It seems to me that the French haven't really surrendered more than any other nation in the past. They held on in World War 1 and the Napoleonic Wars quite well, and the only major instance of them surrendering that I know of is during World War 2. So why do people constantly joke that the French surrender very easily?
1 Answers 2016-07-01
Thank you!
1 Answers 2016-07-01
In the beginning pages of a fiction novel the main character claims that while Alexander the Great was dying he crawled to a river in an attempt to make himself seem like a God. His wife though supposedly drag him back from the river forcing him to be a mortal man. Is this just a myth or is there any actual legitimacy to this story.
1 Answers 2016-07-01
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/u/JimeDorje discusses the founding of the modern state of Bhutan and its relationship to Tibet. The conversation covers the relationship between various sects of Buddhism, Mongol patronage, the political and economic role of monasteries, and ultimately the conflict which would lead the Zhabdrung to head south, putting in motion the events which would lead to the formation of Bhutan. (91min)
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4 Answers 2016-07-01
Did the people in the middle ages know the name of their king or how they looked like? and did they even care? in game of thrones they say(i think) that the people would be furious if a bastard claims the iron throne, but would they really? or would it just be the lords that would be pissed? and last question, did the peasants know if there was a new king that inhereted, or claimed the throne? pls answer.
And reminder to report and ignore shitposting.
3 Answers 2016-07-01
I'm looking for something to read in the holidays.
1 Answers 2016-07-01
[deleted]
1 Answers 2016-07-01
I don't mind if it is an e-book or if i have to order it via amazon. Thanks in advance
1 Answers 2016-07-01
Today:
You know the drill: this is the thread for all your history-related outpourings that are not necessarily questions. Minor questions that you feel don't need or merit their own threads are welcome too. Discovered a great new book, documentary, article or blog? Has your Ph.D. application been successful? Have you made an archaeological discovery in your back yard? Did you find an anecdote about the Doge of Venice telling a joke to Michel Foucault? Tell us all about it.
As usual, moderation in this thread will be relatively non-existent -- jokes, anecdotes and light-hearted banter are welcome.
8 Answers 2016-07-01
World War One in History, Art, and Games
Today is July 1st, 2016. Our Canadian friends will (I hope) forgive us for providing this distraction from their national holiday, but our business here is instead occasioned by a particularly important military centenary.
On this day, one hundred years ago, the Somme Offensive began. Hundreds of thousands of French and British troops advanced along a long front near the Somme river in a bid to break through the German lines and force a new development in a war that many feared had already become stagnant. While many hoped for a full breakthrough and a rout of the German lines, those in command would settle for the attack relieving German pressure on the French at Verdun and forcing the German army to spread out rather more fully than the sector had otherwise demanded.
The Somme has come to be a byword for the war itself, at least as far as the Western Front is concerned. The opening of the offensive was preceded by the largest artillery barrage the world had ever seen: a full week of explosive carnage loosed upon the German lines, with hundreds of shells exploding each minute for 168 straight hours. The effect was incredible; quite apart from the physical dangers imposed by the artillery itself, German infantrymen faced the threats of starvation and dehydration as they spent days confined beneath the earth. Some went mad.
At 0730 on July 1st, 1916, the British, the French, and many of their colonial satellites advanced. The artillery was supposed to have destroyed all resistance, and the British front was supposed to have been cleared (for even heartier measure) by the explosion of ten enormous mines that had been dug beneath the German lines. Not all of these mines successfully went up, and one was even detonated early (at 0720) in a misguided ploy to allow the British to occupy the crater more swiftly.
By the time the day was over, some 20,000 Allied troops were dead, and another 40,000 injured or missing. Many of the day’s goals were left unfulfilled, though it was not the total failure that subsequent accounts have described. What’s more, it was only the beginning – not the end; as John Terraine has rightly noted, the first day on the Somme was the 132nd day of the Battle of Verdun, and both campaigns had rather a long way to go before they would conclude.
This Panel AMA, while inspired by the opening of the Somme, is not restricted to it. Readers are welcome to ask questions about any aspect of the war they wish – from the opening days of 1914 to the many post-Armistice problems that endured into the 1920s. Our panelists are also willing to answer questions about the war’s place in art, literature, and even games. Yes, Battlefield 1 questions are welcome!
As always, keep it professional and interesting. Our participants will do their best to address every question posted, but can make no guarantees.
Participants:
/u/an_ironic_username is here to discuss the Great War at Sea. He is comfortable discussing the surface and subsurface campaigns of the warring powers, and their greater influence on the War itself. He will also discuss the recent Jutland centenary, and the 'Jutland Studies' the engagement has spawned.
/u/Bernardito’s main interests are the experiences and the use of colonial soldiers and minorities on the battlefield.
/u/CaptainPyjamaShark is a student of early 20th century French and British history, particularly the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War, and also runs a daily blog recapping the centenary of events in World War I.
/u/CptBuck lives and works in the Middle East with a focus on the modern history of the region and would be happy to discuss the Arab Revolt, the Middle Eastern campaigns, Sykes-Picot, regional war aims and the post-war settlement.
/u/CrossyNZ is a researcher and lecturer in both old school military history and the "new" cultural histories. Their current project is on the effects of space on remembrance and grief.
/u/DBHT14 can focus on Jutland, organization of the Grand Fleet, British Naval Doctrine, and other naval efforts like Coronel, the Falklands, and Gallipoli.
/u/DuxBelisarius specializes in Cavalry in the Great War, Historiography of Versailles and Military Leadership, Tactics and Operations in general.
/u/elos_ says: “The focus and purpose behind my study of history is trying to account hindsight -- what people felt was best at the time, what people felt was best after a certain period of time, and whatever level of objectivity we can apply to say what was "really" the best. I will be answering questions with regards to this -- modern remembrance of grand strategy of the Western powers, of soldier experiences before during and after the war, and home front life. Along with this, the corollary of what was it actually like to make these decisions, why they did, were they 'correct', and how it 'really' was for soldiers and civilians in this conflict.”
/u/Georgy_K_Zhukov likes military firearms, armored trains, and long walks on the beach. finds World War I to be the perfect combination for rambling on about those topics
/u/militaryhistory
/u/NMW specializes in the war’s literary and historiographical legacies. Ask him about novels, poems, plays, films, and history books.
/u/Othais is joining us today to speak about small arms of the conflict. He runs C&Rsenal and has spent the past year working up the YouTube series "Primer" which aims to document as many WWI small arms as possible with history, animation, and live fire demonstrations.
/u/TheAlecDude specialises in Canadian and British action on the Western Front and can field questions on armoured and aerial warfare.
/u/thefourthmaninaboat specialises in naval warfare, with a particular focus on the Royal Navy, and its aerial, surface, subsurface and amphibious operations throughout the war.
45 Answers 2016-07-01
What if I'm suspicious of my nobles and want a force loyal first and only to me?
What are my options?
1 Answers 2016-07-01
Aside from google, obviously.
EDIT: Typo in the title. Ah well.
3 Answers 2016-07-01
How did it came about that even though Japan has an Imperial Palace in Tokyo, an Imperial House and the current head of state Akihito is still officially an "Emperor", that they are not an Empire? Why didn't they changed the title of Akihito, to like, a King so they are no longer an empire? Aren't Emperors supposed to be ruling over an Empire, yet in the case of Japan, we have an Emperor ruling over not an Empire? How were the Japanese able to maintain such incongruity throughout history?
2 Answers 2016-07-01
I've been reading about the early modern cotton trade and noticed that Indian merchants and bankers were making exorbitant amounts of money, and the states would get a large tax cut. Surely this wouldve made for healthily rich Indian states that could raise armies that wouldnt allow Europeans to strong arm them.
1 Answers 2016-07-01
Which are they most likely to be? And why?
1 Answers 2016-07-01
How much consideration did the Allied planners give to say invading closer to Germany for example Denmark?
Also how much though did the Allied Planners give when choosing a location, to the type of countryside in the Normandy area?
1 Answers 2016-07-01
My grandparent's house in MD had a bomb shelter leftover from the cold war and I never thought it strange. However, now that I live on the West Coast I've never heard of anyone having one. Did people not have them on the West Coast? If not, why?
1 Answers 2016-07-01
2 Answers 2016-07-01
I bought this letter from the first half of the 19th century. Sadly, I can hardly read the handwriting. Can you tell me who/where is it to/from? What is it about?
1 Answers 2016-07-01
Now, we write 2016 because that is 2,016 years AD. Rhe ancient civilizations had no idea that Jesus would have been born and they never referred to themselves as being in "whatever year" BC. So to sum it up, if someone become Christ's time was to write the date, what year would they write?
2 Answers 2016-07-01
During an attack on a castle, would it be a real possibility that archers might run out of arrows? (And I mean their collective stock running dry.) If so, would it be a real risk from the very start, or only something to worry about after a lengthy, prolonged battle?
1 Answers 2016-07-01
I'm curious to know why civilizations all over the world believe(d) in one or multiple gods.
1 Answers 2016-07-01
Every language has it's own unique name for a place. That place may be named after a tribe, a god, or whatever. For example, Hungary is called "Macaristan/Madjaristan" in Turkish and Persian because it's named after the Magyar tribe who settled in the Carpathian Basin and became founders of the Hungarian state. I usually use wiktionary.org to search for etymologies of English and foreign words. However out of interest I couldn't find the origin of "لهستان". I would like someone who's knowledgeable of both history and linguistics to answer this question.
3 Answers 2016-07-01
1 Answers 2016-07-01
If I were a Phocian, Theban, Athenian, or Corinthian, etc, I have a hard time envisioning cheering for the conqueror who had conquered me only a few short years earlier.
1 Answers 2016-07-01