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In a recent thread, /u/ADavidJohnson remarks that:
That [Assyrian] was not a fun society for women of any social status to be in
That made me think, does that not describe pretty much the entire world until the last few hundred years?
I would like to know which societies before, say, 1700; and to what degree, had developed a concept of gender equality in a way similar to how we perceive it today.
Were people aware of 'photographic memory' before the advent of photography? What was it called?
In a story called "Poh Yuin Ko, The Serpent Princess" published in 1888 by Chinese-American immigrant Wong Chin Foo, he transliterates a song he calls "Yan Ko Neon", which he describes as "the national love song of China":
Yan yuet ko neon beat ye bear
Ur neon tow yaen chay fa yow,
How ye ko koo neon pol fa tai,
Ku tien lai pot tren san ye hai
Any idea what song this is?
In the 1990s when the Simpsons first came onto TV, what did American audiences make of the running gag where Homer strangles Bart? Was there a sort of outcry from audiences, or was it just acceptable? Not ancient history, but I'm interested in how our attitudes have changed over time.
Is there an app that you can snap a pic of or describe the object or item that lets others scroll through to help identify it like a strange antique for example?
Also, I’m looking for a great archeological app that may show where the best locations or groups that may need help on searches?
Are there space archeologist that can give maps to help study for new artifacts or ancient ruins?
Is Delaware north of the Mason-Dixon Line? Does the Mason-Dixon Line technically follow along the Delaware/Maryland border or is it entirely the Pennsylvania/Maryland border? Also, is the southern border of Delaware/Maryland considered part of the Mason-Dixon Line? There’s $5 on the line here, so we need answers.
How were the Mongols so successful at everything under Ghengis Khan?
Is the documentary series Hitler's Circle of Evil worth watching for a casual learner? I'm interested in its emphasis on the evolution of Hitler's inner circle. I am aware that as a TV documentary (with re-enactments and all that) is definitely not the best source for history, but if the show doesn't exaggerate or omit too much, then I'd spend more time with it. Thanks!
(Copy and pasted from a comment in a previous thread)
I apologize of this is too broad of a question. I recently read Alex De Jonge’s The Life and Times of Grigorii Rasputin (a truly wonderful book, in my opinion) and De Jonge often mentions Tsar Nicholas and Tsarina Alexandra’s interest in spiritualism, even stating that Nicholas would go so far as to try and contact his dead father to seek guidance on how to run the country and handle the various uprisings. This seems so incredibly strange for something that happened barely 100 years ago. Believable for the Babylonian or Assyrian empires? Definitely. But for the last of the Romanovs, in an era that had fully automatic weapons and automobiles? It seems laughable. What evidence do we have to support such claims? How did something like spiritualism get so popular in such a devotedly Orthodox place like the Russian Empire? And do we know of other fairly recent political figures that have taken to such odd views?
What was the scramble for Africa?
What kind of cannon was first used in naval warfare, and what velocities were the shots fired at?
I'm trying to establish whether or not someone at the target of such cannon fire would hear the shot before or after the round makes impact.
This may be too niche of a question but why is the æ so off-center in this picture of Shakespeare's First Folio?
I hope this is an appropriate place to ask: does anyone happen to have a good book recommendation (in English) about the Soviet space program in the 1950s/60s? (Or an idea of a more appropriate place to ask?) I'd like to get it for my husband's birthday. We both like Dan Carlin's podcasts, if that helps with the level of depth/dryness I'm after. Thanks in advance!
What evidence is there Alexander the Great had a drinking problem?
When and where did accurate firing squads with firearms originate and why? I recently read a book that discussed how Charles Lucas and George Lisle were executed by firing squad after the Siege of Colchester ended in 1648. I know that firing squads conducted by archers predate firearms by at least a thousand years. I also know that early firearms were notoriously inaccurate. So that led me to wonder: when and where did accurate firing squads with firearms become commonplace?
Are there any battles that took place (in the American civil war) which led to a remote Confederate occupied town being occupied by the union? Sorry if it's so specific.
Cubans didn't immediately rise up against Fidel when anti-Castro forces invaded the Bay of Pigs. Any quick examples in history when this did actually happen?
Is there a symbol or a collection of symbols that represent the Sōhei Monks of Japan? Similar to the various crucifixes of the Monastic Military Orders?
I guess this is a bit of a [meta] question (so feel free to tell me if that's not ok for this thread):
Why is there no list of biographies in the books and resources list?
So, can anyone tell me what colors you would have seen on Alfred's Hearthwarrod? I have been searching for this information for over a year now, and I have come up empty handed.
Hey there, I am reading a book on the history of Nazi Germany (Germany’s Secret Masterplan) and it said that Gerd Von Rundstedt was a Gen der Inf before his name like a rank. Perhaps you could help me figure out what this rank was?
For anywhere in the world, at any point in history, for which there are credible assumptions, how long did it take in first contact situations (explorers meeting natives with different language roots) for them to go from primitive miming to "My son-in-law is a lazy jerk" level of conversation?
I'm reading a book on Guatemala and had a couple questions if anyone could answer.
The book is: Doing Business with the Dictators: A Political History of United Fruit in Guatemala, 1899-1944 by Paul J. Dosal.
There were a couple odd sentences I saw in the first chapter.
With the establishment of the Ubico dictatorship in 1931, United silenced its critics and developed a new plantation network on the Pacific coast, (The means by which it expanded to the Pacific and suppressed competition from independent Guatemalan planters are analyzed in Chapter 10.) By the 1930s the octopus was at the pinnacle of its power under Zemurray's leadership. Owning 566,000 acres on both coasts and controlling the railroad network and two of the country's three ports under concessions that gave it administrative autonomy, its monopolistic practices precipitated a conflict with the State Department. Were it not for World War II and the Cold War, Washington would have cut United Fruit down to size in the 1930s.
I'm really failing to get this.
Then there were two rather contradictory sentences in the same chapter.
In the 1920s, when democracy breathed life into the country's political institutions, a strong opposition forced the company to accept substantial compromises, including the first tax on banana exports and a profit-sharing clause.
At several points before 1944 the company and the government could have been diverted along alternative development paths. Challenges to United Fruit's hegemony came from Cuyamel, nationalistic elites, UFCO employees, and European competitors, but United maintained and eventually expanded its enterprises by collaborating with the authoritarian and corrupt presidents who governed during the 1920s.
Aren't these rather contradictory statements?
I'm not sure if these are just minor typos in an otherwise good source, or it points out some fundamental flaws in the editing. Did the leaders during the period of democracy in the 1920s help the company grow, or temporarily stagnate it?
On another note, would anyone recommend any other sources for the period. I'm specifically looking into how the company managed to gain such power/monopolies/government influence in the region, so while books like Bitter Fruit are great for the later period, it doesn't quite cover what I'm looking for.
What were the Europeans' reactions when the Mongols invaded Europe?
The Arabs established epic caliphates during the Medival Times, why was this period of history often ignored, or worse, forgotten?
