The standard narrative I hear is that with the Manchu conquest of China, "captive Chin conquered her conqueror" and the Qing emperors were thoroughly assimilated into Chinese culture. But there are a lot of details that don't seem to match this: the imposition of the queue is an obvious one, as well as the continued importance of Manchu ethnicity and smaller matters such as the imperial estates and hunting grounds in Manchuria. So was it a matter of code switching, speaking Chinese to the Chinese and Manchu to the Manchu?

Obviously our knowledge of much pre-modern history is less accurate and precise than our knowledge of periods with huge amounts of written records. I wonder what's the earliest event in history that we can date to the day, month or year? Off-hand, I know that Caesar was assassinated on March 15, 44BC, for example. How far back in human history can we continue to go and still know that event A happened on the ___ of ____ in the year ____?

Hello everybody,

I've been wondering this for a while as there are many famous escapes from POW camps in WWII but I haven't heard of any during WWI. Were there any major or notable escapes from POW camps in WWI?

Many thanks in advance.

Were crypts considered private spaces within the abbeys? If so, could important dignitaries access them, or were they only open to the members of a given institution?

Obviously losing WW2 and the ramifications that ensued saw them lose the empire. However, as with history, it's never wholly as simple as that. Were there any other reasons? Or can it simply be attributed to wholly 'losing the war'

What level of faith did nations and individuals outside of The United States have in the new superpowers intentions? Did they simply see it as a changing of the guard, did they expect the United States to be simply the new imperial overlords?

I'll be beginning a large research project at my university in the coming days. As an Anthropology student, I hold a very strong interest in how cultural shifts effect other things, and how those things will, in turn, turn around to change those very same cultural trends. So I thought this would be a fitting topic of study. I won't ask you to do all my research for me, but this is a fairly large topic, and I would really appreciate some tidbits of information to get me started and to push me in the right direction. (If you have any pointers on some online resources I can use to further my research, that would be greatly appreciated as well!)

The Roman Republic/Empire is of course famous for its bridges, aqueducts, and roads, among other structures. How did they train their engineers? Was there a formal course of study at something like a university? A formal relationship like an apprenticeship? Did they just pick it up on the job? Was there a formal certification analogous to today's professional engineer?

Also, how much do we know about how they would go about designing, for example, a bridge? Did they consider things like expected loads, yield stress of their structural components, and safety factors? Were there building codes or engineering standards, like ones that are used today?

Im curious why it usually isnt put on the list of slave societies despite fitting most criteria.

Recently I wondered if something like the great depression can happen again,thanks in advance :)

I am of the belief that the study of Ancient and Pre Modern war is very useful when fighting Modern War. The lessons of the past mostly benefit war-fighters strategically I believe, are any tactical or operational aspects of Pre Modern war still relevant?

Seeing as there are multiple instances of mass strike movements which were put down with government force (1877, 1894, 1919), why is it that there was never real coordinated resistance beyond impromptu skirmishes?

Hello everyone and welcome to our panel AMA on 19th Century Photography!

Our panel consists of two of our photography historians who are here to answer all your questions about the medium from its earliest development by through the rise of celluloid as we reach the 20th century.

The Panel

/u/Zuzahin's speciality is photography of the 19th century with a focus on color photography and the American Civil War period.

/u/Axon350 has been interested in the history of photography for many years, especially the 'instantaneous' movements and the quest for color.

At what time in its existence was the Vatican at its most influential, wealthy and powerful in terms of territory, political influence and clout?

Was it common for farmers and those not in the noble classes to have weapons for self defense? maybe a farmer having a bow and arrow to defend against wolves? And were some weapons exclusively for the nobility?