The Ottomans were among the most successful conquerors in history. In contrast to the Seljuks, the Ottomans seems to have focused on expanding into Europe and fighting and conquering Christians instead of other Muslims (at least until the reign of Selim I). I've heard there's something called the 'Gaza hypothesis' stating that the early Ottoman rulers saw themselves as holy warriors (Ghazis) with a duty to conquer Christian kingdoms in the name of Islam. But I've heard this hypothesis is controversial.

So, anyone with a background in Ottoman history, what would you say were the motivations for the Ottoman expansion into Europe from the reign of Murad I? to the reign of Suleiman I? Was it primarily religiously motivated or were their more prosaic reasons? Did the motivation change over time?

I'm a business major and a general amount of my studies has been studying economics and in turn a lot of recessions. However, it feels like recessions that stretch worldwide have become more common since at least the '80s. Personally, this is the second economic downturn I've lived through, and I was born shortly after the tech bubble but. Is there a historically relevant reason as of to why they feel like they happen more often, or is the concept of history so vast that economic downturns get buried in all of it?

I saw that a lot of the population of Brasil is mixed, I guess some soldiers chose to stay with native girls. I think it was pretty hard to overcome the language- and culurial barrier. Wouldn't they have completely different values and religious beliefs? (I know that Brasil later "officially" adopted Christianity). I personally think Brasil changed at the time of the colonization in some good ways, like when the abolition of slavery was undertaken.

As mentioned in the title, my forefather served in the british indian army somewhere around the 1860s-1870s, and probably in the cavalry. how do i find his regiment as my main aim is to find out the medals he was entitled to (i'm doing this for all my family members who have served in the army). i live i New Delhi and can't afford to visit the British national archives in Kew, london for this specifc purpose, never mind the pandemic.

one major challenge that i am facing is how the names were spelled differently during the british raj in india and post independence. for eg: the Punjabi/Sikh surname 'Arrora' was spelled as 'Aurora" during the Raj

Any help would be appreciated

I am currently reading a book about Zheng He, a famous Chinese admiral who’s voyages took him all the way to the East coast of Africa decades before Columbus would sail across the Atlantic. Zheng He’s treasure ships were massive, but seemed extremely unstable on the open ocean. They were flat-bottomed boats which could easily navigate up river; however, I imagine ocean travel was risky for these ships when they encountered large swells. European vessels during this time could not match the size of these ships, but also seemed much more stable in the ocean with their rounded, high hulls and deep keels. I suppose my question is: when did Europeans develop ships which we would recognize as seafaring vessels and did other civilizations (ancient China) know that a keel would make a ship much more stable in the open ocean?

I'm writing a thesis on the emperor in the Byzantine Empire (image, cult, concept, diplomacy, the way he was perceived, politics, court manners, actually all aspects of this institution). Can someone help with some book recommendations?

This is something I've always been intrigued by. I can't help but think the collective consciousness of the population would have been significantly changed over such a enormous length of time. Would I know the names of Old Kingdom kings? Were our traditions and views on life and death the same? Heck, could we even have communicated with each other?

Edit: grammar

Looking for answers.

Hello,

curious if there are any resources, that detail the Phoenicians impact in the Iberian peninsula. I'm curious about the kind of relationship that the Phoenicians developed with the people's of the Iberian peninsula, and more specifically of the inhabitants of modern day Lisbon

Thank you

The common argument I hear for China’s stagnation in firearm was because China did not have as many wars and had long stretches of peace. However didn’t India have much more population than Europe and just as much competition. Matchlocks were used well into the 1830s.

I was reading porphyry's account of Plotinus's life. What struck me is that although Plotinus appears to have been a rather stoic type he seemed to have lots of money by the standard of his day. He had enough money to at least have personal Masseurs afford medical treatments, travel, and not have to have any other kind of job. I just don't understand what did Philosophers actually do that was a value to society that they could make so much money. Did they mentor and teach for money or did people just give them donations or something?

Also there was mention of a plague during plotinus's time in Rome. I assume this is the Cyprian plague? ( just a side curiosity )

I'm from Europe so I'm really not familiar with that format. Follow up question(s):

How come (most) teams in those competitions don't have youth teams while it's common in European competitions.

Why can (non-foreign?) palyers only enter the competion via the Draft? And if a team chooses a player, does that player have to play for that team, or can he refuse?

Did Toronto and Montreal experience the same kind of urban growth as New York? Was there a similar wage growth and change in culture?

My brother has a PhD in sports history and believes there are no jobs for him outside of academia. Any jobs you have had or have that could help him think of some opportunities?

I read about a conflict called the Metis War several months ago but it didn't seem like it was a major conflict over sovereignty to the same extent that Pontiac's War was in the 1760s (unless if I am mistaken). I am curious to learn of examples that might of taken place in Manitoba, Alberta, Saskachewan and British Columbia. Yukon and other northern territories are fine examples as well.

My father is a firm skeptic (history channel nut) and he asked me this recently and I honestly had no reply. I know there’s some sort of logical explanation, but I never learned much about this in school or anything. Any historians have any info on this topic?

Or in general was the consensus that WWII was a special circumstance and future use was unlikely? Wondering what leaders around the world were thinking in regards to nuclear application pre Cold War MAD type of thinking.

Thanks your time:)

I've wondered for a while why quillons were not used in the ancient world, or at least were not used very much. What changed about warfare that would cause this design to become popular?

Did they have any chance to save enough money or goods to buy themselves at least some half functioning glassses, or did they somehow live and work without them?