How were cities lit before gas lamps? When did gas lamps become common? When did electric lights become common?

Finally. At what point these transitions did stars disappear from the sky?

EDIT: failed to spell check myself before posting. Fixed.

I'm confused because that was the way it was taught to me, yet in an AskReddit thread someone is claiming that Native Americans definitely believed in owning land and that them not doing so was just a "white myth".

I also understand they were a very diverse group and different tribes will have different answers...

During the Romantic Era there was evidently a vast attraction towards Oriential cultures, especially among writers and artists. Whether it's in their works, their ideals, or even apparel and traditions, there was definitely a major transition to an oriental outlook on life. I would even go to say that it also has roots to romantic ideals centuries prior that pushed Europeans to seek the orient and its vast resources.

My question is, what led to this rise in Orientalism during that period? Also, did commoners also participate in this? Why is adopting foreign elements looked at differently today?

I'm a fan of Napoleonic Era so this would be goldmine. Can I read them on the internet or should I buy some thing or ?

The closest thing to a bandit stronghold that I know is Fraixnet in 10th century Occitania.

I hope this is the proper subreddit for this question - if not, please let me know and I'll delete this post. I already asked /r/booksuggestions but received no responses.

I'm looking for the best biography of Napoleon, but there are so many options to select from! Some Napoleon bios consist of several volumes, and I'm not interested in those because my reading to-do list is already too long. I wouldn't be bothered by a bio that skips over his childhood - I'm mostly interested in how he achieved power and his subsequent years in power leading to his death.

I checked the /r/AskHistorians book list, and there were several fantastic Napoleon book suggestions, but each related more or less to Napoleon's campaigns. While I'm certainly very interested in Napoleon's campaigns, I'd prefer books that also discuss Napoleon's rise to power, reigns, campaigns, ouster from power, and death.

Thanks for all the help!

I was playing a WWII fighter plane video game the other day and made it to a level where you were fighting over London. I was blown away thinking about how far out it would have been to be locked in aerial combat over such a big city. Then as I shot down a few German planes flying below me I realized I must have just shot hundreds of rounds down into the city. Is this an accurate description of what happened and if so were there many civilian casualties? Were there attempts by the allied pilots to avoid this or was it seen as the lesser of two evils?

In my history class we briefly covered the deployment of military advisors before and throughout the Vietnam war. Just how extensive were their operations and what did they really do compared to what they were said to be doing? Im super curious and would like to do some further reading on it so if possible could you recommend some good titles to read? Thank you all!

I was researching Harry Truman and came across this window between 1945 and 1947 (the passage of the act) where there seems to be no protocol for what to do upon a president's death if he has no vice president.

I hope this question doesn't fall into the category of alternate history, but if it does, let me know and I'll take it down.

As far as I understand, Naval engagements involved bringing huge floating artillery bases to bear on each and attempting to put as much metal into the enemy in as little time as possible. Position of ships to rake the enemy, and taking advantage of the wind and possibly local land features obviously factor.

But compared to Land battles where flanking/ambush/fortifications etc could be utilised, Naval battles seem dreadfully simple. It seems that up until WWII and the introduction of carriers and air power, Naval battles have been purely about bringing fire-power against firepower. Even Jutland followed the same simple formulae.

Edit: Looking for instances like we are seeing now. Where maybe someone walked into a market or a public gathering and just started assaulting random people.

I have a pretty good handle on the duties, decisions of a business owner in a capitalist market. Supply/demand, profit margins, etc. But what a business owner/manager have to deal with under a Communist economic system? How involved was he in any decision-making? Who did he report to on a day to day basis?

EDIT: Let's say I'm talking about the Soviet Union, in particular.

Almost all of my history professors have been pretty left wing, so any time I've ever learned about Chile it's been a story about a coup strongly implied to be almost completely imposed by the U.S. (the idea that it was "U.S. backed" is used in such a way that it stands in for some sort of colonial imposition in the accounts I've read and heard)

But, I met someone who grew up in Chile and he told me there are many people in Chile who had, if not a positive view of Pinochet, a negative view of Allende which doesn't match the hagiographic accounts I've thus far learned, and credit Pinochet with saving Chile from ill-concieved policies of Allende.

So I was wondering if there is a good account of the Chilean right's perspective on Allende, morally aware enough to not be too dismissive of Pinochet's crimes, but also a fair treatment of the apparently substantial portion of the population who really were afraid of where Allende was taking Chile. I've become wary of good vs. evil narratives and thus far that's the only way I've seen the Chilean strife framed, and that seems unfair to the apparently substantial portion of the Chilean population on the right.

I remember reading something like 40% of materials used in the US War Industry came from Mexico, and that mexico supplanted workers in US industry while the men went overseas to fight. Is there any truth to this? What was Mexico's role in the war? I feel like history books don't mention they were even involved in the war.