I know that Marco Polo had a chart that depicted it and what’s now the Russian Far East, and I know that the Chinese traded with Japan which eventually lead Francis Xavier and other sailors to land there, but how extensive was knowledge of Japan and its islands before Francis Xavier’s arrival? Did any royal families have artifacts from there or was there mention of it in various journals and logs of traders and travelers?

It had been relatively isolated for so long that it’s be interesting to know what effect it had on the West before its opening.

American segregation during much of the 20th century is a pretty well understood and discussed, but what was it like in Europe during this time? Obviously there were fewer visible minorities as a percentage of the population in places like France and Belgium which probably means fewer official policies, but was it possible to be a successful black professional or academic? Would it matter much if you were from an African colony vs. a visitor from America?

I’ve just wonder if there were/are any stories or folklore about them seeing tornadoes. Since the United States is one of the few countries that have them.

Basically the title. What did greeks and romans thinkk of other ancient civilized cultures such as Egypt and Mesopotamia? Did they also think of the as barbarians and savages? Or did they have some sort of special respect for them in comparison to Gauls and other tribal cultures?

I'm trying to write something involving a lance and a shield, however I want to be more specific with the type of shield used. I'm unsure if it differs by country or era - it probably does, but I'm not that knowledgable - but I'm thinking of the typical medieval England knights for this. Google didn't seem to give me a straight answer, only that shields Were used.

I learned briefly about parchment and papyrus in grade school, but I was trying to find out what St Augustine would have used to write his manuscripts and Wikipedia was no help. What kind of paper did people use in different time periods and how do I go about finding out what a certain manuscript is made of when I am reading about it in Wikipedia, or should I assume it was all papyrus?

I’ve been doing some research on the history of the English longbow and I came across an article which claimed that there were French archers who served in the English army during the Middle Ages. The claim seems plausible enough.The Kings of England at various times controlled large areas of modern day France, such as Normandy and Gascony and people living in those regions would have fought for their vassal, the King of England. Is there evidence to confirm some of these soldiers severed as archers and used the longbow?

Supporting published works citing public records between 1945 August 5 and 1945 August 10 including but not limited to: newspapers, statements entered to the public record for local government, court proceedings, state and federal House speeches and Senate speeches, Canadian and British Hansard, and the published record books of all scientific record. Are there any "must reads"?

Hey, I'm just a teacher who dreamt up this assignment for himself. 5 minutes ago. So, I'll get around to this. But, if anyone wants to help make this faster by pointing me in their preferred directions, that might be helpful.

I'm also looking for impressions on undertaking this as a body of evidence. If I exhaust my relevant peek into it all, will anything be verified? Is this what doing a master's is like?

This is not homework help.

I was watching the Netflix show Vikings and noticed that a man and women went into a room to have sex with curtains around. A nearby bath was being filled by a maid(?) but the couple wasn’t interrupted.

Made me question when did cultures start having sex “privately” or sneak away from public view for it. Was it because of shame? How was privacy thought of in early and middle history?

The only other contrasting scene coming to mind was the rape/sex in the dothraki tribe in game of thrones which was in public view of others or open space. I know that’s fictional but given other large mammals mate in full view of others, how did humans evolve to have sex in private?

Thank you!

Is there a good book that gives an overview of law in ancient Rome, and its influence on other legal systems?

If possible, I'm interested in the Republic or early Empire, rather than something in the Justinianic era.

I know there was a very small atomic bomb program in Japan at one point.

The mods can remove this post if it's not suited for the sub, I will understand. I didn't really know where else to turn to.

Hello! I am planning on making an historical movie based on the fight for the English throne in the year 1066. The story will include people such as Harold Godwinson, William the Bastard and Harald Hardrada, with the first half of the story centering around Harold VS Harald and the second half centering around Harold VS William.

So far, I am in the stage of research and writing a very rough first draft of the script. And thus I wanted to ask you educated people of Reddit if there are any key points or interesting parts that absolutely should be included in the movie regarding this period? Such as quotes by people, facts regarding language or clothing, hairstyles and mannerisms and so on. My intention is to make this movie as historically accurate as possible not only in event but also overall, in all the cultures presented in the movie (Norman, Viking and English/Saxon). For example, an event I will include is the one where Harold Godwinson uttered "Seven feet of English ground, as he is taller than other men." to Tostig and Hardrada. Similar situations to this is what I am after, and much more.

I am aware that this is a huge question to ask but I am determined to make everything as correct as possible, so any information you may have at this point is welcome!

I've heard conflicting reports from both sides. Many modern pagans claim that Europe was one big forced conversion by the sword. While the Christian side claims that most of it was peaceful and that the majority of pagans willingly converted. Or is the truth somewhere in the middle?

So over 2000 years, they somehow managed to cross 2/3 of the massive Pacific Ocean in small wooden boats while traveling against ocean currents and using nothing but the stars for navigation. By the 11th century they had made it as far east as Hawaii, the Marquesas Islands and even Easter Island which is only 2300 miles from South America. That might sound like a really long distance, and it is. However, that’s exactly how far they had to travel to get to Hawaii from the Marquesas Islands. So why would they stop at Easter Island or Hawaii, why wouldn’t they just keep on going? Is there any evidence that they made it to South America or even California?

I read conflicting sources on Benjamin Franklin's relationship with Margaret Stevenson some saying he was romantically involved with both of them and other sources saying it was platonic. So which one is it?