Especially when trying to communicate to prisoners from several regions who each spoke their own language.
1 Answers 2020-09-26
I've just read a news story stating that a State official has dismissed another official for being unlawfully appointed by the Trump admonistration, and this got me thinking. Were there similar cases where the Nazis overstepped their bounds prior to their majorities and seizure of power, where there was pushback from the establishment, or did the party's officials largely follow protocol and play a safe game until they had the upper hand? I'm aware of acts like the Beer Hall Putsch and the activities of the SA but I'm interested specifically in party members and officials who may have held elected office or powerful positions such as in courts or in ministries and agencies, and whether there was any great controversy around them?
1 Answers 2020-09-26
Just something I’m curious about. It seems like most of the other ethnic minority groups in the Soviet Union formed their own states at the end of the Cold War. So why did Russia use military force to hold onto Chechnya?
Thanks!
1 Answers 2020-09-26
It seems to me that there are two prevailing thoughts on Chamberlains response to Nazi Germany and his policy of appeasement. One side sees him as weak and cowardly, the other that he had to buy time for Britain to rearm, knowing full well war was inevitable.
My questions are thus, is there evidence that Chamberlain knew war was coming? Why was Britain so ill prepared despite having witnessed first hand how demanding on both manpower and resources WWI was?
1 Answers 2020-09-26
I've searched for things like in the past with no success, as there seems to be a bit of competing language, and admittedly have not read the Federalist and Anti-Federalist papers in a very long time.
1 Answers 2020-09-25
1 Answers 2020-09-25
the Ancient Rome, Greek and Chinese were all very accepting to homosexuality, but at some point of history homosexuality became a social taboo in most parts of the world, when and why did it became a social taboo?
1 Answers 2020-09-25
I want to learn more about the history of Uighars, western China, and that area of the word in general. Learning about the uighars let me know I’m missing out on a chunk of history. Then I started to think about it, and I know nothing about Muslim history, western China history, Nepal history, and anyone else in that region I haven’t mentioned...because I know nothing.
What should I read about? I’m probably going to go into a wiki hole tonight. I would appreciate some direction.
1 Answers 2020-09-25
I always hear or read declarations that Alexander the Great, the Roman Caesars, etc. conquered the "known world" but how wide was the known world in classical antiquity? If we were to survey the breadth of geographical knowledge of the world among ancient Greeks or Romans (say 500 BCE to 500 CE), how far did the known world extend?
I understand this idea of there being a "known world" is probably more of a neat term used by historians rather than historical actors but this has always made me curious. For instance, the Romans, who revered Alexander the Great, would have to know that he conquered Persia and made it as far as India, but how well did they understand that there was much more to see beyond their borders?
I also read that the Romans made contact with sub-Saharan Africa via expeditions across the Sahara but did they realize how much more continent there was? Did they have much contact with places like East Asia or Scandinavia beyond knowing that there were people there and occasionally having some trade?
1 Answers 2020-09-25
1 Answers 2020-09-25
I know that the process of pulling power away from the Crown was extremely long and painful. To most of us in the US we are familiar with events like the Magna Carta, the War of the Roses, the English Civil War, the Glorious Restoration and so forth, but each event seems to just shift power between factions that were still basically ruled by the King (or swapping out kings, you know what I mean).
In the US, it has evolved that basically the president calls the shots. The other branches can only really react to his decisions. A basic example would be an impeachment. More often you have things like court decisions or congressional funding that can help or stymie the president.
Even during the US Revolutionary war, the assumption was that King George prosecuted the war, and King George made the decision to call it off. Is that completely accurate? Did Canada declare war on Germany in 1914 because the British King said so? The shot calling authority within the UK has always been murky to me.
This is a long question because, frankly, I wouldn't ask it here if it were an easy one. What I'm driving at is a potential refutation of the long held American belief that the US is the oldest democracy in the world. I'm fairly confident in this assertion, but not completely sure. If the US democracy is 2020-1789 (conversion of confederacy to federal democracy) = 231 years, then how old could the UK claim their official documented form of democracy to be?
1 Answers 2020-09-25
Let's say I'm a knight in medieval England. I just bought a new shield, and I have to put my arms on it so I don't get battleaxed to death by the guys on my own side.
How does this happen? Are they painted on? If so, do I do it myself (in which case, I might be in trouble, because my artistic ability is terrible) or do I pay an artist to do it? Is putting my arms on the shield an included service when I purchase the shield?
Or are are they not painted at all? Are they carved? Is there a heraldic design shop where I can go buy wooden or metal designs and attach them with nails?
1 Answers 2020-09-25
I'm an undergraduate history major taking one of my final courses, a course on Marriage, Family, and Sexuality in Early Modern Europe, and currently discussing the Black Death and reading the Decameron. I find it interesting, especially given how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected things. I'm trying to find some good monographs or journal articles on the subject but I am having difficulties. I would appreciate any recommendations for sources.
1 Answers 2020-09-25
In The Song of Roland, a few different French characters make reference to the Muslim Saracens worshipping Apollo. Is this something Europeans at the time believed happened? If so, why? And if not, why was it included in this story?
2 Answers 2020-09-25
1 Answers 2020-09-25
1 Answers 2020-09-25
I was reading through Crusading and the Crusader States by Andrew Jotischky when I came across this claim:
These simple people were, based on Arab accounts, treated no worse -- and possibly better -- by their Christian overlords and landlords than they had been treated by their Turkish ones. For example, Ibn Jubair, who visited the Kingdom of Jerusalem in 1183 from Grenada, noted that the Muslim peasants he saw in Galilee “seemed more prosperous and content than those living under Islamic rule outside the Kingdom of Jerusalem.”
Is the claim that the general populace of Muslims within and on pilgrimage to Jerusalem treated with hospitality generally true? Or is this claim relative to the treatment of the Shia Muslims when the Sunni Seljuk Turks held Jerusalem?
1 Answers 2020-09-25
It's sort of a trope that monastic orders in Eastern Asia, including China and Japan, are associated with martial arts. How did this come about?
1 Answers 2020-09-25
In 2020, the end of the Soviet Union seems more or less inevitable. However, how much of that is reality and how much of that is hindsight bias? What were American officials saying or thinking about the future of the Soviet Union in its last year? Were they seeing an eventual collapse? Or was there faith in the policies of Gorbachev to keep the USSR going indefinitely into the future?
1 Answers 2020-09-25
1 Answers 2020-09-25
This post crossed my feed and many of the commenters are suggesting he is a Harlem Hellfighter or Buffalo Soldier, etc. I'm wondering not only if the soldier in the photo is truly 'unknown', but also if he is, how much we could know about his company/rank and life in WW1 just based on this picture. I would also love to know more about black American soldiers in WW1 in general.
2 Answers 2020-09-25
Hello r/AskHistorians!
Recently, the Grand Strategy/RPG game Crusader Kings III was released to critical acclaim. We’ve had some questions pop up that relate specifically to certain game features such as de jure claims, cadet branches and nudity, and since our last medieval panel was a long time ago, we’ve decided to host a flair panel where all your questions on the medieval world can be answered!
A big problem with CKIII, as its title suggests, is its Eurocentric approach to the world. So besides our amazing medieval Western Europe flairs, we’ve also recruited as broadly as possible. I’m glad to say that our flair panel has contributors specialising in the Byzantine Empire, Central Europe, Northern Europe, Eastern Europe, the Muslim world, Africa, Central Asia and East Asia (Paradox East Asia DLC when?)! While we know some of the above regions are not covered in CKIII, we thought it would be a great opportunity for our panel to discuss both the commonality and differences of the medieval world, along with issues of periodisation. In addition, we have panelists willing to answer questions on themes often marginalised in medieval sources, such as female agency, sexuality and heresies. For those of you interested in game development and mechanics, other panelists will be willing to talk about the balancing act between historical accuracy and fun gameplay, as well as public engagement with history through video games. There will be answers for everything and everyone! Do hop in and ask away!
Our fantastic panel, in roughly geographic order:
/u/Libertat Celtic, Roman and Frankish Gaul will field questions on the Carolingians (all those Karlings you see at the start of CKIII), in addition to those concerning the western European world before, during and after 867 AD.
/u/cazador5 Medieval Britain will take questions on Scottish, Welsh, English history through all the playable years of CKIII (867 AD to 1453 AD). They are also willing to take a crack at broader medieval topics such as feudalism, economics and Papal issues.
/u/Rittermeister Anglo-Norman History | History of Knighthood will answer questions on knighthood, aristocracy and war in England from the Norman Conquest of 1066 AD to the 12th century. They are willing to talk about the late Carolingian transformation and the rise of feudal politics as well.
/u/CoeurdeLionne Chivalry and the Angevin Empire is willing to answer questions on warfare in 12th Century England and France, the structure of aristocratic society, and the development of chivalry.
/u/AlviseFalier Communal Italy will be on hand to answer questions on medieval Italy, in particular economics and trade in the region.
/u/Asinus_Docet Med. Warfare & Culture | Historiography | Joan of Arc will be here to answer your questions on medieval marriage, aristocratic networks, heresies and militaries (those levies don't just rise up from the ground, you know!)
/u/dromio05 History of Christianity | Protestant Reformation will be here for questions on religion in western Europe, especially pertaining to the history of the papacy and dissident religious movements (Heresies galore!).
/u/Kelpie-Cat Medieval Church | Celtic+Scottish Studies | Medieval Andes will be on hand to cover questions on religion and gender in the medieval period.
/u/mimicofmodes Moderator | 18th-19th Century Society & Dress | Queenship will be happy to answer questions related to medieval women’s history, with a particular focus on queenship.
/u/KongChristianV Nordic Civil Law | Modern Legal History will take questions on late medieval legal history, including all those succession laws and de jure territorial claims!
/u/Rhodis Military Orders and Late Medieval British Isles will handle enquiries related to the Holy Orders (Templars, Hospitallers, etc.), the Crusades, and late medieval Britain and Ireland.
/u/WelfOnTheShelf Crusader States | Medieval Law is willing to answer questions about the Crusades, and more specifically enquiries on the Crusader States established in the Near East.
/u/0utlander Czechoslovakia will cover questions on medieval Bohemia and the Hussites (a group suspiciously absent in CKIII…) They are also willing to engage with more general questions regarding the linkages between public history and video games.
/u/J-Force Medieval Political History | Crusades will handle enquiries on the political histories of the European and Muslim worlds, the Crusades, Christian heresies, in addition to the difficulties in balancing game development and historical interpretation (I hear some talk of this flair being a mod maker…)
/u/Mediaevumed Vikings | Carolingians | Early Medieval History can answer a broad range of topics including Viking Age Scandinavia, late Carolingian/early Capetian France, medieval economics and violence, as well as meta discussions of game design, game mechanics and their connections with medieval history.
/u/SgtBANZAI Russian Military History will be here for questions on Russian military, nobility and state service during the 13th to 15th centuries, including events such as the Mongolian conquest, wars with Lithuania, Kazan, Sweden, the Teutonic Order, and the eventual victory of Moscow over its rivals in the 15th century.
/u/sagathain Medieval Norse Culture and Reception will be here for questions on post-Viking Age (1066 onward) Scandinavia and Iceland, and how CKIII game mechanics fail to represent the actual historical experience in medieval northern Europe.
/u/Steelcan909 Moderator | North Sea c.600-1066 | Late Antiquity specialises in the transition from Late Antiquity to the Early Middle Ages up through to the Norman Conquest of England. He can answer questions on the great migrations, Vikings, Anglo-Saxons, and daily life in the Middle Ages.
/u/mrleopards Late Roman & Byzantine Warfare is a Byzantine hobbyist who will be happy to answer questions on the evolution of the Roman army during the Empire's transformation into a medieval state.
/u/Snipahar Early Modern Ottoman Empire is here to answer questions on the decline of the Byzantine Empire post-1299 and the fall of Constantinople in 1453 AD (coincidentally the last playable year in CKIII).
/u/Yazman Islamic Iberia 8th-11th Century will take questions on al-Andalus (Islamic Iberia) and international relations between the Iberian peninsula and neighbouring regions from the 8th century to the 11th century.
/u/sunagainstgold Moderator | Medieval & Earliest Modern Europe will be happy to answer questions on the medieval Islamic world, interfaith (Muslim/Jewish/Christian) interaction, female mysticism, and the eternal question of medieval periodisation!
/u/swarthmoreburke Quality Contributor is willing to answer questions on state and society in medieval West Africa, as well as similar questions concerning medieval East Africa.
/u/Commustar Swahili Coast | Sudanic States | Ethiopia will field questions on East African medieval history, especially the Ethiopian Zagwe and early Solomonid periods (10th to 15th century).
/u/cthulhushrugged Early and Middle Imperial China will take a break from their Great Liao campaign to answer questions on the Khitan, Jurchen, Mongols, Tibetans and the general historical context concerning the easternmost edges of the CKIII map.
/u/LTercero Sengoku Japan will be happy to answer questions on Muromachi and Sengoku Japan (14th to 17th centuries).
/u/ParallelPain Sengoku Japan will be here to answer all your questions on samurai, ashigaru, and everything else related to Medieval Japanese warfare, especially during the Sengoku period (1467-1615).
A reminder: our panel consists of flairs from all over the globe, and many (if not all!) have real world obligations. AskHistorians has always prided itself on the quality of its answers, and this AMA is no different. Answering questions up to an academic standard takes time, so please be patient and give our panelists plenty of time to research and write up a good answer! Thank you for your understanding.
78 Answers 2020-09-25
One of the more fascinating funeral traditions I've heard about was sin-eating. But who were the sin-eaters? Were they mainly men or women? Do we know?
1 Answers 2020-09-25
1 Answers 2020-09-25
I understand that the process of colonizations varied wildly by regions, powers and centuries, but I have the feeling that there are some clear differences between how different powers did colonialism. I think it is easy to appreciate at least 3 different approaches.
For the first approach I'm thinking for example of Dutch colonialism in the Dutch East Indies. In Indonesia they seem to have left very little cultural impact. There is very few architectural and infrastructure remains from the time. The Bahasa Indonesia has just some loan words of dutch origin here and there, and the people seem to be fenotipically south east asian. That seems like colonialism with very little cultural impact and without any visible attempts at making life better for the colonies. Seems like purely economical exploitation.
For the second I can think of most spanish colonies in the americas. The spanish have left a clear cultural impact including cuisine, language, religion and traditions. On top of that there was a clear attempt at changing those regions to make them more spanish-like. Some examples can be constructing large expensive cathedrals, or universities even on the first few decades of the conquest. And the spanish population mixed together with the native population, so fenotipically people look often mixed. Looks more like an attempt to incorporate the population and the land to the conquering nation.
Finally for the third approach, I would consider some sort of "substitution" colonialism, such as USA, Canada, Argentina or Australia, where the population has mostly non-native ancestry and the cities are very european, with the native population mostly confined to reservations. Looks like an attempt at incorporating the land, excluding the native people, to the conquering nation.
It seems to me that in the case of british, french and dutch colonialism it could be related to the weather. In places with more european-like weather (North America, South Africa, Oceania) they went for the 3rd approach while in most of Africa, India or Asia they seem to have used the 1st. In any case avoiding to mix with the local population. But the case of spanish colonies seems less clear to me. I would say they used the 1st approach in the Philipines and Africa, the 2nd in most of South and Central America (including jungle regions) and the 3rd in Argentina and Chile. Is there any kind of pattern? Where the spanish simply more willing to mix with the locals? How does the approach of other colonial powers like Portugal or Germany compare? Am I oversimplifying way too much?
1 Answers 2020-09-25