To his credit, he says something like "I'm not sure that I believe that." Do any actual historians lend this any credence? I'm well aware Dan is not a historian, and I'm (obviously) baffled than anyone could believe that.

I deliberately picked the late edo period because I've been told by that point Samurai's role in society was become more that of bureaucrats than warriors

So I've been reading up on the Armenian Genocide and have been appalled at nearly everything I've read about their treatment in the empire up until WW1. A big retort I get from many Turks, including some Turkish friends, is that Turkey took the necessary steps to defend itself against rebellion during the war and not have a repeat of the Balkan war. How credible is this excuse?

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I'm wary of trusting anything I read online when it comes to the middle east due to the inherent political bias that comes with it. However, I'd like to learn more about the situation so that I don't have biased opinions based on faulty information, and can instead enjoy the pleasure of being less wrong than people I debate.

If I wanted to learn about the historical context that frames the situation and the chain of events that brought us here, where should I start reading and what material is considered trustworthy?

Also, is there a syllabus for a university course on the subject that I can use as an outline for continued exploration?

Sorry for asking so much! I've enjoyed lurking for a while, and I don't have anything to contribute, but I appreciate everyone who does so immensely.

P.S. Happy holidays!

"The chase" is first mentioned when Einhard recounts how Charlemagne's children were educated.

the plan that he adopted for his children's education was, first of all, to have both boys and girls instructed in the liberal arts, to which he also turned his own attention. As soon as their years admitted, in accordance with the custom of the Franks, the boys had to learn horsemanship, and to practise war and the chase, and the girls to familiarize themselves with cloth-making, and to handle distaff and spindle, that they might not grow indolent through idleness, and he fostered in them every virtuous sentiment.

It is mentioned again later:

In accordance with the national custom, he took frequent exercise on horseback and in the chase, accomplishments in which scarcely any people in the world can equal the Franks.

Do we know what the chase was? Was it simply pursuing a target (deer, man, etc.)?

A while ago I read somewhere that he had briefly entertained the idea of taking the crown from Francis II and make himself the Holy Roman Emperor, but eventually preferred to make himself Emperor of France. At first sight, this seems strange as he had the power and opportunity to take over the most prestigious title in Europe and an empire that was founded by the French national hero Charlemagne almost exactly a millennium ago. So why didn't he do it?

Additional question: Did Francis II politically outplay Napoleon by not only relinquishing his crown but also dissolving the empire or didn't it matter for Napoleons plans?

I'm sorry if this is asked a ton on this sub, but I have a question regarding Christian holidays.

I know the origin of Christmas was an emperor trying to use the date of a Pagan holiday in order to make it easier to transition to a fully Christian populace.

My main question is Easter. Was this also in accordance to a Pagan holiday? Any in-depth answer to the origins of both would be greatly appreciated! Much love guys.

Planisphere

I'm under the impression that much of the current Christmas traditions became widely popular during the Victorian Era. Were there any very popular traditions from the same time that simply died out ?

From time to time I see a picture of troops moving on bicycles in world war 2.

Since I use the bike (a great vehicle!) and I know that it requires maintenance, especially under harsh conditions, I wondered if the usage of bicycles by some troops was always casual or planned.

For planned I mean: some (even just a couple) military units (a platoon, a regiment, an entire division, etc.) planned to use bicycles as transportation vehicle in some moment of the war, including the maintenance of those and so on and so forth. As they would integrate a truck as transport vehicle.

I made up an example: for the French campaign in 1940 the Germans decided to use bicycles wherever trucks or trains were scarce thanks to the good state of French roads. So division X and Y started to organize themselves to use bicycles.

Another example (made up): in UK the divisions responsible for the AA and coastal guard used also bicycles as means of transportation, integrating them in the units supply and maintenance chain.

Then I thought that maybe bicycles could have been used in whatever major war before 1945, not only in ww2. Dunno, maybe in the conflict between Poland and Russia in 1920 or in ww1. Hence the question.

I was told it was originally known as "waif beater" but I haven't actually been able to find anything on it other than second hand information.

This has been bugging me for a while, and I need to figure it out because I want to use it in a fictional work: I remember reading (maybe in a National Geographic) about some airport built in the mid 20th century, where some farmers refused to sell their land, and so remained farming, between runways or at least very close to the runways. I had thought it was Heathrow, but I can't find any references on Google. Maybe somewhere in Asia? Any help is much appreciated!

The head bobble is a widespread gesture in South Asia that is notoriously difficult to translate into Western body language. Used to express uncertainty, interrogation, reticence, assent, and a variety of other ideas, it's use has famously been used as a litmus to determine whether a person was raised in a South Asian culture.

I know that the government of Turkey vehemently denies that the genocide occurred (or that it's overblown), and that most of Europe and most individual states in the US recognize it. Half of my family is Armenian, and I've essentially only been told stories by families or what I have read online (Wikipedia, etc.). Because of this I'd like to know if anyone could provide me well documented evidence of the events that occurred? Are there any surviving documents from the Ottoman government (or other governments) from the time that are testament of what happened? Is there any documentation of these events from foreign ambassadors or foreigners in general who were not Armenian or Greek that were present in the Empire at the time? I know that there is first hand evidence of what occurred, I would just like to read it for myself to understand it further. Thanks!

I am really fascinated with the Gauls and would like to know more. But I could find only little information when googling. I am not looking for facts and dates, I am looking for details on Gallic culture. Their food, music and art to be specific. Specifically, during the time of Vercingetorix.

Does anyone know any books or scholarly papers on the matter?

When did Wall Street and New York City come to dominate American banking and finance?