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1500 questions
37
votes
4 answers
What is the highest number of brothers who became ruler of the same country?
While researching the Danish monarchy for another question on this site (the life expectancy of a Medieval European monarch), I came across the five sons of King Sweyn II who all became kings of Denmark in their own right (i.e. not junior or…
Lars Bosteen
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When Israel won the Six Day War, did they consider expelling all Arabs from the annexed territories?
Did Israel consider doing this and if so, would that have been in violation of international law?
Jeff
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37
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2 answers
When did official documentation stop referring to black people as Negros in the States?
Watching Why does the US have so many child brides?, there was an interesting part where marriage licenses were shown:
where under race, in two places, it is clearly written as:
Negro
The specific date is not clear but it is most likely '71.
When…
Mou某
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37
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How did the American Civil War help the U.S economy recover from the Panic of 1857 given that civil wars are extremely destructive?
From the Wikipedia article on the Panic of 1857:
Beginning in September 1857, the financial downturn did not last long;
however, a proper recovery was not seen until the American Civil War.
Given the destructive nature of war and the way it…
curious
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37
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How much evidence is there regarding the naval punishment of keelhauling?
Keelhauling is a famous naval punishment under which the offender would by dragged beneath the hull of the ship. This would have been encrusted with shellfish such as barnacles which would - at the very least - have caused some nasty lacerations.…
Bob Tway
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37
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4 answers
Why did the population of Anchorage, Alaska, increase by so much in the 1970s?
Between 1970 and 1980, the population of Anchorage, Alaska, increased by more than 260%, around 130,000 people. What caused this? There had been previous increases of approximately the same in percentage terms, but not nearly the same in absolute…
Throsby
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37
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2 answers
Were well-connected Germans able to park their sons in Norway during WWII?
Reading Antony Beevor's "The Second World War" he makes the point several times that a peculiar obsession of Hitler's was the defence of Norway and that there were close to half a million German troops kept fairly idle in the region right up to the…
Tea Drinker
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37
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9 answers
Has there ever been a battle with only a single survivor?
Do we have record of any large scale battle (for example more than 1000 combatants) where only one person survived? I just thought of it randomly and wondered whether it may have ever happened.
J.Todd
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37
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15 answers
Have fair-skinned peoples ever been the lower/oppressed class?
In many societies around the globe today we see that the darker skinned peoples are generally of a lower social status than the fair skinned peoples of the same area, or that fair skin is considered preferable to dark skin. Even in India today women…
dotancohen
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37
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12 answers
What was wrong with Hitler's left hand?
So I was watching Downfall last night (good movie by the way) and I noticed that whenever Hitler walked around, the movie always showed him with his left hand behind his back and it was always kind of shaking, especially when he was doing things…
Diskdrive
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10 answers
What was the purpose of Nazi extermination camps?
Why did they spend money and effort to build the infrastructure and organization, collect, transport and house the prisoners while execution on the spot would presumably be easier and less costly? I'm trying to understand the history, no offense or…
collins
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6 answers
Is there any documented criticism of the brutality of the Colosseum from citizens at the time?
I recently watched a documentary on the Roman Colosseum that described some of the brutal and cruel violence that took place.
The documentary explained that for the citizenry, the violence was justified and acceptable through their relationship with…
DQdlM
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37
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4 answers
What was the internal Soviet reaction to the moon landing?
The Soviet Union was a famously restrictive place when it came to news and ideological spin, and obviously their attitude toward the United States was less than supportive and warm. The Space Race saw a lot of competitiveness between the two…
Nerrolken
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37
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7 answers
To what extent did Native American cultures develop metalworking for tools and weapons?
When Europeans started showing up in the New World, the native cultures were technologically far behind. Many still used stone tools: North American tribes used flint, while some Mesoamerican cultures used obsidian. Andean and other civilizations…
Travis Christian
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36
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Why did the Soviet Union lift the Berlin Blockade?
Between 24th June 1948 and 12th May 1949 land routes into West Berlin were blocked by Soviet forces and West Berliners were supplied entirely by air (the famous Berlin Airlift).
No one connected with the Soviet authorities had thought Berlin could…
Tea Drinker
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