It seems like a lot of historically prosperous countries have also had strong navies. Is there any connection to the two?

Some examples would be:

USA in 2018: Worlds strongest Economy and Worlds Strongest Navy.

18th Century Britain: World superpower, Strong Economy, Most feared Navy of the time, 17th-19th century

Chola Dynasty: Great economy, Considered strongest Navy from 300BC to 1300AD.

So I happened across a discussion and someone said "who said Excalibur was a sword?"

And now I'm curious so I want to ask you all, was it ever definitely said that Excalibur was a sword?

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Thank you for your time.

I’ve heard about the paratroopers flown in before the invasion but never understood why the allies didnt bomb the crap out of the first few hundred meters from the beaches. Why?

If I were a particularly rich man-at-arms or a knight interested in head protection, what are my best options? I have the choice of buying armor from anywhere in Europe, as I can easily send my measurements to foreign armorers. Time period is 15th century Europe.

I've also heard that different helmet styles were made for different styles of warfare. If that's the case, what are the best options for:

• Fighting primarily on horseback?
• Fighting on foot?
• Fighting in naval conditions? Are there special treatments available for stopping rust and the like?

I'm reading Japanese Tales by Royall Tyler and in the chapter I'm on, there are multiple folk tales mentioning "genies" as malicious spirits. This was peculiar to me, as genies are Middle-eastern afaik and Japan is a long way from the Middle East. Are these actually genies adopted from middle eastern folklore or are they completely different creatures simply called "genies" for translation purposes?

Was it of such a scale that it won the war? Did it arrive at a crucial point in the war? Is it over or underplayed in it's significance?

If everything was state-owned, where did the state get the money? Surely trade couldn't cover everything, right?

Did Joan contribute any strategic value to the French war effort? Is there external evidence that coincides with the French turning the tide of the war (ex. new leadership, tax reform)?

I’m not sure if this is the best place to ask this question I just didn’t know where else to ask

I was recently informed that the Nazis had a great interest in occult activities. Being that my own personal interests lean toward the mystic, I was very fascinated. Could anyone offer me resources about this topic? Thank you!! ❣️

During the Napoleonic wars some major victories are attributed to the ease of maneuvre for the grand armee, Battle of Ulm (1905) sprung to mind. How did the grand armee get so outmaneuvred in the russian campaign - or did it all get outmaneuvred?

I’m sure this is a dumb question, but traveling through to Sheridan Wyoming with all of its history with the Native American Chieftains fighting years of battles to try and protect their land, I began wondering if they made use of maps or if most of what they did was just through knowing the land so well in a different way. It occurred to me that I had personally never came across a recovered Native American map in a museum or something similar. Any answers or information on something similar on the subject would be so appreciated!

Thank you for your time :)

Trench warfare is what most people associated with the western front in WW1.

If you analyse the strength of each side then the French and British had every advantage. They had more men, they had huge overseas colonies that could supply even more men, they had better industry and supply and were on homesoil. They had better supply lines and access to the sea as well.

So why would they ever attack? All they needed to do was sit in their trenches and wait for Germany's economy to collapse. Or just wait for Germany to make increasingly desperate attacks which they could fight off easily.

It seems to me like Britain and France could have won WW1 on the western front by just doing nothing at all.

Sending millions of men to die in suicidal attacks like the Somme was therefore unnecessary and wasteful, so why do it? Sure, the war would have lasted longer but less men would have died.

The trade center existed long before 1201 so what exactly changed in 1201? Just church bureaucracy and administration? Or was there a large influx of German settlers that fundamentally changed the layout and economy of the river-port?