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1500 questions
25
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4 answers
Did the aborigines of Australia and the Maoris in New Zealand know about each other's existence, before the Europeans came?
The aborigines are believed to have migrated from India in prehistoric times. The Maoris are thought to have arrived from Polynesia and elsewhere in eastern Asia. They travelled by canoe.
It's one and a half thousand miles from NZ to OZ, about the…
Ne Mo
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Why didn't Germany attack Turkey during WW2?
Most of us might have heard something about the Geo-strategic position of Turkey. She connects two continents to each other and provides a bridge between the relatively advanced Europe and the resource-rich Middle East. It is also a well known fact…
biri
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25
votes
3 answers
How did the British Navy pass orders to its fleet before radio?
During the 18th and 19th century, the British Navy had ships all over the world, and communicating with them had to be difficult. After all, the Battle of New Orleans happened after the British had signed the Treaty of Ghent ending the War of 1812.…
Bruce James
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25
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14 answers
What was the ratio of German to Soviet losses on Eastern front during different stages of the war?
I've read somewhere that the ratio of Soviet to German casualties on the Eastern front was 1.4 for the whole war. But what about data for different stages of the war? (this ratio wasn't constant after all) Is there an analysis which explains the…
RobertLee
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Did Akhenaten's religion influence early Judaism?
There were some claims, for example in the 1st 2 chapters of Moses and Monotheism by Freud, that early Judaism was basically a spin-off of Akhenaten's religion. There are indeed some remarkable similarities:
Akhenaten, an Egyptian, is perhaps the…
Michael
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25
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3 answers
How did Muslim traders raise investments given Islam's prohibition of usury?
During early caliphate era (7th-13th century), Muslim traders dominated trade in Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean (see here and here for example). I think Islam's prohibition of interest or usury must have made raising investment difficult, why…
Fitri
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24
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Why were troops with bayonets often effective against enemy cavalry even though the bayonet was a "secondary" weapon?
The bayonet was introduced in the late 17th century as a knife (later a short sword) attached to a musket, to enable the musketeer to protect himself when reloading their single-shot weapons. As such, it was something of an "adjunct" weapon to the…
Tom Au
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5 answers
How long did it take for a diplomat to travel between Berlin and Vienna in the 1770's?
I was reading the Wikipedia entry for the War of the Bavarian Succession, and it said (my emphasis):
For some historians, the War of the Bavarian Succession was the last
of the old-style Cabinet Wars (Kabinettskriege) of the Ancien Régime
in…
Louis Rhys
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24
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8 answers
Why did the scutum fall out of use?
Wikipedia says
By the end of the 3rd century the rectangular scutum seems to have
disappeared.
Why did the rectangular scutum design fall out of use? Why was the shield design not commonly used by anyone else later in history?
Aaron Kurtzhals
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4 answers
Did Hitler really support Subhash Chandra Bose's cause and did he do anything to help Bose?
Bose had come to realize that Gandhi's doctrine of non-violence was not doing much in forcing the British to retreat. He went to Germany to seek Hitler's assistance in India's struggle for freedom.
Was Bose welcome in Germany? Did Hitler agree to…
Elzee
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24
votes
2 answers
in what form did William the Conqueror write the date of his own coronation?
This is a question about the English legal calendar as viewed by people living at the time, not as historians recorded it later.
New year shifts to 1-January
To the best of my understanding, the English calendar at the time of the Norman conquest…
dlh
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24
votes
3 answers
Which historical/legendary/mythological accounts turned out to be true?
Reading Herodotus' Histories, one is often baffled by passages like (3.102):
{102} [...] Indians [..., of the North] make expeditions for the gold. For in the parts where they live it is desert on account of the sand; and in this desert and sandy…
astabada
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votes
2 answers
Can you help identify these medals?
We were going through my Dads attic and found these medals. We think they belonged to my Granddad - we don’t know if he fought in the World Wars but had Welsh heritage and lived in the UK most of his life (his age would align with WW2). They could…
sam_smith
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What was the criminal charge of "pretending sodomy" in 1719 England?
In an old London, England newspaper called "The Post Boy", the edition of 19 May 1719, there is what I believe is an advertisement for a book that will be published the next day (it says).
To Morrow will be publish'd
The Proceedings on the King's…
Curious Layman
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1 answer
Did Joseph Goebbels really say this about German opposition in 1933?
In a video interview (in Russian) with a Putin supporter that surfaced recently, the host asks his guest, "What do you think of this quote?"
Here's the text of the alleged quote:
Opposition figures throw mud at our country. They work for money that…
the.real.gruycho
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