The battle of Alesia always struck me as an odd thing for Vercingetorix to have invited. Prior to the siege, he had committed to several months of guerilla warfare and scorched-earth-and-retreating. Shortly before the battle of Alesia, the Gauls had lost the battle of Avaricum in a similar siege. After that, they won the battle of Gergovia, but instead of trying to continue their guerilla warfare, they retreated to Alesia to try and withstand another siege. Why the sudden shift in tactics? It doesn't seem like putting a giant amount of Gauls in Alesia was a great idea. It also doesn't seem like Vercingetorix's plan was to try and force the Romans into a decisive battle on two fronts either. It ended up that way, but only because some of Vercingetorix's riders were able to escape and call for help.

Can someone outline how middle class people in the 19th and early 20th century afford household help?

When and how did it start fading away? Was this due to automation or household servants and cleaners becoming too expensive? How could a moderately professional person afford a full time maid or cook? Or is my perception wrong and based on too many movies?

So I've been reading a lot of Maoist philosophy and strategy recently. And I stumbled onto the examples here on Reddit that China trained some of the mujahideen for the Soviet-Afghan war.
Mao seemed to think in terms of six political warfares; Stratagem, Psychological, Intelligence, Organization, Ideological, and "Mass mobility".
I guess I'm having trouble seeing the later. How did a tribal people get more people engaged in a war? especially getting those from other countries. (Osama Bin Laden being the most famous as a Saudi, obviously).
I see the "why" (ideology differences - defence of Islam & home against invaders). But they didn't have the internet or home-spun terrorist-like media organizations that Al Qaeda and ISIS were/are notorious for.

How did they get the word out and engage people? How could they rally people to their cause? Thanks!

Is there any connection between Halloween and the crusaders? I remember hearing somewhere that a whole bunch of crusaders where executed on halloween or close to it. Is this true or am I just remembering something falsely?

I have recently gotten by BA in History but I am unsure that I want to get an academic career so I have been considering getting a business or marketing job instead. However, I know little to nothing about the steps needed to start a career in the business world. Any advice or suggestions?

I'm reading "A History of Women in America" and it mentions how during the Industrial Revolution women started leaving domestic work to take factory jobs in the city instead. I think that's the second time I've come across a reference to factory work being preferable to domestic labor. Considering the long hours, severe restrictions, and horrible work conditions of factories back then, I'm wondering what was so unappealing about domestic jobs or life in the country that people would prefer the misery of factory work?

I know that the kingdoms of Africa ultimately lost from the military might of the European powers, but did they have any victories. I know about the Italo-Abyssinian War of 1896 and the Battle of Islandwana, but were there any others?

Any longstanding mysteries that have been solved? I know this is probably more a question for anthropologists, but i wanted to ask here as well.

Is it likely proved that Hitler commited suicide in Berlin in 1945? Or is there a chance that he made it to South America escaping the allied troops like some other nazi party officers?

On the one hand, when I read about medieval Japan, that culture sure seems similar to medieval Europe. But I wonder whether historians are projecting European medieval characteristics to make that period more understandable to Westerners.

On the other hand, I recognize there are connections/exchanges between cultures and similarities in technologies that may well create world-wide similarities in cultures.

This last point may suggest stages of cultural development. So another way of asking my question would be, "Is 'medieval' a real or illusory stage of cultural development?"

Thanks in advance.

[In the spirit of Columbus Day, I am re-posting a question that didn't get answered]

At this point, it is a well-known fact that Christopher Columbus was not proving the world was round, nor was he even the first European in America. And even during his own lifetime, it seems (from what I know) that he wasn't accredited as any new "discovery" at all (as he claimed it was Asia, a rather old continent). The first person who said he found a new continent was Amerigo Vespucci, and got the whole thing named after him in c.1507, a year after Columbus died. In Sir Thomas More's book Utopia in 1516, when talking about the "New World" he never mentions Columbus at all, but only talks about Vepucci's discovery. How long did it take before people started treating Columbus as the great "discoverer"? How long did it take before Columbus was elevated to such mythology to outshine Vespucci and all the other explorers of his generation?

What made the guitar solo so popular in music for so long? What killed it?

Ive seen quite some articles saying that France in this era wanted to stall German reunification and thus declared war on Prussia. Apparently France was perceived as much stronger but got beaten anyway. Is there any way that France couldve turned out victorious militarily speaking? (And if you want to you can share your thoughts on what’d happen if they’d actually won)

Ladies and Gentlemen of AskHistorians,

I am not a collegiate student of History (though I am considering a MSc/PhD), but am a passionate amateur. My question is: how do you search and discover “legitimate” (read: scholarly) historical texts outside of the Univeristy library system? I’ve done quite a bit of googling, and looked through the sticky thread on recommended books, but haven’t found any reliable repositories of solid, scholarly history in my areas of interest.

My best finds so far have been academic presses such as Oxford University Press, but I am curious if the brain trust here had other recommendations that may be obfuscated by google.

If it is relevant, my primary areas of interest are Jewish History (especially European/Middle Ages), Medieval/Middle Ages Europe political/economic, and the Balkans/former Soviet Socialist Republics; especially as these particular areas crossed from antiquity into the Middle Ages.

Thank you for your time!