How did the flipped seasons affect the Australian and New Zealand settlers? Was there any attempt to adopt Christmas or Christmas-like celebrations for their winter instead of keeping to December solstice?

When did the word "terrible" go from meaning powerful and deadly to something that was of poor quality?

I'm trying to decipher a really lousy scan from a 1834 newspaper -- is there a tool I can use to clean this up and make some legibility out of the partial letters on the page? I have tried shouting "enhance" at the computer a few times -- it always seems to work on TV but it really didn't do much.

These two narrations of Saddam Hussein's public purge in 1979 are very different

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OynP5pnvWOs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLUktJbp2Ug

As far as I see there were no chains or guards on the conspiracy leader, but did he beg to be executed or he was promised his life?

Did racism against black people not exist under Communism, specifically in East Germany or Poland?

To what degree is there any truth to that?

can the ingredients for gunpowder be found anywhere? as far as i know, it seems to have only been invented independently in China, which seems kind of strange. did the rest of the world simply not have access to sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate?

I found a video on Youtube which features the recorded audio of some part of a speech by Adolf Hitler and I would like to find where this speech originates from (i.e. date, place, transcript in both English and German).

Here is the video: http://quietube7.com/v.php/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FASowEvM2Kg

Hope you can help.

[⚠︎ Caution: I asked for the permission to the mod team of /r/AskHistorians before posting. I was told it was fine. However, they recommended me to find (if I could) a link that would not be hosted by a channel advocating Adolf Hitler. The original video was made by a pro-Nazi website. As an alternative, I opted for a re-upload of the video on Youtube by a third-party, then used a specific website (quietube.com) to hide comments, info and video recommendations that Youtube displays by default. The video itself does not infringe the rules of Reddit or the rules enforced on this subreddit but I felt like I would be preferable, as a precautionary measure, to do it that way. So please aware of it and remember that neither I nor does the mod team of /r/AskHistorians, are advocating Adolf Hitler or Nazism.]

I practice Historical European Martial Arts (HEMA) and cutting tatami mats, as they do in Eastern martial arts, has become increasingly popular. I feel this is a valid exercise, since we wind up being amateur popular historians and sometimes get asked questions about the weapons we simulate. There's a camp in the community that doesn't like this trend and one of the reasons is that grass-cutting isn't European, we have no examples of it in Italy or Germany for example.

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During the golden age of knighthood, how did knights practice cutting with their weapons? We have lots of examples of instruction on how to fight with a sword, but the actual cutting mechanics takes practice and I can't find a primary source which seems to give an example of cutting practice.

I'm still trying to get my head around the Wars of the Roses - can someone ELI5 the difference between Heir Apparent, Heir General, Heir Presumptive and any other relevant ones I might have forgotten?

Did any senators or congresspeople have sons serving during World War II, and who were they ?

I am currently majoring in history in college and I can’t remember anything I’ve learned/studied. I love history and think it’s fascinating, so why can’t I remember anything I’ve learned?! I’ve been known to read historical biographies and can’t answer simple questions about it when asked by friends. I can’t hold a discussion on historical topics. I’m not sure what’s wrong with me. Is there anything I can do to remember what I’ve studied and learned? I don’t just mean for a test in school. I mean knowing it for good.

I can’t seem to get a good answer to this. But I’ve been wondering for awhile how come people are so shiny in 1970’s movies?

When Nazi Germany was culling the disabled did they kill world war one veterans?

Is there a video of Winston Churchill's August 1941 radio broadcast speech where he says the quote "a crime without a name."? I'd love to include it in a project for college!

I'm trying to track down the personality depicted in a 19th century Scandinavian painting I saw online a while back.

The back-story (as I half remember it) was that a king was invited back from exile to rule in place of some other successor. He arrives in a city (perhaps from which he was exiled?) and basically forces the citizenry to fill a cauldron with gold before he'd help them.

The painting seems to be trying to show this particular monarch in a sinister light. He's slouched in a throne/chair observing as a young woman gives up some piece of precious jewellery. I'm not sure if this was Danish/Swedish/Norwegian in origin.

Any ideas which monarch/noble this was?

What is the origin of bringing a bottle of wine as a party gift?

How were the later Roman emperors (from Diocletian on) addressed by their subordinates? Was there anything equivalent to "Imperial Majesty"?

Does anyone know the name of the newspaper run by Robert Smalls or where I could find it?

In Medieval Europe would it be possible for a normal soldier to do a feat and be rewarded like in the classical Riches to Royalty trope? I don't mean the money from ransoming a captive or being made into a noble but something tamer along the lines of going into service with a noble and get training or something.

What uses would there be for ash in late medieval Europe? I'm currently reading a book about the Hanseatic League, and at several points, ashes are mentioned as a trade good.

If during WWII, Americans feared the Japanese Americans were spies, how would putting them into internment camps help in any way? If regular Japanese Americans had access to pertinent information that could help the enemy, wouldn't the entirety of the American public know about it, too? And if an entire country knows something, wouldn't the whole world know by default?

Where can I find a good overview of who preserved ancient Greek and Roman texts that survive today?

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Was it mainly Irish monks, Arab scholars, monks in western Europe or Byzantines that preserved the documents until the renaissance?

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Is there any example of a city which had a strong industry, but which failed to support oneself (something like a mine out of resources) and ended up being extremely (or at least noticeably) depopulated? One good example I know about is Detroit, but I need another one.

Are there definitive stats on number of SMGs deployed by each side in the Winter War?

What are some good books on Italian Unification? Don't know which to trust or which ones are easy to understand. For personal consumption, not planning to do any work with it.

The Cambridge Illustrated Atlas of Warfare: The Middle Ages, 768-1487, in the section on weaponry, says "In the fourteenth century, the English developed the technique of pairs of men-at-arms holding a single lance for foot combat." However I have not been able to find any more info on this - what is this technique called? Was it used primarily offensively or defensively? How exactly did it work?

Was it normal for a new British monarch to re-approve the names of Battleships already under construction, even if they had already received Royal Assent for their names by the previous monarch?

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I'm asking this in the context of the renaming of HMS Duke of York from HMS Anson in December 1938. I came across a newspaper article that said:

The King, whose interest in the Navy is a professional one, has just approved the names to be given to our five new battleships. As originally suggested by the Admiralty, they were to be called King George V, Prince of Wales, Anson, Beatty and Jellicoe. The King thought that Anson was somewhat out of place. Lord Stanhope, therefore, suggested that for Anson should be substituted Duke of York.

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Source: Belfast Telegraph, 21/12/1938.

The KGV class names had been agreed by the King and announced well before this date (KGV and PoW in October 1936 by Edward VIII, the other three ships in April 1937 by, I assume, George VI) , so I'm not sure why the names were being approved again.

Were there any political reasons for King Henry viii's marriages at all after Catharine of Aragon?

Everything I Google makes it seem like he just liked pretty girls.

Edit: I realize now after posting that of course Anne of cleaves was political.

I've recently become rather interested in the Northern Ireland Conflict (The Troubles), and am looking for suggestions in regard to further reading about the topic. A comprehensive history about the dynamics which led to the conflict, and the conflict itself, would be preferable. If anyone can point me in the right direction or has any suggestions, I'd greatly appreciate it!

How did the 101st airborne deal with german tanks during the battle of the bulge? what factors lead to them being able to defend bastong so under equipped and supplied?

Quick follow up for u/Georgy_k_Zhukov on this post of his:

In the early 19th century, did opponents in pistol duels “fire at will,” or was there a countdown from a bystander? Wondering mostly about USA but also curious about different practices too.

Do we know when the aqueduct at Zagura was built, destroyed, repaired etc. over the centuries?

Did the Incas and aztecs Know of each others existence?

The days of the week are derived from Norse mythology, this is fairly well-known. But why (and when)?

Oil is an important/vital aspect of bladesmithing to get the correct quench for knifes and especially swords.

What did Medieval smiths use for this oil/brine water? Especially the smiths who would be in the interior of England, France, Germany, etc. the places furthest removed from the trade networks or coasts that would be accessible to purchase whatever kind of oil they had access to?

When did we start removing price tags from gifts and why?

I'm interested in purchasing an atlas, and possibly an historical atlas. The ones I have found so far are The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World, the Oxford Atlas of the World, National Geographic Atlas of the World, History of the World Map by Map by DK, Atlas of World History by Patrick O'Brien, and The Times Complete History of the World.

Which if any of these would you recommend, or would you recommend something else? The intent is to use one or two of these as a supplement to other books and resources I use to learn about world history.

Where can I find a primary source that demonstrated Soviet Communist party delegates were appointed, rather than elected, as I've been told they were?

exactly how accurately did the mayans calculate the length of the lunar month and solar year? and what was the most accurate old world number at the time? i know i saw this in a comment on this sub somewhere but i can't find it again.

Looking for book recommendations on general overviews of military history. I would love anything that covers tactics and overall development of military structure, technology, etc. I'm wanting something rigorous and academic; I don't like "pop history" and military history is full of this.

To give you an idea, I am currently looking at "The Cambridge History of Warfare" as a starting point. I'm not devoid of knowledge on the subject, just looking for an interesting read. If anyone has anything on the Byzantine Empire, that'd be cool too.

How did ancient cultures describe Static Electricity?

It's very clear that Hitler had a pet dog, but I can't find anything on Stalin. Many search results show the Black Russian Terrier as "Stalin's dog," but nothing points to him personally owning one. I'm wondering if Stalin had a pet dog, or any pets for that matter.

Is there any books are articles pertaining to Roman/Byzantine fashion that goes beyond ancient times?

Is it generally accepted that the US provoked Japan into attacking them by having a ton of ships in Pearl Harbor, or is it a conspiracy theory?

Is there a book on general history of Holy Roman Empire from the foundation till the breakup? I can't find one on the booklist.

Was Jan Hus given a choice to revoke his "heretical" beliefs and live or was his live forfeit anyways? IIRC they gave him opportunity and begged him to revoke his claims at many occasions cause many wanted him to live. Which is it?

Does anyone have a good resource for line drawings of ancient roman iron work? I'm getting into blacksmithing and I'd like to browse stuff to try from that period

The WSJ just put up a Snapchat news story today about how Ulysses S. Grant was once arrested for speeding and cuffed.

In that scenario, couldn’t he have just pardoned himself?

Why is the african american community 40 million people strong, even though only 800,000 slaves were deported to the USA??

I know about the demographic transition, the immigration of foreign blacks after the slave trade (haitians, jamaicans, nigerians, dominicans, etc.) and racial mixtures which created individuals who are still considered african americans,

but still, that doesn’t explain the black population in the US multiplying itself by 50.