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1500 questions
19
votes
3 answers
What exactly happened with beer and Leeuwarden in 1487?
On the history page for the day July 24th at Wikipedia, one of the events listed as happening that day is:
1487 – Citizens of Leeuwarden, Netherlands strike against a ban on foreign beer.
This claim isn't cited, and googling it revealed basically…
user8576
19
votes
1 answer
What were the key factors to the fall of domestic socialism in the USA?
During the late 1800s, and early 1900s the United States saw the rise of trade union membership, the coming and going of the populist party, and watched the progressive era come to institute reforms to correct the social damages of the Gilded…
esnowrackley
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19
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2 answers
Why wouldn't the South make salt from seawater during the American Civil War?
This article goes into some detail about the state of cooking in the Union and the Confederacy during the American Civil War. One of its interesting claims is that the South was suffering from a lack of salt which greatly limited their ability to…
Mike
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19
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3 answers
Why did families in 6th century Mecca send their babies to be raised in the desert?
Biographies of Muhammad mentions that in his early childhood he was looked after by a wet-nurse Halimah, from a few days after his birth until he was 4. It seems customary for Meccan families to do so:
In Mecca, it was customary to entrust infants…
Fitri
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19
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3 answers
Was early Sumerian civilization wiped out by a flood?
Sumerian texts speak of a worldwide flood that wiped out most of mankind's achievements on earth. I had always suspected such a flood -- even if only covering all of Sumer -- was mythical, but then I read the following on Wikipedia:
Archaeologists…
Joe
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19
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2 answers
Private firms (aka mercenaries) as a police force
Since the police invited security firms to bid for roles in the UK, I was wondering if there are historical events where mercenaries were used to police a city (or town or local) and what the effects were?
I suspect that the 30 years war would have…
Sardathrion - against SE abuse
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19
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6 answers
What historical evidence is there for the existence of Jesus Christ? What do we know about him?
How do historians study the events of Jesus' life, and the person he was? I read a book on the topic, and it held the position that the gospels were revised to appease the Romans - especially the passion narrative. If that is the case and they were…
louie mcconnell
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19
votes
4 answers
How can prices be compared over time?
I've just asked a question where Tyler Durden wrote in his answer that paper was expensive at Euclids time.
So I wanted to ask the question:
How did the price of paper / papyrus develop over time?
But then I realized that it might be impossible…
Martin Thoma
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19
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2 answers
Did Mao want to convert written Chinese into a phonetic system?
Quote from The Economist (April 2009)
for all his success in overturning traditional values and institutions, the founder of modern China came up short in his desire to convert written Chinese from its character-based system to an alphabet.
What…
user3521
19
votes
3 answers
Were British fears of Russia using Afghanistan as a staging post for an invasion of India unfounded?
I know that "The Great Game" was originally concerned with Russian-British competition in Central Asia, but my question is was this competition and British fear founded on anything? My understanding of Russian history at this point leads me to…
ihtkwot
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19
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1 answer
What government functions, if any, did the archchancellor of the HRE actually exercise?
Although the Holy Roman Empire was famous for being a loose confederation of largely independent feudal lords, it nevertheless possessed institutions akin to a unified state even near the end of its life.
Each ecclesiastical Prince-Elector was also…
Semaphore
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19
votes
3 answers
Did India turn down a permanent seat in the UN in 1955?
As per this article, India was offered a permanent seat on the UN Security Council in 1955 but Jawaharlal Nehru turned it down and the seat went to China. In light of the current lobbying that India is making for a permanent seat, what prompted…
rest_day
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19
votes
4 answers
What is the layout of Ancient Egyptian pyramid shafts?
I'm investigating proposed alignments between pyramid* shafts and constellations for a video project, and for it, I need to know shaft angles and directions, the directions with respect to true North on Earth (or easily convertible). My problem in…
Stuart Robbins
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19
votes
7 answers
Was there ever any doubt which side the USA would join?
From a British perspective in both WW1 and WW2 the USA have entered the war at a later stage and supported the allies.
The decision for the US to enter the war has often been portrayed to be based on particular acts of aggression against them. The…
Liath
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19
votes
10 answers
Are steam engines still in regular use anywhere in the world?
Are there any countries in which steam engines have a regular purpose, or are still dominant on the railway? When did they officially fade out of use in the western world?
In Australia at least, they are being privately looked into again to make a…
Duncan
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