In 1206 at the great gathering of clans where Temujin became Chinggis Khan, would there have been vendors and/or a marketplace? And if so, what would the vending stalls have looked like? Tents? I know wood wasn't the most common material on the steppes, so it doesn't seem like tables or benches would be readily available.

Considering the horrific conditions brought about by crop failures, etc; I know that areas of the med were affected by such issues, though not to the same extent as northern Europe.

Did the Islamic world escape largely undamaged directly?

How did it affect their relationships with Christendom, with regards to war, trade, etc?

Really any information would be appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

Hello, I'm trying to get an understanding of the Late Republic's Political system. It is my understanding that the People's Tribunes had to be plebeians. Weren't the Gracchus brothers both patricians? I've got bonus questions as well, how many people made up the Plebeian assembly (those who elected the People's Tribunes)? Could any Plebeian vote towards it? Was it also based on Century? Basically I'm just trying to understand, did Plebeian citizens directly vote on the Tribunes, or were officials selected for an assembly to then vote on the Tribunes?

I understand there are a lot of variables that might change this, but an approximation?

It seems like all the veterans I read about entered the war in 1916 or 1917 (some I guess because they were American, but the British/Canadians too) which makes me think the odds were quite low.

Does anyone have some further insight on this?

Is there evidence that this was happening? Was it just a rumor started by the Spartans to intimidate their rivals or a rumor started by their rivals to discredit the Spartans? If true, were other people of Dorian descent known to practice something similar?

While the serfs and peasants of the land were very poor, as well as tied to the land they worked on, there appeared to be no large slave trade in Medieval Western Europe, while these regions often had slaves in Roman times. While slavery did gain traction with the age of Exploration, what brought the end of slavery to Medieval kingdoms such as France, England, Castile, or the Holy Roman Empire?

as an aside if that's never been used as the basis for a novel, TV series, movie or play it should have been

Yeah, yeah, yeah. At this point, no one should hopefully be too surprised by some of the answers cropping up since yesterday morning, as really, you've had four years warning to know that just as we are super serious for 364 days of the year, we get super silly for 1 of them. Or 2 of them if you don't believe in time-zone magic.

Anyways though, yes, the short stories you've been seeing - and reporting - are allowed today. The flairs have had a headstart, but as everyone likes to participate in the shenanigans, please be aware of a few ground rules we expect everyone to follow for /r/AskHistoricalFictionWriters aka /r/HistoricalWritingPrompts:

1. Accuracy: At its core, we hope that the answers from the day will still be providing generally useful information, simply in a different style than usual - similar to last year's /r/AskHistoricalFigures event. Of course, there is some leeway to allow for creative license, but we ask that in doing so you be judicious in your approach, and strongly suggest that you provide some way of getting that information in there, either through use of footnotes, a brief addendum, or other means.

2. Please show judgement and good taste: There are some topics that are going to be very difficult to tackle through a narrative structure as opposed to an academic one, so please consider how your 'story' will be received. Do not answer a question about rape with a story where a rapist is your protagonist, or one about genocide where the perpetrators are your main characters.

3. Don't Ruin Someone Else's Story: Collaboration is great, and if you want to write some 'fan fiction' to continue someone else's story, there isn't anything wrong with that, but please don't take it in a wildly different direction, unless you have checked with the OP already via PM. They might already have an idea of where they are going with it for follow-ups, and we don't want to see the canon get split!

4. Asking Questions: We'll be loose with the Trivia Seeking Rule today to give maximum opportunity for everyone. And while super leading questions are allowed, if not encouraged, please don't make them anachronistic!

5. "This is Stupid!": Look, this is the fifth year we have done this. You should expect it by now. If you don't like it, well, you're entitled to your opinion but please, don't get abusive towards people participating in what is very much an established tradition by now. Things will be back to normal tomorrow, OK?

Sorry if the question is a bit vague; happy to clarify, if need be!

Who were the most important figures in Florentine architecture during the Renaissance, and how did their work evolve? Also, how did it compare to the work being done elsewhere in Italy, by people like Palladio?