7
votes
2answers
126 views
Did the poor performance of the Red Army in the Winter War significantly contribute to German underestimation of the USSR's military capacity?
Wikipedia says in the article on the Winter War:
Perhaps more importantly, the very poor performance of the Red Army
encouraged Hitler to think that an attack on the Soviet Union would be
...
10
votes
2answers
119 views
Battles that took place on the ice
As my favorite ice hockey team became the champion of Poland today, I reminded famous Battle of the Ice that took place in 1242. During the fights, forces of Alexander Nevsky managed to draw Teutonic ...
3
votes
2answers
51 views
How early did restrictions on hunting start?
Today in the US you can only hunt certain game during certain seasons. In medieval England, only certain people were allowed to hunt deer and boars. Legal restrictions on who could hunt what, where, ...
5
votes
2answers
85 views
Military tactics specifically aimed against cavalry horses
Were tactics specifically aimed against horses common in past cavalry warfare and what forms did they take?
For instance, did opponents try to harm (poison or shoot-them-first), distract (loud ...
6
votes
1answer
197 views
Wasn't it a tactical mistake for Saladin to send fruits and water to Richard I when ill? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate: Why did Saladin show kindness to Richard I?
"When Richard falls sick at the siege of Acre in 1192, Saladin not only sends his personal physician Maimonides over to treat him, he ...
2
votes
1answer
69 views
Where did the masquerade ball come from and what was its original concept?
I mean a kind of party which guests and hosts hide their faces behind different masks or/and wear odd clothes. Surely there is no certain idea about main concept with me unless perhaps it has roots in ...
1
vote
1answer
51 views
What was Gen. Buford's ultimate objective at the Battle of Gettysburg?
On the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg, Gen. Buford and the Union cavalry were initially defending the ridges to the north and west of the town. Even after Gen. Reynolds arrived with the Union I ...
2
votes
1answer
52 views
Roman aristocrat with slave assassins named after him?
I remember reading a few years back that there was a particular Roman strongman who had a very intense way of dealing with enemies.
He had dozens of either slaves or former slaves (freedmen), but I ...
4
votes
2answers
105 views
Who were the Wright brothers competitors?
I once have heard that there were a person who was sponsored by the government to make the first flying airplane. But Wright brothers did it first. And after that this person gets really depressed and ...
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
1answer
92 views
Historically, have African nations had a higher proportion of coups than nations on other continents?
The president of the Central African Republic was recently ousted by rebel forces. According to atlanticwire there have been over 40 coups in the past 60 years. Do African nations have a higher ...
3
votes
3answers
119 views
The destruction of the mycenaean palaces and the sea-peoples
I am reading about the destruction of the mycenaean palaces lately and there are a couple of theories to explain their destruction.
One of those theories supposes that the sea people, who raided the ...
11
votes
2answers
132 views
How did Mongolian nomads acquire metal weapons?
Metal-working requires a furnace, heavy tools and of-course metal ore and yet nomadic Mongolians were able to obtain metal weapons, so either they worked metal or traded it. But if they worked metal ...
10
votes
2answers
270 views
Why were there no Internment camps for German-American Citizens in USA during WW2?
I am certainly aware of Japanese-americans being detained in Internment camps , after the attack on Pearl Harbor , and subsequent declaration of war on United States , by the empire of Japan.
About ...
14
votes
3answers
882 views
How was the United States able to produce excellent tanks in 1942?
Most military histories of the war in North Africa, and especially those produced from a British point-of-view, emphasise the greenness of the American troops which landed there in 1942. There is a ...
3
votes
1answer
111 views
Were the “hussars” that Jan Sobieski used at the battle of Vienna actually elite troops?
Apparently, the decisive blow at the 1683 Battle of Vienna was struck by Jan Sobieski, with only 3,000 "hussars" (cavalry). This seems a bit hard to believe, given that the Turkish army had about ...
3
votes
1answer
80 views
How was money transferred before digital transactions?
Take, for example, the late 18th century and pre-French Revolution. The American War of Independence (1775 - '83) and the Seven Years War (1754 - '63) were financially ruinous for Louis XVI's France, ...
5
votes
0answers
28 views
Cuban medical internationalism
In the decades since the Cuban revolutions the country's medical doctors famously served on many semi-official missions abroad. For instance, it has been reported that Venezuela under Hugo Chavez ...
4
votes
1answer
56 views
Were Roman emperors in the first century AD shown as holding stars in their hands?
The New Testament Book of Revelation starts with an image of the exalted Jesus holding several stars in his hand.
I read in a commentary that there were coins at that time which showed Roman emperors ...
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 ...
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 ...
6
votes
0answers
94 views
When has serious unemployment among educated young populations not led to revolution or war?
For background: The Eurozone crisis has moved on to the next chapter and we hear a lot of bad news this time from Cyprus. While I emphatize with the people of Cyprus, I have little doubt that also ...
0
votes
2answers
76 views
Was the N.E.P. of Russia successful in terms of economics?
The Soviet's New Economic Plan was indeed a successful plan in establishing a comparatively strong postwar economy for the Soviet Union, but there were many imperfections: food prices fluctuated ...
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
1answer
101 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
1answer
93 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
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
43 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
1answer
83 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 ...
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 ...
6
votes
0answers
85 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 ...
-1
votes
1answer
106 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
84 views
Was there anything like African American architecture style or symbolic in the beginning of 20th century?
At the beginning of 20th century, large masses of black people were migrating to North or between districts of the same towns (like in New York from Tenderloin or San Juan Hill to Harlem, previously ...
0
votes
3answers
132 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?
4
votes
3answers
250 views
Are there ways to measure “how much power did ”Russia“ lose when the Soviet Union broke up?”
Russia today is the largest country in the world (by a fairly wide margin). That is true after the other 15 or so "Socialist Republics" left and went their separate ways in 1991, leaving Russia with a ...
4
votes
2answers
79 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?
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 ...
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 ...
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?
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
4
votes
1answer
45 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
169 views
At the Battle of Zama, was the Roman army more “native” than the Carthaginian?
At the battle of Zama, which army had a higher proportion of native troops? Within the context of this question consider troops to be either "native" or "mercenary". Native troops serve out of ...
1
vote
0answers
74 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?
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 ...
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
111 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
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 ...
