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Some questions people have just don't require depth. This thread is a recurring feature intended to provide a space for those simple, straight forward questions that are otherwise unsuited for the format of the subreddit.
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Is the book' Akhbar Al Zaman' /' History of Time', written by the Arab Historian and geographer , Al-Masudi, translated into English? If yes, can someone help me find it? Help would be much appreciated.
At the Battle of Thermopylae, did the Greeks set out just to delay the Persians or did they expect to win?
Seeing how the "mind palaces" memory technique was used by many different peoples, do we know of any actual palaces or landmarks whose purpose was to make people recall certain facts?
In the ancient world there were Olympics and chariot races, in medieval times there were tournaments, in modern times there were baseball and soccer; but what 'spectator sports' were there in the Early Modern period? If any?
I was discussing the anatomy of Renaissance art with some friends (original topic was "when did large breasts start becoming attractive [in Western(?) society]?", to which I'm not sure we have a real answer) but we noticed that famous statues like Michelangelo's David, for example, make a point of showing nipples and penises...but no assholes. What's with that? Is it just an issue of posing, or is there something else at play here?
What was the first ever sports report? Did someone in ancient Rome do the sports page in the newspaper?
Military historian Charles Dalton recorded that, after a hard-fought battle in Spain, a young officer made the comment, "I am going to dine with Wellington tonight", which was overheard by the Duke as he rode by. "Give me at least the prefix of Mr. before my name," Wellington said. "My Lord," replied the officer, "we do not speak of Mr. Caesar or Mr. Alexander, so why should I speak of Mr. Wellington?"
/u/Khaymann quoted this anecdote here. It can be found in Wikipedia.
Does anyone have information on this Charles Dalton? I can't seem to find him among the many other Charleses Dalton in Google hits.
Does anyone have an idea how he came to write such an inexplicable anecdote? "Wellington" was his peerage title(s), and a peerage title did not use "Mr." His surname was "Wellesley", but I suspect that, once he became a military officer (Ensign, in 1787), it might have been insulting to omit his rank, and once he got his viscounty in 1809, addressing him like a commoner would surely have been insulting, no?
That illustration with the dudes rolling around (so many memes have been made with this), is that real medieval? Does anyone have a link to the Illustration in high res?
Did Western philosophers refer to, or in any other way engage with, Confucian or Daoist texts after they were translated by the Jesuits in the 16th and 17th centuries?
There's an iconic sort of wardrobe that wizards are often depicted wearing, generally consisting of blue hat and robes with a gold or white star and moon pattern, like this or this. I'm wondering if there is an original character/illustration that these draw from. The oldest example I can think of is Mickey from Fantasia, but is he the original?
I just finished reading a book on the Franco-Prussian War and that led me to wonder when/how the different German states become their own political entities, like Bavaria, Brandenburg, etc. It’s my understanding that East Francia comprised a lot of current Germany, and that evolved into the Kingdom of Germany. So, if they were unified then, what happened in the ensuing 1000 years, and when, that made them separate?
I have had a copy of The Revolutionary Age of Andrew Jackson by Robert V. Remini on a shelf for years now. It was written in 1976. Does anyone know if the scholarship still holds up or if I want to read a book about Andrew Jackson, are there better sources currently?
I'm mostly trying to figure out whether it's worth holding onto this book that I've been meaning to read, but never did (yet).
In the game Pentiment (set in the first half of the 1500s), it seems like about 1/3 of monks/nuns in the minor Bavarian town's Benedictine monastaries came from outside the Holy Roman Empire. Does that reflect an unusual degree of movement for monastics in that time and place?
How does the jacket of the hussar outfit able to stay in place when it is hanging only one shoulder? I cannot find any explanations of how it is attached or hanged.
What was the difference between a Gallic oppida, and Hallstatt-era fürstensitz/acropolis?
What did the Byzantines call China? I've been looking into this and I've seen the name Taugast in one source and Sereca on another, but I think Taugast wasn't used much and Sereca was used earlier. Is there a better answer?
Was the Persian deity Mithra/Mehr born of Anahita (who is also often claimed to be a virgin)? I have read multiple (pseudo) historical claims that he was. For instance here in The Mysteries of Mithras: The Pagan Belief That Shaped the Christian World by Payam Nabraz (who AFAIK has no qualifications as a historian):
According to some sources, Mithra’s partner and virgin mother is the angel goddess Anahita.
"Dr". Jason Jorjani also makes this claim here (along with non-historical claims such as Mithra being born on Christmas and AFAIK baseless ones such as Mithraic usage of Amanita muscaria).
According to this article by M. J. Vermaseren, the claim is baseless. So I'm a bit confused.
I've heard Islam had a scientific 'Golden Age' when they were the center of knowledge but this eventually died out leading to Europe taking over in that respect. I've also heard this Golden Age was due to the influence of a school of Islam "Mu’Tazila" who valued reason incredibly highly and that it ended after they got ousted from power by more fundementalist/traditionalist schools who believed pure reason was a route to Evil and scripture was more important. And that "Mu’Tazila" thought is now regarded as heretical/flawed.
What was in 19th century custard powders? Did they have any of the flavourings we do that could make them taste like more like a traditional custard?
What's a device/invention that has a history that goes far more back than the modern public might think it does?
For me, examples would include vending machines and flamethrowers. The latter's links with Greek fire make it interesting to me in particular.
Are there mainstream historians who doubt the historicity of Vercingetorix? Maybe not so far as doubting his existence, but doubting much of what we believe his life story entailed, as well as the seriousness of the threat he posed to Caesar and/or Rome?
Why doesn't Napoleon have the moniker "the Great" attached to him? The man rose from being a minor Corsican nobleman to being the Emperor of France who ruled the entire Western Europe (minus British isles and Portugal) of one of the greatest colonial empires and won five out of seven wars against his enemies. Out of all people who deserve the title "the Great" attached to their name, Napoleon seems to deserve it the most.
For those who've read both, what's the difference between Empire of Liberty and The Creation of the American Republic? Both are by Gordon Wood, and both seem to cover roughly the same era.
I just finished the Ipatiev House episode of The Crown and would love recommendations around the relationship between the Romanovs and the House of Windsor, if possible, or just general information on the two. Books, articles, podcasts, whatever you’ve got.
Reading about the build up to the 30 years war. I’m having trouble understanding the mechanism by which the defenestration of the 2 arch-Catholic governor-electors is equal to the deposition/coup of King Ferdinand. Is this because Ferdinand himself was not physically present in Prague? And therefore the removal of his two main representatives constituted an effective coup?
How many genocides has the US prevented?
Did medieval counts in France have advisory councils or did they rule alone?
What was the smallest state in the HRE? Presumably absolute smallest was one of the Free Cities but curious about outside those as well. Was playing eu4 with Voltaires nightmare and am seeing some of these places that Im pretty sure are just like 3 farms but am curious what the actual smallest was
What Did the Safavid, Afsharid, and Qajar Dynasties Refer to Their Domain As ("Iran," "Persia," or something else)?
According to Wikipedia, the following seems to be the case:
The Safavid Empire = "The Expansive Realm of Iran" or "The State of Iran."
The Afsharid Empire = "The Guarded Domains of Iran"
Qajar Iran = "Sublime State of Iran"
Hi! I’m looking for some recommendations on long form reading on Chinese history.
Scope would be 20th century broadly, but with particular focus on the events of the Cultural Revolution and the events leading up to it in the earlier half of the 20th century.
Bonus points to any reading that thoroughly covers the cultural, societal, and political views of the day that help add color.
Is it true that the Allies let certain ships sink to keep Germany from knowing they had broken Enigma? Where can I read more about it?
What is the best source/book on "science" through history?
Examples of things I'd be interested in learning more about
How far do you agree that most British people hold a very Anglocentric view of the world wars?
What are knowledgeable historians' thoughts on the Richat Structure (4HGX+Q8H, Ouadâne, Mauritania)?
Online reading leads me to a mix of denial of a civilisation, all the way to the origin of Atlantis. I would love to read some credible research on this area, but I'm struggling to locate any.
Thank you.
I randomly found this video (link below) made with several clips and in particular I noticed at 0:14 the bayonet salute of the Soviet soldiers, something that I searched for a lot but I never found it, except a video from the 60s of training with the SKS rifle... but I've never seen this rifle drill done with the mosin... does anyone know what year the parade footage is at min 0:14?
What were the specific borders of the Republic of Texas? More specifically, the part of Texas that stretched into present-day Wyoming. What were the specific latitude and longitude borders of that territory?
1145 and 1146 massacre by the Almohads (Crusade?)
I read a book that talked about this event. The book says, “Between 1145 and 1146 they took the cities of Oran, Tlemcen and the oasis of Sijilmasa, on the north western border of the Sahara. For seven months they tried peacefully to convert Sijilmasas large Jewish population to Islam. When their efforts were unrewarded they put a hundred and fifty Jews to the sword. The rest, led by their judge, quickly converted. They were relatively lucky: at about the same time a hundred thousand Christian’s and Jews were massaged by the Almohads in Fez, and a hundred and twenty thousand in Marrakesh.”
I looked this event up and it said Jews and Muslims were killed. Can someone shed some light on what exactly the passage is talking about?
How much did wine cost in 1830s US?
I keep seeing something saying that whiskey was basically the most consumed drink in the 1800s US because it was only 25 cents a gallon making it cheaper than wine, milk, beer, and maybe some other stuff. But I was wondering, how much did those other drinks cost? Specifically wine in the 1830s, as it a big difference?
Which countries have not invaded other countries?
Who was the last soldier to die in WW2?
During WW2, was there ever a battle where the troops of US and USSR fought together side by side instead of separately?
