What cooking fats did they use in the pre-Columbian Americas?

I'm reading a biography of Hamilton, and it strikes me that we are schooled to think of the founding documents as biblically sacred and the founding fathers as these magic beings who knew all. It apparently is very far from the truth.

Hamilton believed that wealthy leaders would always serve the rest of us well because they had the same vices as the poor, but they at least would care about the country where their money rested. He did not grasp a time when international corporations did not feel loyalty to any country over profit.

Also, it seems from the very beginning there was a constant fight with slave owners who agreed to break with England for fear the British would outlaw slaves and now were furious that a strong central American government would do the same. Many of these documents we revere were just clobbered together to keep the colonies from blowing apart with the knowledge that yes, we know these suck, but let's get something everyone can sign, and we'll fix it later. A lot of emphasis on fix things later.

Hardly the etched in stone beginnings that Justice Alito is referring to in the draft to take away abortion rights.

As a lay person, is my assessment just another Dunning Krueger ramble, or is there any truth in what I perceive?

How long were weapons in antiquity expected to actually last? Would a gladius or spear be expected to last more than a single tough battle? Or would everything need to be refurbished or replaced by the quartermaster each day (for armies that actually had quartermasters)?

This may be a silly question, but I am left handed and I only just realized today that the most common form of the black power salute (a single raised fist) is left-handed. The fist in this article is an example. There are, of course, a number of artistic depictions but it seems this left-handed version is currently the most popular.

Is there any reason why that is? I am just wondering because most salutes, and art of hands in general, are right handed (and if you search for people performing the salute, most people perform the salute with their right hand). How did the standard depiction of the black power salute end up left handed?

Does an (authoritarive) list of empires in world history exist? If so, can you please point me to that reference? Much obliged! More details:

For a certain research project, I would like to suggest that cultural trait X is mainly a product of imperial regimes (has to do with governance of complex societies). For this purpose, it would be tremendously useful to have an extensive list of all cultures/societies that are typically defined as having been empires.

Now — I know — the definition of empire is dubious, questionable and at best directive. However, for present purposes that would suffice. It’s still better than nothing and I intend to be honest about these caveats. With those limitations in mind, can you think of any reference which might fit my purpose?

Thank you!

What was considered as the most impressive, impregnable fortress of High Medieval Europe;1100-1399? The living definition of stone power?

King Richard built Château Gaillard

The Lords of Coucy had Château de Coucy

The Teutonic Order had Marienburg

But what was the strongest fortress in Europe?

I can't find any definitive information on whether the three-legged crow of Chinese mythology is related to Yatagarasu of Japan. I personally ascribe to the theory that the Japonic peoples came pre-Austronesian groups in eastern China, and the three-legged crow myth was found in the Yangtze Delta, so it checks out. However, the pre-Austronesian thing hasn't been proven, and thus the connection between the crows is still uncertain.

In every fictionalized retelling of the Pazzi Conspiracy in renaissance Florence that I have seen (the “Medici: Masters of Florence” and “DaVinci’s Demons” shows, and the Assassins Creed II videogame), the Medicis are portrayed S the “good guys” and the Pazzis and their allies as the villains.

Is this fair?

Is the office of High Priest of the Samaritans the oldest continuous institution in the world?

What language did the diplomats (and Czar Alexander) use at the congress of Vienna in 1814/1815?

Do winter jackets really have their origins in Native America or Siberian garments? Or do they have their origins in jerk tunics like some say?

In Feudal Japan did people mostly drink green tea or were black teas consumed too?

In the 1870s would wanted fugitives typically flee the country or try to find isolated settlements? I ask this bc today the stereotype is “cross the border to mexico” but in the show Hell on Wheels, set in the 1870s in the west, a man is wanted for murder and the plan is to flee to mexico. Was this popular at the time or a modern trope? How effective were US marshalls back then at tracking down people who simply flee to other settlements out west?

Did the mongol yassa ever apply to civillians as well or only ethnic mongols? How would such a thing be decided in judicial cases if most of it was secret to begin with, and those being punished were (assumedly) not mongols?

Were there other, more codified laws to go along with it?

When the US was producing thousands of Liberty ships during WWII, did they do the full christening ceremony with smashed champagne?

Did they have champagne to use in that quantity or did they use replacements?

Did Daniel Defoe's Newsletter Review survive or was it lost?

If it survives, has it been digitized and available for download online? I don't think it's copyrighted anymore because it was published over 200 years ago.

What are the best sources for realistic portrayals of medieval warfare? There are so many books available but how can I tell if they’re reliable? Addendum: after searching your book list I realized that some of the ones I really want are only available used. Are there any online sources that could supplement them? I’m always a bit wary of buying used.

Have social justice movements which have only relied on peaceful means of protest ever succeeded? All the ones I can think of either involved direct use of “violence” or the direct possibility of it.

Question about ancient china: is the story as laid out in this post truly an ancient story from China?

When I try to find a source I can only find vague blogposts about it which made me doubt its legitimacy, but people in the comments insists that it's real.

Who was the last hardcore segregationist to hold elected office in America

Why did Caesar raise gens Octavia from plebeian to patrician class?

I just finished SPQR by Mary Beard, it's an introductory book that covers history of ancient Rome til 212 CE. It's an easy read that's recommended all over this subreddit. Are there any similarly written books that cover further periods of Roman history? Thanks

Are there historic names for economic systems, in a similar way to political systems? I'm trying to understand the general differences between countries

How different is the Latin of Ancient Rome from the Latin used by Isaac Newton when he wrote Principia in the 17th Century?

looking for good books about ww2 vets and the birth of motorcycle clubs/gangs

Where can I find this 1930 newspaper article by Edgar Wallace?

Wallace wrote a newspaper article in a Berlin newspaper or magazine on the occasion of the suicide of a carpenter named James Edward Spiers in London. Spiers killed himself because of his sentence to 15 lashes after being arrested for robbery. Wallace took this as an opportunity to publish an article in a Berlin newspaper advocating corporal punishment (flogging). Tenor: The punishment works when criminals kill themselves out of fear of it.

Spiers killed himself in London on February 3, 1930. On April 19, Alfred Polgar (famous german writer) mentions in Berlin that Edgar Wallace wrote an article "in a Berlin newspaper" in which he takes Spiers' case as an example to argue in favor of corporal punishment.

Where and when between February 3 and April 19 did Edgar Wallace write about the case? The Text was pretty sure translated into german language before publication.

I have been searching newspaper archives for the article for weeks and appreciate any help or tips. Thanks!

Spiers death: https://socialhistory.org.uk/shs_exchange/suicide-and-the-fear-of-flogging/

Is Byzantine pronounced Biz-an-teen or Bi-zan-tean

How does studying the holocaust impact or change our lives today?

I understand that we should learn about it's early symptoms so we can try to avoid it in the present, but why else?

Which dictator(s) came to power by getting the courts to remove their opponents from the ballots?

I remember learning about two siblings that co-ruled together in premodern Japan history, one empress and one emperor. This was after the Yayoi period but before the Heian period from what I can remember. What are their names? Any other sibling duo in Japanese history is welcome as well.

Where can I see military casualties in WWII divided by time (year, month, week or even days)?

Robert Schumann Clara Schumann and Johannes Brahms, oh my!

Was it as scandalous as I suspect it was?

How easy was it to start wars as a 3. party? Hire a group of bandits as a king, with the crest of country A, make them raid a village in country B and let the conflict escalate, and become the laughing 3. Was this a common thing to do in the middle ages?

Hi, this might be a more Anthropology type question, but if possible can someone tell me if the Indus Valley civilization is the confirmed oldest one? If so how come there wasn’t any civilization from Africa prior to that, if that’s where all our ancestors came from?

Have or did have the grandchildren of British peers any entitlement to any style? Like "The Honourable" or "Esquire"? Especially grandchildrenby younger sons. The eldest sons and eldest sons of eldest sonsobviously used their parent's subsidiary titles, but is the youngerbrother of a (courtesy) Earl of London just nothing?

Do winter jackets really have their origins in Native America or Siberian garments? Or do they have their origins in jerk tunics like some say?

I have heard several different retellings concerning the details surrounding Stauffenbergs excuse when arming the explosive(s) to kill Hitler in WWII.

Was his initial request to change his shirt, or restore his belt and cap? Was there one explosive or two? Was the fuse 10 minutes, 15, or 30?

Shirer, in The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, reports the following:

"They emerged from his quarters, but before they had taken more than a few steps Stauffenberg remarked that he had left his cap and belt in the anteroom and quickly turned to go back for them before Keitel could suggest that his adjutant, a Lieutenant von John, who was walking alongside, should retrieve them for him. In the anteroom Stauffenberg swiftly opened his briefcase, seized the tongs with the only three fingers he had, and broke the capsule. In just ten minutes, unless there was another mechanical failure, the bomb would explode. Keitel, as much a bully with his subordinates as he was a toady with his superiors, was aggravated at the delay and turned back to the building to shout to Stauffenberg to get a move on. They were late, he yelled."

What percentage of German soldiers during WWII saw combat? And how many years were German soldiers forced to serve?

What is the oldest sport in the world? And is it being played to this day?

Did Ottoman traders in the early Industrial age carry weapons? How did they defend themselves?

Hi everyone, I'm developing a boardgame with a strong"history theme", the main focus is historical figures with curious stories, and their representative item ( sword / hat/ accessories), I'm also interested about some famous folklore object/Artifact with alleged magic power or property. I did a lot of research but I think there's a lot more to discover, so please share with me some curious stories you know about this subject.

This is my first post ever on this reddit (not an English speaker, so please be kind with my grammatical error), If this is not the right place for this question please let me know.

Any recommend books about democratization of Central/Eastern Europe(Poland, Hungary, Czech, Romania or previous soviet-controlled countries like that)? Better if it can extended to how it influences modern Eastern Europe politics.

I recently have become interested in the British royal family and I learned that the current queen was actually only crowned queen due to rare circumstances. Before her uncle had given up the crown to her father, what number in the royal line of succession would she have fallen under? I appreciate any information on this as I find it extremely interesting. Thank you!