I was reading Michael Wood's "In Search of the Trojan War" (1985). He championed the burn layer of 1250BC as when the Trojan War happened, but since then, historians seem to favour the 1184BC burn layer.

Ok, so two burn layers, about 66 years apart.

On page 20 he relates an early Greek legend:

"Herakles sailed to the Troad and attacked the city" (sacking it). "In the sack, Laomedon and his sons were killed; only the youngest, Podarces, survived, for he alone had maintained that Herakles should be given his rightful reward" (he was owed horses; seems Troy was a good place to get horses, go figure).

"Podarces was released and took a new name, Priam, meaning redeemed.... Herakles left Priam a young king and Troy was restored within the same walls."

Ok, but waitasec!

If Priam was a young man during this, and Priam was an old man during the Trojan War dated to 1184BC, then it follows (in a very loose and speculatory way) that 66 years earlier Priam would've been a young man, and coincidentally, there's a burn layer at 1250BC.

So, while I'm wildly speculating here, this would suggest that a Herakles type guy was wandering around sacking cities around 1250BC, and there are myths and burn layers that seem to agree with this.

For sure this can't be taken as serious history, but it's great fun to speculate.

But, is there any research or discoveries that give any credence to the early myths/legends of Herakles?

There is lots of info about Old World diseases killing off significant populations of Native Americans due to a lack of previous exposure and resulting immunity. Are there any examples of New World diseases impacting the exploring populations in similar fashion?

In addition, was the Normans' Norse heritage common knowledge to non-scholars?

It seems in the ancient world, life was disposable and no one seemed to care if a person died unless they were a king. What are the reasons for this? Due to the high infant mortality rate and lower life expectancy I would think that they would value life more, but the idea that they would swarm into besieged cities and rape and kill as they see fit is disturbing. Has there ever been a situation where a general or nation decided "Murdering and raping all these defenseless civilians is honorless and horrible, so I will not do it"? Sorry for the two part question.

While reading an article recently about ancient "pseudo-eskimos" such as the Dorset and the Thule, it was mentioned that warfare was not uncommon among these civilizations. What was warfare like for these civilizations in the bitter tundra? Were these simply small skirmishes or raids between villages or more organized and tactical engagements? Would these pseudo-eskimos have anything resembling standing armies, or was this more of a harpoon-fisherman turned temporary raider? What kind of tactics, weaponry, or other technology would be utilized by these societies in warfare?

Perhaps a brief, general background of the way these societies operated (government, civics, technologies) would be a good way to start a foundation for this discussion.

Hugh Capet was a nobleman who was elected the first King of the Franks (Rex Francorum) after the Carolingian Dynasty. His line continued to rule the area that would become France for the next 400 years, and the cadet branches of his house, Valois and Bourbon, ruled France until the revolution.

What made him so unique, and his legacy so enduring?

I heard that off a youtube video when I was younger and I just figured people died from gunshot wounds in the past because of the lack of proper medical care compared to now.

Am I right thinking that if I was shot by a pistol made around the time of 1911 I would be more likely to survive it than if I was shot by a pistol made today assuming both guns are in perfect condition.

Tl; dr Are older guns less effective at killing

Sorry if this is the wrong place

Note: Milk duds are like chocolate jelly beans

I've been looking and I can even find an estimate.

Follow up question also, did sex slaves flourish at the time amongst the first muslims? What rights did the sex slaves had? Did they has the responsibility to work as other slave, or did their job was merely to dress up and, erm, have sex?

I am presuming this would be someone living in Rome at its height (e.g., 2/3rd century AD) who got the full ration of bread, olive oil, etc.

Were these patrons functioning members of society or outcasts? Were they seen as addicts or engaging in a recreational pastime?

From a more scientific standpoint, what is the chemical difference between this opium and the street heroin of today?

I've always read/heard that they were big rivals, with Tesla being more idealistic and Edison being more successful, but I was just wondering how that stacked up with the accepted record.

There is virtually no evidence of Jews in Scotland until the late 1600s. However the Treaty of Abroath (1320) specifically states that Jews should be treated as equal. Given than Scotland was one of the few Jewish safe havens in Europe, why did they not migrate there earlier? Say for example after the expulsion of Jews from England in the 1200s or via trade links with the Baltic?

I'm in Maine, and the thought of reclearing some of the (now forested) land bisected by thousands of miles of stone walls seems incredibly daunting. Not just because of all the trees, but the stumps and fieldstones as well -- and i'd be using modern machinery!

How long would it have taken someone in 1720 to clear an acre of this rocky, hilly, forested land and get a plow into it?

Apparently Vaxholm Fortress in Sweden, hilarious outdated, caused Moltke the Elder to burst into laughter when he saw it.

It just struck me that in places where children play together, like school playgrounds, they tend to have their own oral traditions, with the "older" generations constantly passing on knowledge to the younger one. Many games get passed on this way, playground songs, etc.

I was curious if any serious research has been done on it, and if there had been any interesting findings (the origins of now nonsensical sounding songs, for example).