/u/Arcvalons had a similar question about six months ago, but unfortunately no answers actually addressed the Byzantines.
I know that the Byzantines saw themselves as a continuation of Rome and as Romans themselves, but I don't know much more about how they looked back on their history, particularly the Republic. Was it idealized? Did people want to go back to that form of government? Were they even aware of the Republic?
2 Answers 2015-05-12
Do we have examples of Nazi humor? Like actual jokes or humorous stories that somehow reflect any facet of Nazi ideology and were attempts to be genuinely funny?
1 Answers 2015-05-12
1 Answers 2015-05-12
hello. i want to ask about earls and earldomes. as i know, since IX century england was divided into counties (shires). their heads were earldormen. since X century the new leaders of shires became sheriffs. what happened to earldormens after that, what did they rule? when did erldormans become earls? i have read your answer about the difference between earldoms and counties (shires), but did not understand. as i think, shires were ruled by sheriifs and earldoms were ruled by earls. so country was divided in earldoms and shires, or country was divided into shires and shires were divided into earldoms? p.s. if i have some mistakes, i'm sorry, i'm a foreigner. thank you in advance
1 Answers 2015-05-12
I often see this in old documents, and it seems a bit nonsensical to place the 'n' before the 'o'.
1 Answers 2015-05-12
In advance, I would like to take the opportunity to apologise if this question I have is not specific enough and violates any rules.
Earlier today, the French videogame developer and publisher Ubisoft presented footage and information for their new instalment in the Assassin's Creed franchise AC: Syndicate.
If you are not too familiar, in AC you usually play as an assassin of the Assassin Order fighting against the tyranny of the Templars with the background of a historical period, such as The Holy Land during the Third Crusade, Renaissance Italy, 16th century Constantinople, the Caribbean during the Age of Piracy, North America during the American Revolutionary War, France during the French Revolution, and others.
Now the reason for which I made this thread.
In the videopresentation, an employee of Ubisoft presents us with a view of the world of Victorian London in 1868, but how much of what he says is actually fact?
I have written a transcript of what has been said in the presentation below, the original video can be found here.
Assassin's Creed Syndicate takes place in London in 1868. The industrial revolution, in essence, is society going from almost a medieval society to the modern society which we live in today. It's an increase in productivity that's never been seen before in the history of mankind. You see transportation breaking through, and in the span of a few years enough railroads were constructed to go around the circumference of the earth. It's a world that's ruled by science, we'll see tons of progress in medicine that prolongs the lifetime of people from around 20 years old to 50 years old. It's a world no longer ruled by kings or by religion, it's a world that's run by money. This is something that completely changes society. You have the upper classes which still rule the city, because they're the ones that have the right to vote. So the fate of the lower classes was to either work hard and to die young, or to resort to something new. What the industrial era sees is the birth of organised crime, a bit as we know it today. It's really a concept that has root in the Victorian era. People would band together to try to defend their common interest in what we could call syndicates.
Again, apologies if this goes against the rules, but my thanks in advance for any responses!
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We get our knowledge about history through books and scientific methods (such as carbon dating), schools, stories, songs, arts, etc. I understand history is written by the victor and that it's biased and all that. I also understand it is a very important subject due to how interesting it is and how much historical education is pertinent to learn from past mistakes and build on past success, not to mention the many other benefits such as preserving culture. It's just that whenever I get into a deep enough historical/philosophical debate I am always greeted by the go to-line: "How can we be sure that anything we know about history is true? Were you there?". These seem like a cop-out and I inevitably rebut with the aforementioned facts that there are records, arts, etc. to back up historical claims but that just doesn't seem to fully cover it...
Even I begin to question what I know about these things, comparable to a priest having a lapse in faith. Am I missing something? I understand everything needs to be taken with a grain of salt and to read between the lines and form my own opinions, but opinions are invariably based on fact and if I cannot know the fact of the matter, I must base my opinions on how I feel about it. But that is always jaded by what society has told me is true, whether it be past or present society (though I have only ever lived in present society). This is like trying to rely solely on witness testimony which has been proven to be a bad way to base a case.
*Sorry about inevitable typos, I'm on mobile. Also if this is the wrong subreddit, please point me in the right direction as I am bad at rediting.
TL;Dr: See Title.
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Like I said, it looks like a banjo but it isn't. It's a long thick, apparently strong wooden handle, about a metre in length and an inch thick, and then at the end of it there's a metal pan, I assume brass but not sure, round, about the size of a dinner plate or a medium pizza, with a hinged lid.
I have no idea what this thing is or what they used it for. Any ideas?
3 Answers 2015-05-12
What sorts of things would I be able to find in a khusug in the Mongol empire? What sorts of things would I be able to find in a noble's khusug that I wouldn't be able to find in a commoner's khusug? And the reverse -- what sorts of things would I be able to find in a commoner's khusug and not a noble's? How would these things differ throughout the history of the empire? What differences would there be between a Khusug from Genghis Khan's reign to Ögedei's reign? What about during Kublai Khan's reign and the Mongol fragment empires?
1 Answers 2015-05-12
In Tacitus: Annals: Book 2.71, Germanicus writes of his poisoning by what many (and I thought himself included) suspected was caused by Piso.
Yet in this paragraph Germanicus writes: "If any were touched by my bright prospects, by ties of blood, or even by envy towards me while I lived, they will weep that the once prosperous survivor of so many wars has perished by a woman's treachery."
So without further context this confuses me. Is he saying that Plancina, Piso's wife, was the mastermind behind the poisoning? Are there other women who may be suspected of having a hand in the poisoning? The only other explanation would be that "woman" is used derogatorily, but I've never seen it used in such a manner before.
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Also, how big of an impact did the famine have on Ethiopia?
1 Answers 2015-05-12
Most portraits are just that - presidents standing in front of the painter, sometimes standing and sometimes sitting, but always looking either directly ahead or into the distance.
Kennedy isn't. In fact, this is a very unorthodox portrait for anyone to have, let alone an official portrait of the president. Is there a reason for this? Was JFK trying to build some sort of public image?
2 Answers 2015-05-12
Hello everyone, I hope this is the appropriate sub for this question. In one of my classes (Seminar on Lucretius) we were talking about the influence of Lucretius on Botticelli's depictions of Venus. We were looking at a super high resolution photo of Birth of Venus and my professor found what looks like a miniature version of Venus on the flower next to her. I have been trying to find out what this is but can't seem to find anything about it.
Pictures below:
First, I used the Google Cultural Institute for Reference
Here is the full painting, for those unfamiliar
Here is the flower with the figure on it that I am referencing
Here is the figure at maximum zoom
Thanks for any insight that anyone might have about this piece.
1 Answers 2015-05-12
I know that this wasn't a uniform process. Different groups would have would have fallen at different times in different countries. Some, I’m sure, have morphed into modern licensing bodies. Any info would be appreciated.
Thanks!
2 Answers 2015-05-12
As we know, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway make up the cultural group of Scandinavia. Why was Finland never included, especially since part of their country lies on the Scandinavian peninsula? Even their language is completely different.
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I've heard numerous times that the United States produced a ton of Purple Heart Awards in anticipation for the invasion of Japan. So many in fact, that the US hasn't needed to produce any more stock since.
Is there any truth to this story? If not, how did it it get started and if it is true, is there just a warehouse full of Purple Hearts somewhere?
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I inherited some letters written by my great-grandfather who was a Lt. in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. They are very moving as well as informative - but - I am curious as to why he was never promoted. As far as I know, he was made a Lt. during the first year of the war and left as Lt. (possibly a Capt.) Some military friends and I have discussed this and come up with some possibilities -- but I still am not convinced and would love to hear some ideas from actual historians.
Details: He was from Alabama, serving mostly in the 32nd Alabama Regiment which later combined with the 58th. He survived many battles, including the Battle of Murfreesboro where his company charged uphill into cannon fire and from a company of 200 was left with about 50. He escorted a prisoner through enemy lines. He was some kind of Adjutant at Resaca towards the end of the war. So... all in all, an apparently good guy as well as a survivor and the lack of promotion has always puzzled me.
Thanks for anyone who can shed light on this.
1 Answers 2015-05-12
