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1500 questions
23
votes
2 answers
What was life like for an adult Victorian chimney sweep?
What was life like for an adult Victorian chimney sweep?
I'm looking into my family history at the moment and my great-great-grandfather is listed on an 1881 census as a chimney sweep. I thought this was a child labourer's profession and have never…
Charlie
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23
votes
4 answers
Why didn't cheese spoil when it was given as rations to soldiers?
I've come across many mentions of cheese when talking about rations for soldiers and those who would be hiking for long stretches of time. What kind of cheese would we be talking about? I'm mainly interested in either the Romans or Medieval…
Marc R
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23
votes
1 answer
Was Hagia Sophia built over a pagan temple?
According to Britannica's online article on Hagia Sophia:
The original church on the site of the Hagia Sophia is said to have been built by Constantine I in 325 on the foundations of a pagan temple.
The article does not list a source for this…
Notaras
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23
votes
6 answers
Why were battles massed until the late 1800s?
If you look at pictures of battles until the mid/late 19th century, the typical battle involved masses of soldiers advancing against each other. It doesn't seem that they tried taking cover or spreading out.
Why?
At first glance, considering the…
war
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23
votes
3 answers
How do historians know the details of a seemingly private event?
Sometimes I read in history that someone said something, but it seems, it's just a daily conversation, or even in private, or a secret event. So how do history writers know these details?
It seems impossible, e.g. when there are only two people, and…
user2174870
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23
votes
1 answer
Do any churches continue to display length measures?
In 864, Charles the Bald issued what is today known as the Edict of Pistres.
One of his demands was that copies of the standards of measurements (e.g.
versions of a foot) were to be displayed on the outside of churches and monasteries. This was the…
Heis
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23
votes
3 answers
What did Tacitus write about Nero and the Great Fire of Rome 64AD?
I have always been fascinated by the history of ancient Rome and this is one of the topics I always wanted to know a little bit more about.
The rumor about Nero himself giving the order to burn down parts of the city is a widespread assumption about…
GNi33
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23
votes
3 answers
Which was the first civilization to ban slavery?
Which was the first civilization to ban existing slavery with a law?
For example, if Civilization X never had slavery and it makes a law banning it, it won't count for this purposes. I've looked online but found nothing.
(I'm aware of the other…
米凯乐
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23
votes
3 answers
Was Roosevelt the "biggest slave trader in recorded history"?
In the introduction to The Liberation of the Serfs, Jürgen Georg Backhaus writes:
The largest transaction in unfree labour ever recorded occurred in Yalta;
more than 6.5 million prisoners of war were handed over to Russia and France,
making…
user3521
23
votes
2 answers
When did the Knights Templar dissolve and why?
The Knights Templar were a medieval chivalric organization within the Roman Catholic Church.
When did they dissolve, and what ultimately led to the dissolution of the Templars?
Seth Rogers
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23
votes
2 answers
What was the structure of religious beliefs among the Arabic peoples before conversion to Islam?
Other questions on this topic has addressed the pre-Islamic religious beliefs in broad detail, including the conversion of near-Arab cultures.
What was the specific nature of the pre-Islamic religious concepts? e.g.
categorization of beings/anima,…
New Alexandria
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23
votes
2 answers
Why were La Réunion and Mauritius uninhabited?
Why were the Mascarenes islands, La Réunion and Mauritius (and Rodrigues), uninhabited until Europeans arrived ?
Many islands off the coast of Africa remained uninhabited until the arrival of Europeans, because, as I understand it, they weren't…
Typhon
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23
votes
2 answers
How do historians verify historical claims?
What are some common methods to verify historical claims?
Amr Farouk
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23
votes
3 answers
What was the legal framework in Ancient India?
We all know the immense contribution ancient Roman, medieval Roman (or Byzantine), and pre-modern HRE cannon law has made to the modern world. These empires relied on a written constitution (or code) and trained magistrates, lawyers, and notaries…
Apoorv
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23
votes
3 answers
What did the people of the Middle Ages call their period?
It's clear that Middle Ages is a term from the Renaissance. My question is:
What names did scholars use during the Middle Ages for their own period?
Well, of course Middle Ages is a single name for a very heterogeneous period that covers approx.…
Henri Augusto
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