Were any Black people from outside of West Africa (like Angola, the Congo, Ethiopia, or Kush) ever kidnapped to feed the American slavery machine?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

What were the Germanic "Tribes" really like? Were they nomads without cities? Or were they more sedentary like Rome?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

When the Imperial capital moved from Rome to Ravenna in 402, why did the seat of the papacy, so tied to Imperial rule, not move with it?

2 Answers 2014-11-15

The Sovereign Citizen movement has some radical historical theories. Are there any academic treatments of their theories?

For example, I've been told that in the War of 1812, the US adopted a "secret 13th Amendment," which corporatized the government and subjected the citizenry to a form of servitude. Also, that lawyers in the US are servants of the Crown of England due to an obscure writ from the 18th C. I know it sounds like conspiracy stuff, but does anyone know of any scholarly treatment of these sorts of theories?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

What effect would Felix Dzerzhinsky, the Cheka leader would have had on Stalin's rise to power if he had not died.

1 Answers 2014-11-15

Who is "Jean Francois" in the shanty "Boney Was a Warrior"?

It's the song that goes like;

Boney was a warrior

Away, a- yah!

A warrior and a terrier

Jean Francois!

Boney fought the Russians

Away, a- yah!

The Russians and the Prussians.

Jean Francois!

I couldn't seem to find anything through google. It seems utterly irrelevant to the rest of the song. Was he an actual person or just a random French name chosen for the sake of rhyme?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

Even acknowledging his world-changing discoveries, why is (or was) Christopher Columbus so revered in the United States when no other explorer was given such high esteem?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

Why are the Frontier Wars left out of Australian History in school?

Is this a political thing, or is there problems with evidence or something? I don't even know if the Frontier Wars have been acknowledged by the Australian government. I have never seen or heard about any monuments regarding this period of Australian history...

2 Answers 2014-11-15

Apparently the Mongols attempted to take part in Crusades alongside the Europeans. How much information is there on this?

I'm looking for the major details over this. Apparently the Mongol ruler Ghazan, a Christian who would later convert to Islam for military support, attempted to fight along with the Christians against the Mamluks.

I'm currently looking for any reliable information over dates and context behind the Mongolians participating, or attempting to participate in the Crusades. Maybe even line the partnership didn't work out.

Thank you.

3 Answers 2014-11-15

What does this 1873 rental advertisement mean "with or without power" when electricity wasn't commercially available until at least ten years later?

http://www.wkfinetools.com/hUS-saws/WoodMcParlin/advert/1874-03-23-CincinnatiDailyGazette/1874-03-23-CincinnatiDailyGazette.asp

EDIT: I just wanted to thank everyone for the insightful responses! This was tremendously helpful, I am not an industrial historian!

1 Answers 2014-11-15

1890s -- grammatical constucts

One reads news papers and such from the aforementioned late 1800s to early 1900s.

I notice a certain grammar, or feel to the cadence of the speech from this period. I'm curious as to how, grammar wise (and possibly speech wise?), their writing and speech differ from today's writing and speech.

2 Answers 2014-11-15

Russian Aristocracy after 1917

Doing a project for honors history and I have to use an event from the 20's. I started with the Crash of 29, and one wikipedia page lead to another so I ended up on the Russian Revolution. My immediate question after educating myself on the subject was, what happened to the nobles? I've searched long and hard, but I can't find anything about it. Was the ex-aristocracy executed? Arrested? Any books or articles I can read? Thanks!

7 Answers 2014-11-15

When did our superstition that opening an umbrella indoors brings bad luck come about,and why?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

What historical event in the past 25 years had a significant impact on the reinsurance industry?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

Who was, in your opinion, the best Roman emperor?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

What is the origin of the bronze age 'hero' myth?

I can't help but wonder why is it that bronze age cultures produced classic hero figures, for example Achilles from Greek mythology and Cu Chulainn from Celtic mythology.

1 Answers 2014-11-15

How tough was frontier life in the Michigan Territory?

As the winter months start to roll in, the words of my Ethiopian professor turn in my mind, "I don't understand how your ancestors lived in these conditions. I am wearing seven layers!" So historians, besides weather, what were some of the most difficult conditions facing frontier families in Michigan?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

In The Day of the Triffids there's a bit where a Sociology Professor argues that morality is a social construct and they should abandon any moral notions that hinder rebuilding society. In 1951 would most/many (adult) readers have been aware of that concept already?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

What inventions went largely unnoticed at first, but ultimately proved to be important?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

After the World Wars, what is the most intensively and extensively studied period in history?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

How was skirmishing used during the Franco-Prussian War?

Were skirmishers deployed in front of the main armies? Or were entire armies formed out of skirmishers?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

How many german states were there before unification?

I have heard either 38 or 39, and googling it gives me both answers. Which is it?

2 Answers 2014-11-15

In the Hunt For Red October, American and Russian Submarines communicate with one another in Morse code. Was it standard for the navies of the two powers to learn one anothers' languages/code systems?

Also, how the fuck did China have telegraphs before pinyin alphabetization?

Edit: There, happy now?

1 Answers 2014-11-15

How did we date the construction of the Great Pyramid of Giza?

According to Wikipedia, the Great Pyramid was built around 2560-2540 B.C.

I was reading a book on mysticism and I found it interesting that the author argues about things like erosion (which was already addressed in this thread).

But he also claims things like "There is no proof that the building was erected by the Egyptians, for the elaborate carvings with which the burial chambers of Egyptian royalty are almost invariably ornamented are entirely lacking and it embodies none of the elements of their architecture or decoration, such as inscriptions images, cartouches, paintings, and other distinctive features associated with dynastic mortuary art. The only hieroglyphics to be found within the Pyramid are a few builders' marks sealed up in the chambers of construction [sic], first opened by Howard Vyse."

Are these differences due to grave robbers, lack of knowledge about Egyptian history on the author's part? Also, if there was documentation (work records/payments?) then that would be much more convincing too. I wouldn't normally take a mystic's word on history (e.g. he claims that there must be a secret passage in the Great Pyramid because otherwise the Pyramids could not have been used for Mysteries (a la Eleusinian Mysteries) which are core to his syncretic interpretation of ancient religions and contemporary Masonism), but I also prefer to discount claims based on actual evidence.

1 Answers 2014-11-15

How common were deaths and serious injuries at medieval tournaments?

I understand the goal was not to kill your opponents, but a sport like jousting seems like it would be awfully dangerous. Even with a blunted lance, a knight being violently unhorsed by another at full gallop seems like something that would quite easily cause serious injury or even death.

So was death/severe injury a common thing at tournaments? As an aside, was there any sort of awareness of concussions at the time? That would seem to be a logical choice for a common tournament injury.

1 Answers 2014-11-15

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