Once I posted here. It got two upvotes (including mine). But it was not deleted. And I felt like such a badass.

This is IMHO the best thing on Reddit. Although it can be intimidating to post to, the knowledge I have gained and the topics that have been discussed have opened up new areas of interest for further learning for me. Happy cake/birthday!

I just want to give a shout-out to the mod team. Without them so much misinformation or information lacking sources would be spread on this sub. Their dedication is unbelievable and I always want to thank them on threads I read, but I know it would be off topic and get removed!

Happy birthday history buffs and thank you historians for all of your knowledge! I'm a longtime lurker, but have learned a lot from your responses.

I'm going to take advantage of this celebratory thread to tell some bad history jokes.

Why was WWI so short? >!Because they were Russian!<

Why was WWII so long? >!Because they were Stalin!<

A Roman walks into a bar. He holds up two fingers and says, ">!five beers please!!<"

A Frenchman walks into a library and asks for a book on warfare. The librarian replies, ">!You'll only lose it.!<"

What did Richard III say when a planning proposal was submitted for the building's parking lot? >!Over my dead body!!<

Why did Karl Marx dislike Earl Grey tea? >!Because proper tea is theft.!<

Reported: This topic has 12 years to go before it can be addressed in this forum.

Happy Birthday to the best community!

I want to hear from all our lurkers, posters and community members! What got you into history? What's so interesting about this old stuff?

Get hyped for a another year of great posts.

Can I give a shout-out to the real unsung hero of r/askhistorians?

🍻

This one's for you, everyone who sees a question that they could kind of answer, or Google, and doesn't post anything because they know it can't meet the r/askhistorians standards.

I didn't have the historical perspective to realize that it was a little over seven years ago that my son told me to start participating in /r/AskHistorians. My son recognized that this was a happening place - before it was only 1 years old! I hadn't realized how young the sub was when I started participating.

The insights one can gain from history - they're never ending!

This is the only place I know where I can go FULL HISTORY without folks starting to yawn or getting slightly annoyed. Hey, they sometimes even give me upvotes here. Even though I do not work in academia or anything remotely related to history, the passion I got for the subject in my high school and university years studying it will never die! Next to that, I continue to learn something new here every day, reading those well-written and well-sourced answers to questions about all kinds of periods and cultures in human history. Keep it up, interesting inquirers and analytic answerers!

In the spirit of this subreddit, all comments should be removed

I’ve spent 10 years studying as a historian, and one thing that struck me was how lonely being an academic historian is. Maybe it’s just the personality type that’s usually attracted to studying history, but I found the discipline very insular. I decided last year that I would branch out and start working with the public more and try to bring the research being done in academia to the people, as much of it is very interesting and very important to our understanding of global history.

Part of that was starting my own blog, writing for magazines, doing public talks and podcasts etc, but a very large part was lurking on this very sub and seeing what people are interested in and how we talk to each other. Just recently I tried my hand at answering some questions based on my own knowledge, and the response has been wonderful.

This community is fantastic and the knowledge being generated here is so important. Thank you for all your hard work and for giving us this space to talk. For the first time since becoming a historian, I am genuinely feeling like there’s a community around me :)

This sub has made me interested in things I had never known existed. Thank you so much to the contributors who seem to know everything about everything, and to the mods for maintaining the platform!

The ultimate poll question; Istanbul or Constantinople?

I'm writing a set of essays on the legal history of the Holy Roman Empire, and I wanted to meme my chapter titles a bit after a reader found my writing to be "too dull".

Here are some excerpts:

• Why Charles needed a Bull

• Why Max Hated Diets

• Why Charles really Hated Diets

• The Best Way to Run a Government is to Never End it

• The Privilege of Avoiding the Law

And my favorite chapter of all,

• Napoleon Ends it All, in Style

EDIT: Also big thank to the mods and contributors for making such a flourishing community of historians!

What is your plan for the 9/11 apocalypse in 16 months?

The British should adopt the word 'zucchini' so that 'courgettes' can be used as a term for Corgi puppies.

Thank you to all the contributors and mods here, it has been a lot of fun learning about the nitty gritty bits of history that I would not have otherwise thought to learn about. You guys rock and Happy birthday!

this is the only top-level comment I will ever be able to make in this sub without having it deleted

It is my fervent hope to be gilded by a fellow redditor when I answer a question about the historical origins of /r/AskHistorians. I just hope I don't accidently ressurect an old Pepperidge Farms meme at the same time.

Yay meta thread!

I'll take the opportunity to ask a meta question of this thread's amazing historians: after 8 years, do you ever get tired of seeing specific types of posts? Disingenuous questions or ones based on unsound or thoroughly refuted premises? The perception that military history is disproportionately represented in the types of questions being asked? What about the influence of video games with a historical focus (Paradox strategy games, WW2 shooters, Civilization, etc.)?

And maybe more interestingly: over the 8 years of this subreddit's existence, have the types of questions being asked changed over time or remained relatively consistent?

Hey there all you wonderful people! I just wanted to take a moment and offer some suggestions for how you (YES YOU!) can contribute and join this wonderful community. You don't even need to study up and write awesome answers. Heck, it's certainly not how I got here.

Do you come across brilliant answers that you really enjoyed? Or perhaps found an interesting question that sadly lacks an answer? Save them! Then you can post them in the Sunday Digest to draw more attention to them. I am but one man, and I'd love to see what other people come across during the week. Don't even be bothered if someone has already posted a link to the same thing. Show your support for the author/writer/asker and post it up again!

Another great way you can help the community is as a FAQ Finder. It even comes with a spiffy flair and mad respect! As you browse through the subreddit and you find a question that's been answered before, you can drop a link and a ping to the original author. Help connect people to the answers their looking for. And you'll get flaired for it!

Finally you can do the simplest, most helpful things. Upvote sweet questions so more people see them, upvote and thank the writers so they know someone appreciates the time and effort they put into all that work, and if you come across something that you know breaks the rules, then report it for us. Despite our power overwhelming the moderators can't be everywhere at once. Reporting comments helps us keep things neat and tidy, and is a HUGE help that we always appreciate.

I also, personally, want more AskHistorians themed memes. Please for the love of all that's moderation keep them to the Friday Free For All or celebratory META threads, but I want to see that creativity and have more things to send to my friends at 3AM that they wont understand.

So don't be afraid to join in and participate in the greatest, most glorious subreddit on the net! We have a fantastic community here, and so much of it is because of people like you.

Also before I forget, we have our next special feature of the summer campaign coming on the 31st! The History of Science and Technology! Bring your STEM powered history and tell me all about!

On Tuesday there was also a special thread about sports history, and I'd love to learn more. Next Tuesday will be all about FIRE! So get all fired up, cook up some good history, and bring the heat!

How does it feel to be the best moderated part of the internet, and how do y'all maintain the incredible quality and consistency of the subreddit?

Well i'm just a lurker but thank you for the quality content. Commuting has become a productive time !

/u/Georgy_K_Zhukov if you don't expand your dog family with those pups, I will be severely disappointed

love the moderation here. keep it up. MFW people complain about low-content comment deletion.

Lurker here! Thank you all for giving me a chance to learn about things that I always wondered, or even better never even thought about. Great questions and great answers....thank you!

thank God, finally I can post here without it being deleted like 5 seconds later. That said, I just wanted you guys, the historians as well as the mods to know that I really appreciate what you are doing. I've learned so much from this sub, it beats all history classes I ever took. I tip my hat to the historians who actually take the time to post here. I can't believe how anyone can just sacrifice so much of their time to share their knowledge with the world, especially considering you are not getting a single cent for it. Thank you thank you thank you from the bottom of my history loving heart. I'm very much looking forward to continue reading your explanations and [post deleted] comments on this sub for the next 8 years to come and beyond.

you are the ones who make this the best place in the internet

I love that the only comment I was ever qualified to give regarded the availability of ice to saloons in the 1800s.

Happy Birthday to the sub, and thank you for all participants, with a very special thank you to our dear Mods! Thanks for making this place truly unique and high quality, and frankly very anomalous for Reddit, which is why I so rarely venture from these safe confines into the blasted heath beyond.

Now, my story begins in nineteen-dickety-two. We had to say "dickety" cause that Kaiser had stolen our word "twenty"...

Two years ago I removed all of the default subs from my account and only subscribed to subs that would enrich my life and knowledge. This is one of them, and I must say the knowledge I have gained from this sub has been spectacular. Thank you to all of the professional historians in here, I can say that you have made a positive impact on at least one person's life!

Happy cake day to the sub that made me get a handle 7 years ago (cake day was last week). I don't contribute often, but I am proud that my top rated all time comment came out of this sub.

Well now...this calls for a celebration

So, in 12 years we can ask about the early years of AskHistorians, right?

Instead of blowing out the candles. They will just be removed...

Woot! Here to party! And now back to work...

Real historians won't celebrate until the 20th birthday.

Neither here nor there, but saw a lecture on youtube a while back, either Penn or Oriental institute.

They mentioned being on a dig in the levant where a a very early expedition of the same organisation had been over a hundred years earlier.

They were surprised to find archeological evidence of that expedition, including a note by the expedition leader containing instructions for a colleague to get to the site.

Needless to say after they had a chuckle, they cataloged the finds, and left it for further generations.

I thought that was funny.

This is where I go to realize I don't know nearly as much about history as I thought I did.

Thank you so much for providing such interesting bits of information that I never would have thought to ask before. I’ve learned so much just by browsing. I do have a question for the historians: if you were forced to go back in time and be stuck in your respective areas of expertise, how well prepared do you think you would be?

This subreddit is the best thing to exist on the internet. From the historians to the mod team to us plebs, this is the most magical community out there. Thank you all for indulging my love for history in such a professional, earnest, and genuine fashion.

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Just kidding. Thanks for all you do, guys.

I love this sub! Also I am starting my uni studies in History soon! Hopefully a bachelor in 3 years!

I just came here to say JFK was killed by the Freemasons, Julius Caesar was a shitty general and Abraham Lincoln plagiarized the Gettysburg Address.

Source: a guy I met at a party once.

Seriously, though, thanks for maintaining a quality sub.

Whostory is it, anyways?

Much love from /r/IndianCountry!

Your mod team and community are one of the bright, shining, and AWESOME parts of Reddit.

This sub is perhaps one of the best academically rigorous subs on Reddit, thanks in no small part due to the moderators and contributors here.

Here’s to a even better next year!

Here's my history pupper. His name is Lyndon and he has his own autographed copy of one of the Robert Caro biographies of LBJ ("to the real LBJ").

I'm just here to make a comment on this sub. I love this sub so much because of its ridiculously strong stance on quality content. I'm perfectly happy to get the occasional wasteland graveyard of comments on the front page in exchange for really well thought out content the other times.

Thanks for the work you guys do to keep idiots like me informed and entertained.

[deleted]

I thank the excellent contributors for their well-written and interesting answers

I'm also happy that the mods sometimes let me bend the rules. I'm an engineer with years of experience. Sometimes I see a question posted here that's within my field of engineering expertise, and I answer as an engineer, not a historian

[Deleted]

Not a proper question. Delete!

Answering an unasked question: during the Paleolithic period the most common form of transportation used by Cro-Magnon man was the foot-powered automobile. This previously untestable hypothesis was proven true in 1960 when renowned scientists William Hanna and Joseph Barbera unearthed actual footage of these vehicles in use.

And since this is /r/askhistorians I must, of course, include my source, and I will link the primary source, the actual footage discovered: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skeg3Y6sptg

This is like the only sub on reddit that takes no shit from anyone. Mad props

Thanks for all the hardcore modding. It is nice to be able to come here and find an answer that has some authority and isn’t just the top voted one. Keep up the good work.

Is the podcast dead? I’ve enjoyed the work y’all did there as well.

Happy birthday to us, awesome nerds.

Happy birthday to all of us! 8 years. Can't believe that this sub has been around so long already. Almost 6 years ago I discovered this place. So much has changed since then, almost all of it for the better. I was in a very different place then, too. Here's to 8 more years!

Happy birthday to the sub, contributors, readers and mods. Personally it's the best sub on this site by far and i can say that following it for the 5 years i've been doing it has actually expanded my horizons and knowledge. Especially changing the way i understand history and giving me more tools to filter out bogus or reductive claims.

Also, i saw somebody else post a meta question here and there's one that i've been wanting to ask everybody who studies/studied history as a profession but been hesitant about it cause it feels kinda outside the rules tho true to the name of the sub( since i'm asking historians :D). There was an answer i read here a few months ago about Nazi Germany, and it had a quote about wehrmacht soldiers going into nurseries and killing infants. And that knocked me out emotionally...logged off for the night and went to sleep with a knot in my stomach. Does it ever get to you? Reading about the most horrible stuff and having to do it as a job? Do you ever have day where you reach a particularly horrible event in history and just put it off til the last moment or just skip it/skim as fast as possible?

sorry if it's not the proper place to ask. i won't mind removing it if that's the case

I was a history major in college, but I changed because it got old.

Thanks to all of you who stuck with it!

This sub has led me to many late night Wikipedia binges. I still don't answer questions on here, because I don't usually read primary sources, but I've definitely learned a lot. So, thank you to everyone that makes this sub what it is, and here's to another 8 years!

[Comment Removed]

My dream in life is to someday have enough knowledge to post here.

Many are the times I have believed that the mods were too strict - and everytime I have ended up concluding that their decision improved the quality of this sub.
Congratulations!
And may you have success for years to come!

PS: I always believed that this sub was moderated by elderly academics - seing the above group photo of the mod team makes your achievements even more impressive!
You have been VERY good boys, and girls!

Some friends and I do a series in which we recreate historical events using video games. Poorly. Very poorly.

We use the /r/AskHistorians rule about nothing more recent than 20 years (my suggestion to help avoid "too-soon") .

Would any of you like to give it a look?

Please give us feedback. We're looking to improve. October is going to be an interesting season, and I'm starting to look at January possibilities.

This sub shows the best of what reddit could be. So many other subreddits have lost their way as they grew subscribers, but /r/AskHistorians has continued to provide high-quality, focused discussion.

Thanks to the mods and contributors to creating a place where a consumer like me can get the history I crave!

Thank you to the moderators here who do an excellent job.

I kinda just like corgis a lot

Came here expecting nothing but deleted comments!

Okay, now that I've got the shitposting out of my system, here's my actual meta question:

Flaired users of /r/AskHistorians, what's your fringe historical idea? What are you pretty sure everyone else here is wrong about? What are you really set on that everyone else here thinks is nutty? Do you have proof Toussaint L'Ouverture built the Pyramids? Have you seen Jurchen grave goods that clearly depict Jin Taizu with a robot arm and laser eyes? Does modern historiography dramatically underestimate the size of James Buchanan's ass?

Are you all secretly dogs what’s with the photo

What's your favorite civ/other group from a turn-based or real-time strategy game? (AOE II Britons represent)

What a wonderful sub.

Years, decades ago, I read a James Thurber story that sometimes comes to mind with some of the questions posed here: how difficult it can be to escape the strictures of your time and culture when looking at historical events.

Thurber loved reading French pulp-novel versions of American Westerns, and he described one of them in his story Wild Bird Hickcock and His Friends:

There were, in my lost and lamented collection, a hundred other fine things, which I have forgotten, but there is one that will forever remain with me. It occured in a book in which, as I remember it, Billy the Kid, alias Billy the Boy, was the central figure. At any rate, two strangers had turned up in a small Western town and their actions had aroused the suspicions of a group of respectable citizens, who forthwith called on the sheriff to complain about the newcomers. The sheriff listened gravely for a while, got up and buckled on his gun belt, and said, "Alors, je vais demander ses cartes d'identité!''

Sorry to break up the party, but I had a real question that I have been afraid to post: Did anyone ever actually expect the Spanish Inquisition?

Kind of intimidated to post but here goes...

Should note I’m not a historian.

No sources either. Sorry

I just want to say that I really enjoy reading the knowledgeable comments here and the high-quality moderation, cheers!

Does anyone have some history youtube channels to recommend?

The mods here are just the best. A shining example of what communities like this should be.

There is something to be said for authentic historians. Once took a "walking ghost tour" in Savannah GA. The guide proclaimed himself somewhat of an expert in Georgia history and all things paranormal. Tried to strike up a conversation on some experiences I had while visiting the Andersonville National Historic Sight (a short three hour drive from Savannah and certainly well known in Georgia)

​

He had never heard of it.

Happy [removed] !!

I love it when I stumble upon a post from r/AskHistorians on my front page. I always end up learning something new.

Omg I can actually make a comment on an ask historians thread!

Personal anecdote: Being despised for writing a thesis on early Heideggerean ontology. Being called a nazi because of that, while my great-grandfather was put in a forced labour camp by the NS military ‘regime’ (‘bewind’) for two years during WWII and while I vehemently despise fascism without exceptions. Keep teaching everyone about the ‘past’, because people in the present are often horribly informed about* it. You guys do a great job. Keep at it.

Birthday related short question:

Who had the most over the top birthday party?

I shall accept rankings based on any of the following: Deaths, Births, People, Cost, Food, Drink and Religion.

Big time lurker, massive thank you to the amazing contributors and mods. You all encourage me to read into topics I normally wouldn't and who doesn't love reading more history!

Happy Birthday!

EVERYTIME I SEE A POST ON THIS SUB, I BUCKLE MY SEATBELTS BECAUSE I KNOW I'M GON BE TAKEN ON A WILD ASS EDUCATIONAL RIDE THAT I WILL NEVER COME ACROSS AGAIN. I AM JUST AN UNEDUCATED PLEB WHO GAINS SO MUCH HAPPINESS FROM THIS SUB.

We miss you, /u/The_Alaskan.

This sub is great and I love it.

Oh whoops, forgot to attach my bibliography, here it is:

1. Beardman, Sadface. Dope Subs. Dank Knowledge University Press, 1999.
2. :3

The mod team do an excellent job with /askhistorians.

Whenever I visit the sub I have confidence I’ll find something in depth, interesting, and well sourced, to read. Something that is neither hearsay (unless it’s accounts of hearsay from say 5th century Egypt), built on some self agenda (unless it’s say the agendas of Crassus in the Triumvirate), or pushing misinformation (unless it’s say explaining the themes behind Joseph Goebbels 1943 film Titanic).

It’s great. Keep up the good work!

Thanks to all of the historians answering all the questions here! Someday I hope to answer a question that I've got the relevant knowledge for, but since I'm an engineering student it might take a while for that day to roll around.

Next April Fool's can we become /r/fakehistoryporn for a day?

What are some interesting threads to read in r/Askhistorians? I’m pretty much hooked but I would like to know everyone’s opinion. Thanks

[Removed]

Reported for 20-year rule.

Happy Birthday! I found AH over 2 years ago now, and got flair last year. It's really hard to believe, I never thought I'd have a flair when I started reading the sub, but here we are!

And without this place, I frankly wouldn't be using Reddit at all!

I have followed and read and loved this sub since day 1. As an avid casual history buff, I am forever grateful for and impressed by the rigorous standards here; therefore I can't resist an opportunity to shitpost today. Happy Cake Day to r/askhistorians!!!!!

So only 12 more years and a day before we finally can ask a historian about askhistorians!

Marvel as I make a top-level comment that is COMPLETELY DEVOID OF QUALITY OR SUBSTANCE!! MWUAHAHAHAHA!!!

Happy birthday to this amazing community and thank you to all the historians for their time.

The first /r/AskHistorians thread I've seen that actually has comments that aren't deleted.

More importantly, it's almost the 7th birthday of /r/askahistorian!

I still get requests to become an approved poster on a regular basis.

Starting the 5th year of undergrad for my History BA...please god let it end soon, I'm so ready to move on

Bad history joke:

If Germany is the fatherland and Russia is the motherland, WWII was just a really messy divorce.

Just dropping in to say thanks to everyone who has put in time and effort into answering questions.

How old does a joke have to be to not be deleted by the mods?

At first I was kind of upset that people took pop history books for their word, and I wondered why they didn't read more serious stuff.

Then I read a book written by an archivist about the voodoo queen Marie Laveau. 1) It's the cure for insomnia. 2) Louisiana may or may not exist based upon existing historical documents.

I am grateful to /r/AskHistorians and all the amazing mods. I come here to remind myself that the internet is not just trolls and death threats. And the history is awesome too! May you live for ever!

This may be the only opportunity I have to post here. I've been a long time subsciber and thank all of you for making this one of the most informative subs on Reddit.

Something I'd like to know and can maybe ask here in the less regimented environment is...where the hell did the army (u.s. army) stash all its case files on recovered unidentified soldiers from ww1? Some researcher friends suspect they're at the DPAA but now that they're basically beholden to the Vietnam era nothing's moving on earlier conflicts as it appears researchers are banned from accessing that facility. I don't have a missing/unidentified soldier in the fight but I do have a great grand uncle whose burial sketch I'd love to see one day and may be thrown in with all the other missing case files.

Happy Birthday!

While the rules have been loosened and I have you all here... do any of you know any good stories about Jazz (or really any genre) musicians?

I'm a music teacher who occasionally likes to share stories of funny, badass, or otherwise really out-there moments in music history and would love to add to my repertoire!

Flaired users and moderators:

What's the story behind your username?

I really love this sub. An absolutely treasure. Thanks guys!!!

The mods of this sub are truly a great example of how mods should be. Congratulations!!

What question have you been waiting for that you're desperate to answer?

Long time reader. I just wanted to express my thanks to all those dedicated people out there who have the expertise to contribute and willingly do so.

Thank you!

Best resource on reddit right here

Does anyone other than me find it offensive there are no dog history experts in this group. Dogs did history too

OK, the question that everyone wants answered….

WHO KILLED JOHNBENET RAMSEY?!?!

By the way it was the dad.

This is it. My one chance to comment here safely.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh.....

Falls back into a random perfectly sized pool

Why do Americans keep thinking the French only lose wars or surrender?

Yeah the higher than average standards keep this sub great. I've learned alot about the topics I'm interested in and I thank all of the contributors and mods for your hard work.

I approve wholeheartedly to the choice of image that was used. Happy Birthday!!!!!!

Commenting just to have a comment here that won't be deleted due to off topicness nor due to not being an expert.

At least until someone asks about ejection seats, then it'll be my time to shine!

🍾🍾🍾🥂🥂🥂

I really love this sub! I wanna thank all the people here for taking a portion of their time to answer questions here, really appreciated!

Are these your corgs?

What do you guys think of Graham Hancock and people like him?

This has been the hardest sub to practice restraint in, simply because of how great the questions and answers can be. I'd like to say thank you to all of the mods and contributors. Your brilliant, thoughtful, comprehensive and objective responses really bring the stories of the past to life and usually into modern relevance. I have had to curtail my own speculation so many times, but can't think of an example where the eventual answer wasn't worth the wait.
So, on the one day it's appropriate to post non-history specific comments, thank you, thank you, thank you. :)

Damn I've waited for this moment. I always think of my best jokes when I'm not allowed to post them. So, ummm.

Shit.

How do you know the Romans were always high?

!Because Roman sites always have loads of pot.!<

That's awful. I swear I thought of some good ones too.

I love this sub and the dedication to keep a high bar for responses.

Thank you.

T-minus 12 years until I ask about the origins of /r/askhistorians.

Happy birthday!

This has by far been my go-to sub for spending 5-30 minutes of time on the toilet to learn about a niche or unique historical question. I have this sub to blame for my legs losing sensation so many times while pooping.

One of the best thing online. Not only on Reddit.

I will be happy to give a small donation to this community to celebrate. Can I do it? Any no-profit you want to suggest?

This quite possibly the only time there are no removed comments in this sub

To the best sub on Reddit, I'd like to raise a glass. Cheers

"Professionally published" contributors - has answering a question on here ever lead to a breakthrough in your professional work?

Happy birthday to our most wonderful subreddit. The community and the people here are fantastic.

This place is an awesome place of learning, there is always something interesting to read. I cannot count all the hours that I have spent reading wonderful posts about so many topics both popular and niche, and the few were I could try to write an answer.

I hope that you can continue the great and hard work, it seriously is formidable.

A big thanks to all the contributors and the mods!

This is the best, most educative and informative thread on reddit for me.

I'm just posting here so that I can say that I once posted in /r/askhistorians and it wasn't immediately deleted.

But seriously, this sub is a gem. Probably the most consistently interesting and valuable community on this site. Thanks to everyone, mods and experts for keeping this place the highest quality.

Happy birthday everyone!

I realised that a life in academic history wasn't for me when I was at grad school. I'm a loner by nature but working alone for long periods weirdly gets me qute down, and I just would not be cut out for it. I work in a non-historical office where socialisation is forced on me, leaving me with enough free time to browse this sub after a getting paid to have my social needs fulfilled.

I have never asked a question, and have yet to see one which I feel qualified to answer adequately, but it's something which keeps me in touch, on my own terms, with a subject which has been a life-long passion. I get genuinely excited when I see an interesting question and am very thankful for the time and effort you all put in to providing in-depth, entertaining answers.

I listen to smart people... or, at least to people who know how little they know, but who are willing to share thoughts about what they do know with internet strangers.

Thank you all. I continue to listen and learn.

High school history teacher here. I can genuinely say this sub has enhanced my knowledge of the subject and bettered my student's education. I often find myself referencing information that I learned through this sub. Thank you!

Do you guys ever wonder if there was a specific event or thing that sparked your lifelong interest in history? I still remember reading these old historical graphic novels/comics when I was a child and wonder if that's the reason I was always fascinated with history.

Oh, and happy birthday r/askhistorians

I'm a 21st century internet user. How would I celebrate the birthday of a subreddit?

You know, my obscure question on Hitler's love of French Pastries has STILL NOT BEEN ANSWERED!!! /s

Happy Birthday!!!

Happy birthday for us all! 🥨🥨🍻🍻

Happy Birthday! This sub is probably the subreddit I spent the most time on even though I haven't posted a single comment here.

Big thank you to all historians on here for their amazing posts

What's the best way to get in touch with a relevant historian when a post doesn't get any answers, or when a curiosity may be too broad for a format conforming post?

Cut doggo

Happy Birthday!

Thank you Mods for the great work you do keeping this sub the most honest on Reddit.

Thank you to all contributors, both those that have asked interesting questions and those that have answered the questions with insightful and informative responses.

Love this sub!

This thread is making history. All comments legal. Most living. It's like the opposite of The Purge. HBD /r/AskHistorians [deleted]

Happy Birthday, r/AskHistorians! It's been such a pleasure to read questions and excellent answers of all kinds over the years. Here's to another wonderful either years!

Thanks to each of you for creating, growing and lovingly pruning this community! It is consistently both fascinating and high effort.

Happy Cakeday!

When I write my Magnum Opus I'll be sure to credit you guys :p

So in 12 more years we can start asking questions about the origins of the sub?

Congratulations on staying active so long! Here's to many more years of reading thoughtful questions (hopefully with interesting answers).

What are some topics that flaired answerers wish could come up more often?

Thanks to all for this subreddit - its brought me much enjoyment and made me interested in books that I wouldn't have found otherwise.

Really educational and enriching to be able to read about history from dedicated professionals.

Relatively short term lurker, this forum certainly shows the power of great moderation!

Everyone is here is great, I love this sub.

I'm also thrilled I can make a Top Level comment for once!

Just commenting to say how much I love this sub. Best place on Reddit by far.

Congrats to the sub!
My question is, I love history documentaries, so I would like to ask for some nice recommendations that you might have.

Things that I've already seen and appreciated:

• Apocalypse, the 1st and 2nd world war
• The Death of Yugoslavia
• The Vietnam War by Ken Burns
• The World at War

I would love if you could suggest something about Korean War, Napolean Wars, amongst others. Thank you!

Love this sub. Thanks so much for all the work put into it!

I’m not gonna lie, this has always been one of my favorite subreddits, I love learning something new here every day! Happy birthday!

Yay. One of my top subreddits. Grateful to you guys.

As readers, is there anything we can do to help /r/AskHistorians thrive? It’s such a unique and fascinating corner of Reddit, and I want to help it flourish, but I’m no historian. Can I do anything? Want some brownies?

Happy Birthday! Wish I had more time to actually post these days but I am always awed and impressed by the hard work mods and posters put in!

Mods should start deleting random comments. Just to throw it back.

Will there be cake?

tfw comment actually posted in AskHistorians

Happy birthday!

Best sub ever!

I know I'm late to the party, but I've always wanted to ask the generalized question to all the historians here:

What is an interesting fact you'd love to (or have wanted to) share but typically requires a nuanced background explanation to fully show why it's so interesting?

Wonderful for the mod team and people who are active in the community

Cool, I share my birthday with r/AskHistorians

Yo, was Frederick II of the Holy Roman Empire as cool as my professor made him out to be?

Everyone involved with this community (including us scrubs who can never make top level comments) is amazing. I love you all and I'm so happy this exists.

I hope someday our ancestors will ask about the origins and early history of r/askhistorians and be answered by a wall of [deleted]. (Get it? Cause it answers the question perfectly 😝)

Gimmie top ten US presidents, the more controversial the better.

I have to say I love this sub, I never post because I'm only have an undergrad in history. I love coming here for the detailed answers that get me going down the next rabbit hole. Thanks to the mods and contributors happy cake day!

When the Vikings named Iceland and Greenland appropriately

I've been lurking a long time but never had anything to contribute. So I'll take this opportunity to ask: Historians, what' good niche historical jokes do you know relating to your field(s) of study?

Thanks for all the well-curated information, everyone.

Setting the suggested sort to Random is a surprisingly good idea.

Happy Birthday! 🎂 Once long ago when I was newbie on reddit I answered a question regarding NASA. It was upvoted as the top answer and well accepted. Over time I realized how serious and professional r/AskHistorians was and rightfully so. Then I realized here is where that question was posted and I became mortified. I'm a long time fan of NASA but never considered myself a historian, I've not tried it again. Thanks MODs 🏹

This thread is a META Party thread! The only rule is to be nice!

However, don't forget that Saturday, August 31st is the History of Science and Technology Floating Feature. Make sure to add it to your calendar!

happy birthday to the only reddit feed I allow on my phone.

You're the best.

Congratulations on the 8 replies not deleted! Jk love you.

Do you sometimes wish Reddit’s search feature was better so people who mean well wouldn’t ask repeated questions?

this is the sub that kept me coming back to reddit. I was kinda liking reddit at first but this sub was a revelation. Y'alls enthusiasm to share your expertise, the depth of the answers, and all the different fields that get answered here really make this such an awesome resource. huge shout-out to the book list too

I absolutely love and appreciate this subreddit. What are your favorite topics in history? I absolutely love the evolution of armored warfare, especially the tactics Patton used that earned him the fear and respect of Nazi leaders

thankyou for this sub, i learn a lot. Forever grateful

Why do we keep letting this victor fellow write our textbooks? Seems like he’s very bias according to a lot of people

This is hands down my favourite subreddit on the website, and I think all other /r/Ask<Expert> subreddits should aspire to be more like it :)

Thanks for the awesome sub and content, HBD r/askhistorians!

Exactly what I want from the internet, and what I have envisioned for the EU. Specialised networks, independent communities. You Excel. I am definitely gonna use this community as an example in my assignment for leadership and organisation (high school course) tomorrow.

I just wanna post here because I know I lack the intelligence to ever properly respond to a question posted.

Have you ever thought of piecing together a book of FAQS and best answers from the sub-reddit?

Thanks for everything!

I have a sort of weird question. My mom's godfather was a POW during WWII. He was captured in the Philippines and was liberated from Rokuroshi shortly before VJ Day. However, he had apparently been in other camps prior to that. (My understanding is that Rokuroshi is where Japan put officers when it became obvious that they were losing so that when liberation happened, they could say they treated the prisoners well.)

Unfortunately, his name is only slightly less common than "John Smith," and his middle name is not on all records. He was a POW for at least two years and claimed that he was tortured.

Does anyone have any tips for where I should start my search?

I’ve never posted on here before, but I absolutely love coming to search. The responses always strike a fantastic balance between thoughtfulness and readability.

This is by far my favorite sub, and one I read frequently. So much appreciation for this community

Yeah I've been seeing a lot of posts lately saying it's ok to contribute here. I'm not buying it. Obviously some sort of scam. I have seen too many threads entirely deleted to know better.

The cult of dog worship just makes it worse. Thought this sub was safe from that nonsense. What has happened to the mods? Have they been taken hostage? I don't understand.

Worst mods in any sub I’ve ever visited. Hands down.