alesia conduct itself well when expecting relief?
During a Gallic revolution against Rome, a Gallic army of some 80,000 men took shelter in the fortress town of Alesia, where they were besieged by some 50,000 Romans under Julius Caesar. (His army may ...
8
votes
2answers
149 views
How and why did Charles XII Get to Poltava?
The decisive battle of the Great Northern War between Sweden and Russia was the battle of Poltava. That's located deep in the Ukraine, southeast of Kiev, between Cherkassy and Kharkov.
That seems ...
2
votes
1answer
97 views
How many illegal aliens were deported under “Operation Wetback”?
There are all kinds of numbers surrounding Operation Wetback. My understanding is the vast majority left voluntarily. Is there any official number on the amount of illegal aliens that were actually ...
-2
votes
1answer
103 views
Why did the British control Hong Kong over 99 years?
There is different version why British Empire took control over Hong Kong.
Britain helped China to eliminate pirates in South China Sea. As a sign of appreciation China give control of Hong Kong to ...
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
1answer
86 views
How did commoners in late medieval to early modern Europe learn to read?
Literacy in the early Middle Ages was very low, but as I recall, by the time of Reformation quite a lot of commoners could read. Even if they were not very good in reading and writing, by the 17th ...
2
votes
0answers
46 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 ...
6
votes
0answers
86 views
Were there any battles in Continental Europe that were decided by “peasants with pitchforks?”
I can think of one such battle in the British Isles; the battle of Bannockburn in 1314 in Scotland. In that battle, a 14,000-man English army despoiled a bunch of "homeless" vagrants on their way to ...
5
votes
1answer
70 views
When did the incident happen when bounty on rats led people to farm rats?
Sorry for the title but don't know how to phrase it exactly.
I once read an article about a period (in France I think but I'm not sure) when the cities were growing and people strted to have issues ...
-4
votes
2answers
203 views
Are there other ancient human rights (surely in its ancient consept) documents like the Cyrus Cylinder (c. 500BC)? [closed]
Wikipedia says:
"The Cyrus' Cylinder gained new prominence in the late 1960s when the last Shah of Iran called it "the world's first charter of human rights".[90] The cylinder was a key symbol of ...
-1
votes
1answer
107 views
Did Gorbachev ever admit that his intention was to destroy Communism?
As I remember the 1980s and the Perestroika epoch, the reforms were advertised to the people as "return to Leninist principles", even deeper implementation of Socialism. The posters claimed it was ...
4
votes
2answers
80 views
Have Moscow and Beijing ever been cities under the same rule?
Have Moscow and Beijing ever been cities under the rule of the same empire? It should have been Mongol Empire, I suppose.
How long has it lasted?
12
votes
1answer
187 views
Why did Poland keep Warsaw as its capital instead of returning it to Krakow in the 20th century?
My recollection is that Krakow was Poland's capital for much of the Middle Ages, having moved there from Thorn(?) shortly after 1000 A.D.
My understanding is that Warsaw, a newer city, became ...
1
vote
1answer
51 views
Why did Alexander found or rename a number of places after himself?
According to Wikipedia, Alexander founded or renamed each of the following places after himself:
Alexandria, Egypt
Alexandria Arachosia, Afghanistan; now called Kandahar (a contraction of ...
8
votes
6answers
284 views
What advantages have motorized infantry enjoyed over standard infantry besides speed?
My understanding is that motorized infantry have greater combat value than "standard" infantry (foot soldiers armed with rifles, or perhaps machine guns), over and above their greater mobility.
Do ...
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?
15
votes
7answers
708 views
What cultures did, or do, perform human sacrifice on a regular basis?
Looking at the Area 51 commitment page, I realized that some of the questions that were originally suggested there never got asked here, so I thought I'd add some of them. Something else I would like ...
4
votes
2answers
4k views
Number of bullets used in WW2
I have wondered if there are any estimates on the number of bullets used in World War 2. I have thought about the question but cannot even get a plausible attack strategy.
26
votes
5answers
1k views
Which came first: Polytheism or monotheism?
It seems a common position that monotheism tends to evolve out of polytheism. Wikipedia offers a few historical examples of this.
However, many polytheistic religions seem to have monotheistic ...
2
votes
1answer
64 views
Why have Polish kings been such a “mixed bag?”
"Mixed bag" is an American term that might be translated as "apparently random." I'll date the question from the mid-16th century Union with Lithuania until 1795.
During this time, there was a French ...
0
votes
1answer
102 views
Battle of Seattle [closed]
The "Battle of Seattle," a large civil protest that led to sporadic rioting in 1999, is commonly portrayed as influential in the sociology of Western activism, and in the contemporary history of ...
5
votes
2answers
183 views
Why was nude male art so acceptable, popular and officially supported in Germany?
The origin of today's question is cracked.com.
In the article, 2 independent examples of naked male art (sculpture) is present:
Sculptures in the "Third Reich Art" exhibition (plus this and this)
...
2
votes
1answer
385 views
What was normal attire for Hindu kings in the 15th century?
I was reading through "A History of India" by John Keay when I came across a few paragraphs which talk about Hindu kings' attire (or the lack of it) in the 15th century. Travellers like Ibn Battuta, ...
2
votes
2answers
81 views
To what can we trace the idea of “civic responsibility”?
Can the sense of "civic responsibility" (i.e. the individual sense of participation and duty towards the construction and maintenance of a public order, and its enactment), be traced historically as ...
6
votes
1answer
49 views
Is there any way to historically consider the cultural severity on a disease or impairment? (specifically during the Roman Empire)
I'm looking to find how certain diseases or impairments were viewed during the Roman Empire (circa ~50AD) by the Roman culture prior, during, and after that time.
I'm mainly looking for physical ...
10
votes
2answers
203 views
Did Hitler receive any honours outside Germany?
From this article in The Telegraph:
In a move designed to remove an embarrassing link to Germany's past Dulmen town council voted to revoke the honour its predecessor once bestowed upon Hitler.
...
4
votes
1answer
47 views
How was the dynamics of a naval battle in the 17th century?
I'm curious about the "mechanical" aspects in the course of a naval battle in the 17th century.
To explain better, here are some questions whose answers would provide a text-answer explaining the ...
8
votes
3answers
180 views
What was the reason for Soviet troops to withdraw from Yugoslavia in World War II?
For all these countries that the Red Army entered (Poland, Romania, part of Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary), the procedure was straightforward. Once the Soviets beat the Germans they become de facto ...
4
votes
1answer
135 views
Did Hans Christian Oersted ever marry?
Did Hans Christian Oersted ever marry, and if so, whom?
Google is really short on answers.
7
votes
0answers
62 views
Was Swedish king Charles X Gustav's horse killed during Siege of Kraków (1655)?
My question is related to Siege of Kraków, which took place in 1655, between 25th of September and 13th of October, during Second Northern War, which is usually referred to as "Swedish Deluge" in ...
7
votes
2answers
375 views
How were dagger axes used in battle?
During the Chinese warring states, weapons knowns as dagger axes were used and there is a wide body of evidence that those were common at one time -- so so I believe. Is there any record of fighting ...
6
votes
5answers
383 views
What incentives are in place for American soldiers to go fight in Iraq?
I am from Brazil, a country that has not fought any war since WW2. If you join the army, go fight in Iraq and then return, what will the USA pay you? Is there a health plan for life, a pension, or ...
9
votes
5answers
1k views
Was democracy present in India before British colonization?
My friend claims that India had democracy before the British colonized it. I am skeptical and have failed to find any references to democracy in India within the last thousand years. I found one weak ...
4
votes
2answers
104 views
Organized and intentional suicide attacks during military conflicts
First of all I want to make it clear that we're not speaking about terrorist attacks here. This question is strictly dedicated to war operations, in a dictionary meaning.
Also this question is about ...
1
vote
2answers
150 views
Plans to depose, disgrace, or assassinate Hitler
Have there come to light any plans either by the allied forces or those within the Third Reich to depose/disgrace/assassinate Hitler himself, rather than just plans to crush his forces?
2
votes
3answers
115 views
Historical use of alcohol as a source of clean water
I've heard that there were two common methods to disinfecting water in the past: boiling water or turning it into alcohol. Presumably, those in the East relied on boiling water, while those in the ...
1
vote
1answer
49 views
St. George's Monastery in the West Bank
I was fascinated to learn about St. George's Monastery, a Greek Orthodox site that was first built in the 5th century CE. It's obviously neither Jewish nor Islamic, and is located in a disputed ...
6
votes
4answers
138 views
How would Eastern European emigres have traveled across Eastern Europe to Warsaw in the early 20thC?
I was looking back at my grandmother's voyage to America, she made the trip from Zbaraz in the Ukraine through Warsaw and then on to Gdanks and through steerage class to the New York. I know she took ...
8
votes
5answers
282 views
Is there any documentation regarding the use of war elephants in battles?
Does anyone know of any battles where war elephants played either a major or decisive part in the victory of whoever had them? As far as I know, they were mostly used for the fear factor and were ...
3
votes
3answers
201 views
Why Americans like to enroll in military services despite huge risks involved?
Working in US military is one of the riskiest jobs in America because of the regular engagement in battles compared to other military in the world.
I live in a third-world country. Even in my ...
1
vote
2answers
162 views
What was Lenin's “New Economic Policy” and what complications did it have?
I have recently read an article on Lenin's New Economic Policy, and I was wondering if there were two sides to the story. What were some of the complications of this policy? In addition to this, was ...
1
vote
0answers
30 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 ...
6
votes
1answer
102 views
WWII boat-looking bus
What was the purpose of this WWII boat-looking bus?
Description says:
Royal Navy officers 'aboard' 'HMS SPURIOUS MARK II' - a bus converted to resemble the island of an aircraft carrier. The ...
5
votes
0answers
65 views
What percentage of Jews were in “finance” (money-lenders) throughout Middle Ages?
The stereotypical image of a Jew in Middle Ages (and the portrayal of them) was of course "the money-lender". From Ivanhoe's Isaac of York, to Shakespeare's Shylock, to "Проклятый жид, почтенный ...
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 ...
4
votes
2answers
182 views
Italian History from 1870-1913: Why did Italy have such a hard time becoming a Great Power like Germany
Both Italy and Prussia-Germany were united from the years 1870-1871. Instead of small provinces, the country became united under one political leadership. Their unification received the help of France ...
