Questions tagged [government]
Describes the administrative institution for a political state. The government is responsible for fundamental concerns of security, economic stability, public infrastructure, diplomacy amongst other state actors and variety of societal concerns.
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(Why) didn't the "fountain of justice" flow through Governors-General?
Nowadays both the Australian and Canadian governments agree that their (respective) Governor-General (henceforth GG) belongs to two branches of government: both executive and legislative.
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During Edo period Japan, was there any circumstance where a Western person was able to go outside of Dejima?
I know that during the Edo period Westerners (specifically the Dutch) were confined in Dejima due to Japan's isolationist policy. But as I was looking into the time period, it seems to me that there ...
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How were cities administered in the Middle Byzantine Empire (641-1081)? [closed]
So I have found something about urban administration of cities in the Roman Republic and the feudal kingdoms. But how were cities administered in the Middle Byzantine Empire? Did they have Imperial ...
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Did provincial elections occur in 1934 in the provinces of Punjab and Bengal?
I was reading about elections in British India that happened as per the rules of the Government of India Act, 1919. From 1920 till 1934, a total of five elections were conducted i.e. 1920, 1923, 1926, ...
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What is this seal that looks like a bell?
The box on the top left of this picture is stamped with a seal that resembles a bell. Below is LOC photo of the replica of Oswald's gun.
The stamp is located in the top left.
LOC notes on the photo
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How did really small municipalities function in The Netherlands in the 19th and 20th century?
I'm always amazed by the small villages in The Netherlands that used to be separate municipalities well into the 20th century.
Take for instance Ellewoutsdijk. It was an independent municipality until ...
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Why were eastern European states larger than western European states for much of history?
For reference, ever since the Treaty of Verdun in 843, large, centralized states in western Europe seemed to be the exception rather than the norm. Of course, there are exceptions, such as England and ...
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Has there ever been an election where the two biggest parties form a coalition to govern?
For example, suppose there are 100 seats available. Party A wins 45 seats, party B wins 45 seats, and party C wins 10 seats. "Usually" party A and party B will court party C, and whoever C ...
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Has a criminal organisation ever become a formal government?
There are plenty of examples of criminal syndicates attaining local, regional, or even national power through corruption, while still, at least formally, pursued by the judicial system: Mexico, Russia,...
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What is the royal cypher printed on the UK budget box?
The dispatch box used by the Chancellor of the Exchequer bears a royal cypher for Elizabeth II on it:
This differs from the usual cypher used in that the numerals " II " appear below the ...
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What religions were persecuted and disappeared (between 1000 BCE – 1 CE)? [closed]
R Gottlieb wrote in his book called "Reason to Believe" on page 66 that many cultures were persecuted between 1000 BCE – 1 CE, and none survived. As far as I'm aware, he does not provide any ...
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How many times in history has a government completely "moulded to its own shape the physical character of the people"? [closed]
Sir John Barrow, 1st Baronet published the book "Travels in China" in 1804. In it he made poignant but quite accurate assessments about then China. I am Chinese and I am reading this book ...
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Are there any estimates of military spending as a percentage of total government expenditure anywhere in 15th century Europe?
A little piece of information stuck in my head about the military expenditure. Namely, the current expenditure on the military is incredibly low when compared to that in the middle ages. I am not sure,...
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How exactly did the government work with very large empires? [closed]
In planning my fictional worlds, I have come to wonder how exactly large empires worked, the main question being, how did they manage to keep control over such a large space in a manner that allowed ...
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Besides NY, which other US states, if any, mandate the appointment of public historians?
As per the website of The Association of Public Historians of New York State :
The Association of Public Historians of New York State is a 501(c)3 non-profit professional organization that represents ...
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Has there ever been a significant security breach of information from someone with Alzheimer's or dementia divulging classified information?
While watching a documentary of a formerly top secret project that was executed by the US government, I noticed that there were a lot of older gentlemen telling the story. These were the men that ...
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How could temporary surrender of self-government help Newfoundland with its debts?
According to Wikipedia,
Newfoundland had accumulated a significant amount of debt by building a railway across the island, which was completed in the 1890s, and by raising its own regiment during ...
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Why didn't the eunuch faction improve stability in Imperial China?
A lot of the instability in hereditary monarchies occurred when the ruler was mentally deficient, reclusive, or otherwise unwilling or incapable of governing.
On the hand, the powerful eunuchs in ...
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What was the dominant government system in the 1600s~1800s?
I'm making a game where the player begins with small tribe in Ancient Era and for each era there are government systems to choose. They are very similar to the ones from the Civilization series. Below ...
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How did the United Kingdom government come to be responsible for defence of the Channel Islands?
The government of the United Kingdom is responsible for the defence of, and foreign relations of, the Channel Islands.
How did this arrangement come about?
Was there a specific agreement/decision/...
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Why did the governments of the distant past last longer than those of the present/recent past? [closed]
For example, Rome and Egypt existed for massive amounts of time that pretty much any modern nation could not. Is this a selection bias on my end (comparing the most successful empires of the past to ...
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What was the salary of high ranking Roman government officials during the Principate?
During the Roman Principate, the Roman Empire was divided into two parts: Senatorial Provinces and Imperial Provinces. Senatorial Provinces were governed by propraetors and proconsuls, who received no ...
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Which is the oldest, still current, government debt?
(Not sure if this belongs to politics or history).
Which is the oldest, still current, government debt?
The answer of course depends on definitions since debts usually are "rolled over" at ...
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Did Russian government employ state-sponsored assassins under Russian Empire?
Did Russian government employ state-sponsored assassins under Russian Empire during 1800-1917?
I know, killings of many figures disliked by the Tsar were arranged in the forms of staged duels, but ...
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Were medieval city states like Venice and Milan feudal? [closed]
I know they had lots of powerful factions and families, but Venice, for instance, was a republic, no? And Rome was a theocracy. If they were feudal, how did their respective governments work in a ...
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What is a "sheare town?"
Another question from my family history research from this quote:
Carrie C. Edgett article: John French - a tailor, was living in Topsfield as early as March 1, 1664/5, when a daughter born there, ...
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Who governed while Alexander the Great was away conquering Asia?
I was just watching a video that mentions Alexander the Great at the edges of his empire, but then I was wondering who was governing back home while he was gone, I mean it took forever to travel back ...
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To what extent was the US government financed by land expropriations between 1790 and 1846?
How significant was land expropriation as a source of US federal, state, and local government revenue between 1790 and 1846?
I chose 1846 as the breakpoint because of the Walker Tariff; feel free to ...
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How significant were government-linked enterprises as a source of revenue for the United States between 1790 and 1846?
What proportion of US government (federal,state,local) revenue came from profits or debt issuance of government-linked enterprises between 1790 and 1846?
I chose 1846 as the breakpoint because of the ...
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Which head of state had the most gaps in their rule?
Inspired by this question, which head of state in history has had the largest number of non-consecutive periods of rule? One answer on that question has given Gruffudd ap Cynan, King of Gwynedd as an ...
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When did the White House get its current address, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue?
Thanks to Wikipedia's "On this day" feature, I’ve just seen this painting of the White House after it was burned by the British forces in 1812:
The background appears to be farmland, but ...
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What did the Edo samurai bureaucracy actually look like?
While researching the Japanese Edo period, the Samurai class are frequently described as bureaucrats and the government is described as a "sophisticated bureaucracy", often with detailed ...
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How was the 1849 "Proclamation to the People of California" announcing the formation of a Constitution communicated to the people?
The images below appear to be an official copy of the 1849 Proclamation to the People of California announcing the formation of a Constitution. It is signed by Secretary of State Captain H.W. Halleck (...
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Who had the shortest time in going from imprisonment to head of state within democratic processes?
We know that for example Mandela, Hitler, Stalin all spent some time in prison before they went on to become the head of their respective state or government.
Regardless of the reason why they were ...
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How were cities administered in the early Byzantine Empire?
First of all, I would just like to note that I am not looking for an answer concerning Constantinople, but rather how other cities were governed (e.g. Thessaloniki, Adrianapole, Nicaea, Smyrna, ...
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Perception of the state by an average person in pre-modern times [closed]
I would like to better understand the experience of being governed and interaction with the centralized state (or lack thereof) in pre-modern times.
A cursory search did not return anything ...
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What was Africa's political system like before European imperialism? [closed]
During the Scramble of Africa (1881 - 1914), Europeans basically controlled the entire content. They also implemented their own form of government and culture in many of these places. However, what ...
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What words were spoken about oaths by US supreme court justices presiding over previous presidential impeachments?
The motivation for my Politics SE question US Chief Justice Roberts' choices of “in conformity with” and “in conformance with” during the swearing in at the Senate includes my assumption that the ...
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Which misdeeds of F. Reineke was J.B.B. de Lesseps "obliged to suppress"?
F. Reineke was commandant of Kamchatka from about 1780 to 1784. According to Витер's История символов как история административного деления государства he was responsible for moving the territorial ...
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Who was part of the Raznochintsy class in 1800s Russia?
In the system of social estates of Imperial Russia, someone "of miscellaneous rank" was a member of the raznochintsy, at least until the category was abolished. В.Н.Разгон says this happened at the ...
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What does the crested logo with a stacked "A C and I" on this Baldwin-Felts certificate mean?
I was watching a PBS documentary The Mine Wars(25:30) where the Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency is discussed. I noticed this crested logo which looks like it says “CIA Police” and was curious what it ...
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Why did the First Mexican Empire replace 60% of its Regency?
From September of 1821 until Agustín I ascended the throne, a five-man Imperial Regency governed independent Mexico. Initially it included Agustín Iturbide (the same), José Isidro Yáñez, Manuel ...
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Was there any country/form of goverment that sustained itself with diverse population? [closed]
Was there any form of government that was stable (in terms of separatist revolts and cultural disputes) enough to maintain a fair lifespan, even though it had a diverse population [see footnote 1]?
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Have there been government conspiracies that were successful for over 25 years?
I admit it, I'm highly skeptical of conspiracies like the 9/11 Truthers, Flat Earthers, etc...
The way I see it? "these things always come out in the end, see for example the Gulf of Tonkin ...
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Was there ever a democracy where the three branches went to war?
I was thinking yesterday about the three branches of democracy: The legislative branch, the executive branch and the judicial branch.
The idea is that each has limited responsibility and powers, and ...
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Did the Governor of Virginia in 1786 have the authority to veto laws passed by the Virginia General Assembly?
I believe that the Act for Establishing Religious Freedom was passed by the Virginia General Assembly on January 16, 1786. Did the Governor of Virginia at the time have the right to veto it?
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How did the USSR manage to innovate in an environment characterized by government censorship and high bureaucracy?
Despite the high bureaucracy in the Soviet Union, some design bureaus still achieved spectacular feats in science and engineering (mostly in defense and aerospace) e.g. Mir space station, Soyuz ...
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What is the history of "industrial date coding" (year followed by week number)?
Does anyone know the history of the common date format that the
ISO week date is based on. The Wikipedia article mentioned it was previously known as "Industrial date coding". Usually, it looks ...
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How did Hitler imagine his succession? (for the case nazis would win the war)
I am not asking about any resolution he might have made in the feverish April of 1945.
Do we have any information how Hitler imagined the government of his Reich after he would have died from old ...
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Longest lasting government [closed]
The other week, my political science professor asserted in class that the United States is the longest-running stable government. I brought this up with my philosophy professor though, and he said ...
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