AskHistorians Archive Observer

What if, any, is the best, brotherly battle of all time? I include both European and Asian areas of influence, ftw. I really don't know.

1 Answers 2014-07-27

How far back in time could I travel until I hit a language barrier?

So I'm a native English speaker and am very well versed in Norwegian, and being a Canadian I can understand French a little bit. I'm curious how far back in time I could go until I ran into some serious language barriers and would no longer be able to understand those around me.

5 Answers 2014-07-26

As a knight whose main occupation was tournament jousting, what could I expect my life to be like?

I'm not even sure there were knights who only competed in jousting tournaments, but if there were, what would they live like? Also, how dangerous was jousting? Thanks to all who take the time to answer!

1 Answers 2014-07-26

Did Africa benefit from European colonization at all?

So, I have to write a paper on how "one could argue that colonialism served a moral purpose and was mutually beneficial to both parties". However, I feel like I don't think I can argue that, especially thinking of how it has affected Africa's situation today... It just seems to me that although colonialism may have helped in certain aspects, like new technology and health care, I feel like overall it hasn't helped. I think because of colonialism, Africa was not given a chance to develop those things on its own. I'm not sure... Any opinions?

2 Answers 2014-07-26

At what point do the dates of key historical events become ambiguous? What factors contributed to more precision in dating historical events? Were laymen aware of "the date" 2000/1500/1000/500 years ago? Thanks.

1 Answers 2014-07-26

Was there a Soviet version of storming the beaches of Normandy? (clarification in post)

What I mean is many times people in the U S will say that someone stormed the beaches of Normandy as a example of how brave they were. (you see this a lot in television and movies). Did the Soviets have something comparable to this?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

Is there an example of a king to centralize their court/"state" way before their time?

I would like to know if between 450 - 1500 there was ever a king or maybe a count or duke to abandon "feudalism" and create a centralized state or something like that? Did they maybe even create something like a party or an organisation to further their agenda? But the focus has to be on abandoning the "family dynamic" and vassaldom.

3 Answers 2014-07-26

Someone (someone on here I think ...but I’m not sure) once told me that the people who lived in Jōmon period Japan didn't become the modern Japanese people, instead they were displaced and largely wiped out by the first Japanese speaks who came from elsewhere in Asia. Is that likely or true?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

What sort of role was planned for smaller members of NATO in the event of a Soviet attack?

This sort of stretches from 1949 to 1994 (if I must) but I don't know how to be more specific in my timescale. How would a minor nation like Albania, Greece, Slovakia, Iceland, Romania ect. really help? Do they do anything other than provide bases for more militarily advanced members and deny influence to the Warsaw Pact? Did more advanced nations provide them with enough technological support to make their armies useful?

Thanks.

2 Answers 2014-07-26

Days before the battles of Lexington & Concorde the British army had blacksmiths make "crow's-feet" in anticipation of conflict. What were they making.

1 Answers 2014-07-26

What's the oldest known example of an acronym?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

Let's suppose an assassin killed Hitler mid-war. What's next?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

Which actors were the driving forces behind a continuation of WW1 in 1915 to 1918

I was watching 14 - Diaries of the Great War in which the journalist Charles Edward Montague chaperons a MP through the trenches to show him the realities of the war. The impression that I got was that the British military command needed to get the support from the parliament in order to secure more men and weapons to continue the war.

This made me wonder, in England, Germany and France which actor(s) was the main proponent for a continuation of a war instead of negotiating for peace or surrendering. Was it the military high command that pressed on or was it the respective governments that wanted to continue the war effort?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

Why were Union causalities so large relative to Confederate casualties in the Civil War?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

Was Robin Hood a real person? If so, was he like the media portrays him now?

e.g - BBC's "Robin Hood" or any other book, tv show, or movie.

1 Answers 2014-07-26

What happened to the KGB during the events of the collapse of the Soviet Union?

3 Answers 2014-07-26

Were there any Roman emperors from anywhere but Italy?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

In the middle ages how did mothers deal with babies shitting everywhere due to no diapers? Did the babies just lie around in some poop smothered cloth all day?

uhhh just curious

2 Answers 2014-07-26

in classical times (let’s say that means about 100BC if you want specifics) did people in Greece or the Roman republic swim for pleasure?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

Did Sir Walter Raleigh ever visit North America in person?

I keep seeing contradictory opinions on this, unless I am not understanding something.

On the English Wikipedia page it says he "explored from North Carolina to Florida." The source is biography.com which doesn't list a source for that fact.

But in the Wikipedia page on Roanoke Colony (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roanoke_Colony) it says he never visited North America - but with no source.

I keep seeing different views on this.

Sorry if this isn't the right subreddit. I will delete if necessary.

1 Answers 2014-07-26

My eyeglass prescription is -8.0 in one eye and -9.0 in the other (it really is). Can I survive in the period of history you study. If so what will my life be like?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

In ancient rome, generals had specific rituals and/or specific observations to guide them before a battle, what were they?

Like if the hen would eat or not

Follow-up, is this only the case for romans or did other civilisations have similar rituals?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

How did ancient civilizations deal with inflation?

Like Rome or Egypt.

2 Answers 2014-07-26

I am a 19 year old boy in Rome in 51 B.C. What is my life like? What do I do for entertainment? What jobs do I preform? What and where do I eat?

1 Answers 2014-07-26

HELP! What Regiment Was My Grandfather In? (WWII)

For years I have been unable to figure out what infantry regiment my grandfather was in during WWII. Official records were lost in the Missouri fire so I've been stymied for some time. I know that he was in the 79th US Infantry, where he fought for at least 18 months of the war (three stripes on the sleeve - he did not participate in D-Day). I found a book with a listing of those who served in the 313th regiment. His name was not present. I think this means he was either in the 314th or 315th. I have his dog tags and military jacket. I also know that he transferred to the first infantry's 26th regiment after the war to stand guard at Nuremberg (patch and pin present). He earned a purple heart and achieved the rank of Sergeant. He was from Bronx, NY. He died a hero a few years ago.

Can anyone help me? His name is Henry Lubin.

1 Answers 2014-07-26