meta user
network profile
| bio | website | |
|---|---|---|
| location | ||
| age | ||
| visits | member for | 1 year, 5 months |
| seen | May 21 at 4:36 | |
| stats | profile views | 25 |
|
Dec 20 |
comment |
What was the first battle in history fought by vast-majority-% “distance-shooting” non-mechanized force? Only by projectile weapons ? Even today battles often end up being hand to hand. |
|
Dec 19 |
comment |
Why didn't North American tribes use bog iron? @DVK - I was probably a bit too specific with 'central' america. I meant places south of the current USA border had metal before 1000AD - but they also had cities and empires |
|
Dec 19 |
answered | Why didn't North American tribes use bog iron? |
|
Dec 17 |
comment |
How did the US/South Vietnam lose the Vietnam war? The same reason for 1776 war - but not because of guerrilla tactics. Most of the war of independance was fought as pitched battles between US+French troops vs UK+German troops. The reason the British lost was the same reason the US lost in Vietnam, it was very expensive to fight a war half a world away for a country that wasn't economically or politically worth the effort. |
|
Dec 14 |
comment |
Wiliam Wallace vs. Robert Bruce: Why Did One Win and One Lose? Eastern bows used sinew north/western european bows used hemp or flax. Again sinew works best nearer body temperature than at a cold wet scottish battle |
|
Dec 13 |
comment |
What aternative locations were considered for the United Nations? @Dimitris - probably New York was considered the safest. Any army with the capability to successfully invade the USA pretty much makes the UN irrelevant. While Paris regularly got captured or threatened by it's neighbour |
|
Dec 13 |
comment |
Why is Christopher Columbus credited for “discovering” America? Hence the joke about Columbus being the first $WHATEVER$ - he knew where he wanted to go, but didn't know how to get there, didn't know where he'd been when he got back and did it all with somebody else's money. |
|
Dec 13 |
comment |
Were Shakespeare's plays written for “high culture” or “entertain the bawdy masses” during his time? If you get chance go to a performance at the rebuilt Globe in London - especially one in costume/period. Being up close and the jokes and asides to the audience make even a Shakespeare comedy funny. If you've only had to suffer through reading them in Lit class - you suddenly see the point |
|
Dec 13 |
comment |
Are there examples of well known medieval battles with very little archaeological evidence? @DVK - before the use of guns pretty much everything was retrieved - even arrow heads. Either by the winning side's troops or scavenged by locals. |
|
Dec 13 |
comment |
Wiliam Wallace vs. Robert Bruce: Why Did One Win and One Lose? @Tom - Compound hide-sinew bows are much more efficent than yew long bows - but they stop working when they get cold or wet. |
|
Dec 13 |
awarded | Commentator |
|
Dec 13 |
comment |
How did a besieged city/castle defend itself vs. catapulting diseased dead bodies into it? Almost all sieges failed because of disease and hunger in the besieging forces - especially once it runs into winter and they are camping in the rain on top of 6 months worth of 'outpourings'. |
|
Dec 13 |
answered | Are there examples of well known medieval battles with very little archaeological evidence? |
|
Dec 12 |
comment |
Why were the Normans such good builders? @Sardathrion - only the commanders and housecarls probably went south, the rest of the army was picked up locally. So it was a very different force that met at Hastings. ps There is also no reason to think they would (or could have) walked rather than taken a boat. |
|
Dec 12 |
awarded | Scholar |
|
Dec 12 |
accepted | Why were the Normans such good builders? |
|
Dec 12 |
comment |
Why were the Normans such good builders? @Sardathrion - I'm from Yorkshire, we kicked Harald Hardrada's entire viking army before a bunch of southerners let a few Frenchmen walk allover them ;-) |
|
Dec 12 |
comment |
What did the Romans do for Judea? The place was already pretty Helenestic after Alexander- so probably not much of a change. It may have led to a bit more stability not worrying if the Seleucids or Egyptians were going to invade next. So allows for some good infighting between different groups of priests |
|
Dec 11 |
comment |
Why were the Normans such good builders? So while everyone else saw them as blood-thirsty trouble makers - they thought of themselves as the up and coming civilisation ! |
|
Dec 11 |
comment |
Why did Canada not join the American Revolution? But some of it's people did. Either revolutionaries that moved south to fight, or empire loyalists that were exiled to Canada. The war certainly had a bigger effect on Canada than it did on Britain |
