Was the Holy Grail ever supposed to confer immortality before Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade? Was that part of Arthurian legend or did Lucas and Spielberg just make that up?

Is there any free website where I can see Nielsen Ratings from the past, week by week and by state/TV station?

Wrestling memorialist Jim Cornette often claims that during the 70's and 80's, the total viewers of all the wrestling territory TV shows would routinely add up to upwards of 20M, making it the period where wrestling was the most watched, and I'd like to verify this affirmation

Hi, I’m new to this sub and not sure where else to ask this, so I apologize if this isn’t the appropriate place. Is it common for a majority of posts here to get no responses? I’ve just scrolled through quite a few posts, and when I see one with multiple comments I click it, but then it’s just the automod and no other comments. I just found one interesting question about circumcision with 39 responses but it looked like every response had been removed.

I’m aware this is a heavily moderated sub, and I subscribed to the weekly roundup just now, I’m just confused about whether I’m missing something.

What modern a nation has not gone to war the longest? As in, they have been at peace the longest?

Where can I find the English translated Huolongjing book to read? It has descriptions of early Chinese gunpowder weaponry and is cited in many articles but I cannot find it, either in Chinese or in English.

Has any historian looked at the sociological parallels between c. 1850-1900 Christianity and socialism/worker’s movement in Europe? You have millions of people leaving their home village and de facto secularizing, but then many adopt what in many ways function as a replacement for organized Christianity in the socialist/worker’s movement: they have regular social meetings (often on Sundays) which function as a nexus for other groups (red choirs), they provide mutual aid in times of need, and, what interests me most, is that it provides meaning in a similar way. Orthodox Marxism and the other ideologies are promising an imminent struggle which will usher in what (at least in much of its popular propaganda) sounds like a secular Millenium.

I don’t think this is a bong hit idea, but I’d like to see any sociologists/social historians who look at the question (besides EP Thompson ofc). Suggestions?

What's the difference between a royal house and a clan? As in, why were the noble houses of Japan, like the Tokugawa and the Takeda, called "clans" instead of "house", like their European counterparts?

Approximately how much area did cattle take up during a drive? Given a count of 1500 head of cattle, roughly how much area did the cattle occupy while in motion? Was it roughly a uniform circle or more of a narrow column? What about when stopped for the night?

Thanks for the info.

I know there's a reading recommendation thread but I think that goes up tomorrow and my brain is conditioned for instant gratification so hopefully it's ok to ask here:

Are there any books or papers that focus on the neo-Assyrian king Esarhaddon? Or, given that it's probably too narrow, just the later Assyrian kings? I think Sennacherib and Assurbanipal get a lot of the attention at the expense of Esarhaddon but he seems to have had an eventful reign and been an interesting character - suffering from depression, sickness, revolts and conspiracies, conquering Egypt, etc.

How old is the usage of Lycia, an ancient region of Anatolia, as a first name?

What is the oldest human remains we have of someone we have a name for and know something about their lives, and what is their story?

Where do I go for history that happened less than 20 years ago I cant find an answer to?

What are audio recommendations for an abridged history of labor and union movements in the US

Sino-Soviet documents on nuclear/missile development, what are the "Errikon" and "Motad" missiles referenced?

I'm in university, and as part of a history of nuclear strategy and tech history course, I have to do a report on the sino-soviet co-operation on china's development of nuclear weapons/delivery methods.

One of my readings is "PROTOCOL NO. 1 OF THE JOINT MEETING OF THE DELEGATIONS OF THE SOVIET MINISTRY OF DEFENSE INDUSTRY AND REPRESENTATIVES OF THE CHINESE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC" SEPTEMBER 11, 1957 https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/116820

In this document, the Soviet Deputy of the Ministry of Defense Industry Rudnev asks the PRC's representatives what foreign examples of missiles they are working with. The PRC representatives respond with:

" We have a model provided by the Soviet Union.  Another guided missile system that we are working on is the Swedish “Errikon.”  What information do you have about the American missile “Motad”? "

Does anyone know what missiles they are referring to? The Swedish "Errikon" and American "Motad"?I can't find any information of what these missiles are, perhaps it's some translation issues? Or an eastern bloc naming that has a different NATO name?

I have a few guesses, perhaps "Errikon" might be the "Ericsson" company? And "Motad" might be one of the American winged missile programs?

What is a "scroon" of something supposed to represent in the context of shipping manifests? I've seen it used to refer to amounts of indigo and cacoa, but I can't find any description of what a scroon is. Some examples:

http://www.shissem.com/Hissem_William_Heysham_Line.html.

... 22,000 weight of indigo, 30 scroons of coca and 15 bales of cotton.

https://virginiachronicle.com/?a=d&d=TAH18131117.1.4&e=-------en-20--1--txt-txIN--------.

3 ,300 lbs. choice Sniilhficld liams 55 bales Upland & Louisiana Colton 10 scroons Bengal Indigo

In 1890s Manhattan, how many residents did a typical tenement floor/flat/"section" have?

Which MENAP countries have treated Jews well historically?

“When I go through South Carolina, it will be one of the most horrible things in the history of the world. The devil himself couldn’t restrain my men in that state.”

This quote is attributed to Sherman and allegedly was stated prior to his march into South Carolina. I can’t find a source or a reference that cites a source, it’s often simply contextualized as something like ‘Sherman reportedly stated…’

Does anyone know of its actual origin and authenticity, or even when/where this quote first appeared?

Has there ever been any real-world example of something like Children of the Corn happening?

I’ve been reading into attempts at establishing utopias throughout history, but I’m trying to find an example of one where young people in particular have made good on their youthful idealism and had a real stab running the kind of state or country they would like. All the examples I can find have been led by more worldly adults.

I’m looking for something pre-Hippy era, so that or the Occupy moments aren’t quite what I have in mind. Something from antiquity, maybe?

In the U.S, North America and South America are considered to be two separate continents. And the concept of "America" to represent the entire landmass does not exist, which is why people refer to the country simply as "America", which has a completely different meaning than the one of "América" in Spanish. Both continents should collectively be referred as "the Americas". So, what does the word "America" in the name of the country mean? Was there just a single America back then? If that's the case, when did the concept change?

What was the Roman calendar used at the Jesus' crussification time?

Were Italian soldiers competent on the eastern front in ww2 ?

In your estimate, what percent of the questions posted on R/askHistorians can be answer by a somewhat quick Google search?

Why is History usually one of the first sections of a wikipedia article on a topic, especially geographical ones? Why not other things?

Example: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee#History

What are some examples from history of democracy (voting) being coercive?

Liberal Democracy is the dominant system in the West today and it is revered. It has though been criticised a lot by past thinkers and philosophers (today Jason Brennan argues against it and in favour of epistocracy). One of the main arguments against democracy is that it leads to mob rule (ochlocracy). A famous historical example of this is the Trial of Socrates in 399 BCE. The Athenian jury democratically voted to put Socrates to death and many people would, of course, see this as a really bad thing. Socrates was essentially martyred by democracy and this demonstrates that (at times) democracy and voting can potentially be coercive.

So, I was wondering, are there any other examples of democracy (and voting in particular) being coercive and leading to negative consequences? This can be from ancient history or even more modern history. Thanks!

It's often said by many who are ignorant on history that Hitler didn't/rarely killed people who were ethnic Germans. This is provably false: some of the first victims of Nazism were their domestic political enemies, the Nazis purged the party during The Night of the Long Knives, purged it again after Operation Valkyrie, and of course there were a litany of executions during the last weeks of the war. My question then is how many people exactly were both ethnic German and targeted by the Nazi regime? The only source I could find that gives even an estimate is RJ Rummel, who gives a figure of 288,000 Germans killed for purely political reasons and roughly 200,000 more killed for being Jewish, physically or mentally disabled, homosexual, etc. However I'm extremely wary of using RJ Rummel as a legitimate source given how sloppy and poor his research is at times. Does anyone know a realistic number of victims?

What was Charlemagne's Frankish name? Like I know it would be some form of Charles/Carl but I can't seem to find what the actual Frankish version of "Charles" is. I know in Old French its Charlon, and in Latin its Carolus but yeah. Like when Charles Martel was young man or whatever and speaking Frankish with people, what did they call him?

What are some good books on the history of Eros (the god) either tracing his rise in Ancient Greek society, or over time? I'm thinking along the lines of Breitenberger's Aphrodite and Eros, but which focuses mainly on Eros. I've had a hard time finding something and in the introduction to Erôs in Ancient Greece, the authors mention there has been a wider interest in the god recently. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

What are some of the most significant advancements in food technology in the past hundred years?

What fuel were US troops issued in the Korean war for their personal barracks heaters? I was watching MASH and I noticed they had a heater that burned something to generate hear and i was wondering id they were issued wood, coal, woodchips, charcoal or something different?

What kind of classes were offered for law students in the nineteenth century?

( edit: phrasing )

Could christians in the 1660's ottoman empire owns firearms?

Were staple commodities used as proto-currency (used for saving and a medium of trade but still by measure at negotiated market rate) in the ancient world or was it all hacksilver and ingots?

Can anyone rec a single volume history of the gladstone/disraeli period?

(Am I allowed to just solicit book recs in this thread? Apologies if not.)

What is the consensus on The History of England series by Peter Ackroyd?

I know Ackroyd is considered an engaging writer, is the series largely accurate and reflective of the academic consensus? Is it authoritative? Biased? Misleading?

Who are the first recorded persons/civilizations to have existential questions about the nature of reality? I know the Greeks are famed for this, but are there other civilizations/earlier records?

Has anyone ever tried to poison a U.S. president through a handshake?

what are good books,about history of the cold war in Europe ?

I heard that Washington D.C. was the most fortified city in the world during the height of the Civil War;

1. Is that true?

2. Is there a map laying out what these defenses looked like?

I assume none of them survived to modern day.

Did Indira Gandhi won the war with Pakistan before or after 1971 elections?

Does anyone know where these statues may have come from? https://imgur.com/a/TKWp0Vu

Are there any documented cases of white slaves in the era of US formation to the Civil War (1776-1865)?

How many people were still slaves in the US after Juneteenth?

I read that there was some kind of illness cauesed to kings and aristocracy in medieval times due to not eating side dish with their main dishes. Any idea what was the name of it? The illness eradicated after side dish was more common. Please help!