How advanced was their standing army and navy?

How far could their ships sail and what land did they know of?

I mean, come on:

"I entreat you to tell me more, sir."
"I will. I am going to. You can bear it?"
"I can bear anything but the uncertainty you leave me in at this moment."

How many ranks deep can horse be stacked? How do the cavalry avoid being mired in the enemy ranks after impact? Avoid trampling each other as the first rank hits? etc... In other words what are the mechanics of the thing.

I read a comment a while ago that had some interesting ideas. If I remember correctly, he stated that Germans are simply speakers of the German language. That culturally, Germans in different areas are different and so are the ethnic makeups. So, Germans do not even share a nationality identity other than historical and their language. He made a short comment how Austrians or Bavarians are culturally different than Rhinelanders or Prussians/Brandeburgians. Just like Prussians and East Germans tend to have more Slavic in them than Rhinelanders do.

Therefore, I am here, seeking the truth. Who are the Germans? Before their unification, were they really very different and only shared a common language? Or was that comment misleading?

TS

It has been my understanding that when they first started out the intent was something more like the European Union. Am I wrong about that mindset, if not how did they end up as one massive country?

I have heard that it was hard cider but I can't seem to find anything that supports that claim.

I'm curious as to how crucial a node Rome was to long distance Mediterranean trade in the early imperial era, from the Augustan to the Severan dynasty.

I know that for late Roman trade, the twin spines of Carthage-Rome and Alexandria-Constantinople were absolutely essential, but that east-west trade was at an absolute minimum. I believe this is a reflection of the increasing pattern of regionalism that began with the 3rd century crisis onward to its conclusion in the medieval successor states to the empire.

But if the early imperial days were not this way, that would presuppose (as I know some historians have proposed) that the broader early imperial Roman economy involved more exchange activity. Thus there would be more comparative advantage in production from farmers on up, which raises the possibility for beyond-regional distribution of such produced goods.

But how far a range would these beyond-regional distributions go? Alexandria was obviously as much of a hotbed in the early imperial era, but we don't have Constantinople as an alternate center, thus I'm sure their trade was primarily with Rome.

But was Rome such a necessary spoke that most trade would still need to feed through there on its way elsewhere? Were regional economies strong enough outside of Rome to provide a competitive market for products? Or did the city of Rome's consumption define all trade?

to expand: Im looking for good (preferably original, but all secondary sources are welcome, as long as its academic) sources on the production, distribution, trade and legal/political aspects of the making of parchment in Medieval and Early Modern Europe.

Im aware of XVII century and later sources on the manufacture if it (Elius Porcelius, Das Standebuch etc), but im curious if there are any surviving older descriptions.

Of course, I would be also delighted if someone could share information on parchment in islamic culture, or just have a general conversation on pre-print writing materials and tools.

Did they develop different cuts of coats? Use different fabrics?

I know about slavery and the gold rush, but I would like to know the reasons, why couldn't the African people fight back?

I know this is a big topic to cover, so I would really appreciate some links to articles where I could dig deeper.

Edit: I meant the countries in Africa

I'm currently in the second semester of my History graduation, and I have to both write an article and "teach" my fellow classmates about the expansion of Rome during the Republic (In the first semester, I did the same thing - but it was in a trio, so it was "easier" - with the Egyptian bureaucracy).

Btw, I have to prepare it based on a chapter of a book that my teacher gave us, so my focus will be the Roman institutions in the Republic era and the process of its expansion.

I've found some books, but I didn't have the time to read them. I trust you guys, so can you rate these books and recommend me more? Thanks!

TL;DR: I need books about the Roman expansion during the Republic, I have those so far:

• The Beginnings of Rome, by Tim Cornell
• The Day of the Barbarians, by Alessandro Barbero
• Party Politics in the Age of Caesar, by Lily Ross Taylor
• Roman Warfare, by Adrian Goldsworthy

Specifically, I am tying to convert the names of Thor's goats Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr into runic text. I have found several charts/translators online to convert English characters to Elder Futhark, but is it this simple or is there some nuance to it?

I have an old memory from a class ages ago telling me as Alexander the great was about to march west (Carthage, Rome) when he died. Even had slaves starting a road. Is that true? Or is it a fantasy extrapolated from a throwaway line in Livy?

Thank everyone so much for their insight!

I'm talking about the "Classic History" as a science. The one relying on Archaeology, old manuscripts etc. Do you guys think we will ever know sufficiently more about Ancient Egypt, or Rome. Will we know more about years around 10000 BCE etc.?

• Why was it considered to be impossible? Were there no roads at all through those areas back then?

• How did the germans circumvent the problems they were facing?

Thanks :)

During christianization, we see a lot of examples of religious syncretism, but also a lot of extreme laws to end the old traditions. However we are taught so little about the steps taken in places like the British Isles, Scadinavia, and the northern parts of the carolingian empire. What I'm wondering are things like:

What texts or evidence showed the practices of these soothsayers/Seiðmenn/witches and their hunters?

What plants or materials may have been considered to have magical properties?

Did christians ever seek the counsil of pagan wise men and did they still believe in the power of germanic or celtic gods despite worshipping christ?

This is all out of HISTORIC curiosity so i appreciate any answers.

Most people these days live in a building that was built in the last 50 years. In some countries the building age is older, some it might be only from the last few years, but how old would most buildings have been in the past?

Obviously that cannot be known, but was it common for families to live in the same house for generations? If I was wandering around 11th Century Britain for example, would people I know be living in Roman era houses? Just as some people today live in 15th C Houses?

My grandfather was an old pre-war horse cavalry sgt. in the 1st Cav. They took away his horse and put him into a recon platoon -- he was with the division when they shipped to Australia and had enough points at the end of the war to go home thus avoiding occupation duty.

My question is this: What was the planned role of the 1st Cavalry Division in the planned invasion of Japan from D-Day forward?

I know that some of our best historians have a very large variety of sources to base their research on, but what about young graduate students or professors? I am about to start my Ph.D. in sociology and am interested in doing comparative historical research. Are there any major databases that every young/budding historian knows about?