I'm curious to know if a full-fledged historian (not just someone versed in history) has ever been employed by the White House in past administrations to act as a reference for general advice. We always say we study history to see how different actions resulted in certain consequences and to avoid ignorance. Did the White House ever maintain a historian specifically (not his departments, Secretaries, etc. but the President himself.)

If you compare Europe and China in a historical context, they both share a few commonalities. Different states in Europe retain different cultures, languages, currency, nationalism, etc. The same can be said about all of the Chinese states during the times of a fragmented China. However, it seems that while Europe has never really been under the control of one nation before (outside of brief military conquest), China has existed under one flag several times throughout history. So my question is, why is China so much easier to unite into one nation than Europe?

For what reason did the Holocaust happen? What was the bigger picture, in the decision of killing people in the gas chambers?

I understand the project was secret but when the bomb was completed I read that the US government released vague pamphlets declaring that the bomb advertising the bomb was sleek with no military markings. In terms of actual facts american public was given very little information on the Manhattan Project .

I often hear that people largely drank alcohol in the pre-modern era as an alternative to water which was often contaminated.

In a society were alcohol was drunk regularly and there was little understanding of the risks of doing so would you often see FAS develop in a significant portion of the population?

When the Puritans arrived in New England they essentially had to create a society and all the infrastructure from scratch, as when they got there it was mostly lightly populated wilderness. My question is how did it take for the New England colonies to reach equality to “Old England” in terms of economic and cultural development as well as quality of life? What about HDI and GDP per Capita?

For example in early days of the colonies they were highly dependent on supplies brought over from England when did this dependance stop? How long was it until there no product or service you could buy in Old England that you could not also buy in New England?

Also regarding crime, did the New England colonies have lower or higher crime rates did this vary by type of crime like violent or white collar?

Also how long had it been since the quality of life in England was at the level endured by the very first groups of colonists in New England like those in the first year of Plymouth?

How did these vary by region?

According to Wikipedia, Lee applied to be reinstated as a citizen but his paperwork was lost and his citizenship was never restored in his lifetime. Why did congress decide to reinstate it in 1975? Was it some kind of backlash to the civil rights act? What was the public sentiment in regards to Lee at the time of his restoration?

You often hear people praising aircraft from other major powers of WW2 like P-51 Mustang, Spitfire, BF109 and Zero but you rarely hear people talking about the aircraft of the Red Air Force, except maybe the IL-2 Sturmovik. So how good were their aircraft? Were the aircraft poor or were the pilots simply poorly trained, considering how many aces the Germans had, many of whom had over 100 airkills?

As far as historical events go, the sinking of the Titanic seems to be 'household' knowledge among people today. Everyone (even kids) has some awareness of what it means for something to be a 'titanic' failure. But has this always been the case? As a younger (or probably close to median age) Reddit user, I am very curious as to the effect the 1997 film had on our culture's general awareness of the 1912 tragedy. Grateful for any insight you guys can offer!!

Are their any estimates of the jewish percentage of the world in the 13th century bce . And at 600 bce. EDIT :Hmmm why no comments.

I had never heard of this before reading Gone with the Wind.

I periodically see people talking about the "positive" effects of the bubonic plague in Europe: increased social mobility and economic equality, sometimes with a little too much enthusiasm.

Is a similar phenomena observable in Asia from the plague, or in any location from any similar pandemic? Is there any evidence for this around the Justinian plague? What other sociological effects can be seen after a pandemic?

I've always thought it a little odd how they never did. From what I can tell, and from what I've learned about the Temples in Judaism class, how central they were to Jewish life, and the theological crisis that erupted from its destruction in 70 CE, I would have assumed constructing a 3rd Temple would be the first thing the new citizens of Israel would have done upon their return to their ancestral homeland.

Is there a reason they haven't? Has the modern Jewish opinions or perspectives on the Temples changed to the point where they no longer want one? Do they perhaps believe the no longer need one?

They've certainly rebuilt it before (after it was destroyed in 587 BCE), so I assume it's not a matter of it being too holy to be replicated or anything. Is there an issue with where to build it, perhaps? I.e. a Temple can only properly be built in one spot, and that spot is currently occupied?

I’m intrigued whether most Germans woke up one day, perhaps after the death camps were reported on, and that’s when the nation changed and abandoned Nazism and anti-semitism. So, did many citizens all the sudden realise it was all a terrible lie? Or was it a gradual decline in the minds of the population that took many years? I understand every individual is different, I’m looking for a general overview.

[deleted]