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1500 questions
23
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2 answers
What East German laws and regulations were extended to the West after unification?
Legally speaking, the reunification of Germany in 1990 was not a merger of two equal states resulting in a new country. Rather, it is better characterized as the absorption of the German Democratic Republic (the GDR, or East Germany) into the…
Psychonaut
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What did Vikings wear in cold wet conditions at sea?
As you can see from this BBC documentary, the crew of this 2009 summertime journey from Denmark to Ireland in a Viking longship suffered from hypothermia (approx 00:20:00 into the video), even though they were wearing modern foul weather gear and…
rolfedh
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3 answers
Why didn't the participants of the Korean War also fight in the Vietnam War?
In the Korean war from 1950 to 1953, a lot of countries including the U.S., the U.K., France, Canada, Australia, and even Colombia, the Philippines and Ethiopia participated in the war under the U.N. resolution. However, those countries didn't…
Rathony
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23
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3 answers
Why was the Aztec Empire known as an Empire?
Wikipedia defines an Empire as following:
The term "empire" does not have a precise definition, but is generally
applied to political entities that are considered to be especially
large by the standards of their time and that have acquired a
…
NSNoob
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23
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2 answers
What did an ancient Roman certificate of land ownership look like; or, what did it consist of?
Suppose you're a landowner in Germania, just west of the Rhine. It is the 2nd Century A.D. You own a number of farms, a couple of good houses, maybe some slaves, some of whom are on the verge of buying themselves out. You've just paid your…
Ricky
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23
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2 answers
What did ancient Romans use instead of shampoo?
Urban Romans, we're told, took a bath every day. They did not use soap. Instead, they oiled themselves and scraped off the oil, along with the dirt, with strigils. What did they do about their hair, though? You can't use a strigil on your hair.…
Ricky
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23
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5 answers
What caused the imposition of strict celibacy for Catholic priests during the 11th century?
At the Second Lateran Council in 1139, the Catholic Church implemented a rule requiring all priests to remain celibate. Although the Church has already talked about being celibate for the previous 1000 years or so, it was not a required or enforced…
Himarm
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23
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4 answers
Why was there lack of food during WW2 in the UK?
Why was there lack of food during the WW2 in the UK?
I understand the lack of food in the countries occupied by Germans, as they recruited a lot of agricultural products for their war machinery. But why there had to be ration books in the…
Honza Zidek
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3 answers
Why does this statue have five legs?
Bulls have 4 legs. These statues have 5 legs. Why?
Khorsabad
The Palace of Sargon
This area mainly contains sculptures from the city and palace of Khorsabad, built for the Assyrian king Sargon II (721-705 BC). The pair of human-headed winged…
Stein
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23
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2 answers
What is the history of the popped collar?
A popped collar on a polo has become the symbol of Frat Boys and wannabes everywhere. Especially in the "Jersey Shore" culture. I initially thought maybe it was tied to New England preppy style (the collar blocking the wind from being on a…
zompz
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23
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8 answers
Why did the Germans not encircle and besiege Stalingrad?
The Germans spent a large amount of manpower in adverse territory for this city, even after long exhausting continuous combat.
After the war, Kliest wrote:
The capture of Stalingrad was subsidiary to the main aim. It was only of importance as a…
Rohit
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23
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3 answers
Why did John Ganson vote contradictorily on the 13th Amendment?
The House of Representatives originally did not pass the 13th Amendment, and on January 1, 1865 it was reconsidered and passed. Evidently, the House first voted that day on whether to reconsider the original vote, and then voted on the amendment…
ohspite
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23
votes
1 answer
What was lost when the British burned the White House in 1814?
Dolley Madison saved many state papers, Washington's portrait, and silver from the White House before it burned (source), but what was left behind and lost? Were there other would-be famous items looted or burned?
engineerchange
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23
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5 answers
What were shoe soles made from in previous ages?
Today, nearly all commercial footwear has a sole made of either rubber or plastic with rubber-like qualities. It's a great material for the job, but it comes from a tree that's native to the Americas, and thus was unavailable to the Old World…
Mason Wheeler
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23
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7 answers
How common was smoking in first half of the 20th century?
When watching movies that were made in first half of the 20th century, one can see many people are smoking (cigarettes), but it is not they smoke all time long. I refer to the movies, because they show the era's fashion and habits.
Cigarettes are…
Voitcus
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