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Who voted against German reunification, and why?
The reunification of Germany in 1990 was effected by a treaty between the governments of East and West Germany (the German Democratic Republic and the Federal Republic of Germany, respectively). The treaty was voted on separately by the respective…
Psychonaut
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Before 1980, was there ever an attempt to evangelise for Orthodox Christianity?
The adherents of Protestantism and Catholicism have evangelised across the world. Did Orthodox churches try to spread their religion in a similar way?
Did the Byzantines or Russians try to convert their conquered subjects to Orthodoxy? Did they send…
Ne Mo
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3 answers
Couldn't an army of archers easily defeat Macedonian style phalanxes?
At that time of military history, it seems the phalanx was the accepted supreme military style that won battles. So countries tried to outdo each to see who could do the phalanx best.
Since archers are able to provide ranged fire, but the phalanx…
holmes200
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What are these historical references (from a novel)?
I was reading Crusader's Cross from James Lee Burke when I read this :
But airliners crash because a twenty-cent lightbulb burns out on the
instrument panel; a Civil War campaign is lost because a Confederate
courier wraps three cigars in a…
vincenth
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Why is it called the "Ottoman" Empire in English language?
I don't get why in English language it is called the "Ottoman" Empire.
The name of the state derives from its founder, Osman I., however how can "Osman" be transformed to "Ottoman"? For me this doesn't make any sense.
In my mother tongue, which is…
Bruder Lustig
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3 answers
In the early 1900s, how did US politicians treat black dignitaries from other countries?
Are there any historical records of US politicians (especially southern politicians) treating black dignitaries (especially royalty) with great pomp and ceremony, while simultaneously and hypocritically refusing to acknowledge the equality of the…
Ethan Strider
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22
votes
2 answers
Why did the pre-Islamic Arabs identify themselves as descendents of Ishmael?
There's a tradition that the Arabs are descended from Ishmael, son of Abraham. Before Islam, the Arabs did not believe in Yahweh but had their own, polytheistic religions. So why did they have a legend that they were descended from someone from the…
Ne Mo
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22
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2 answers
What were the effects of the Black Death in the Muslim world?
What were the effects of The Black Death in the Muslim world?
Both Wikpedia's page on The Black Death's migration and The Black Death have information regarding the effects of Black Death in the Muslim world without any sources attached to them.
Sakib Arifin
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When did books first become affordable to the general population?
Gutenberg certainly had a great impact on the availability of books, but his printing press didn't help bring books into the hands of the poor. The price of books dropped from thousands of days worth of wages to hundreds, but this was still far too…
vsz
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What goods did Germany trade during World War II, and with whom?
I have scoured the internet for numerical figures and an actual list of raw materials to no avail. Moreover, I am reasonably certain that many of you are very knowledgeable upon this subject matter, and are more than able to inform me. I would…
关一骏
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3 answers
Who is the woman in this United States military propaganda image representing?
In this image who or what is the lady in the background representing?
Patrick
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Can Bill Clinton run for president of France?
Bill Clinton says in an interview (Bill Clinton on running for political office again) :
Because I was born in Arkansas, which is part of Louisiana Purchase, any person anywhere in the world that was born in a place that ever was a part of the…
JBE
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3 answers
Why is Indonesia a Muslim country?
As the title implies I am wondering as to the reasons why Indonesia is a Muslim country? When visiting Indonesia a few years back, I surprisingly learnt that the country had the largest Muslim population in the world. Even though it was new…
Mattias Wallin
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22
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4 answers
Why did some people need to pay a bond in the 1700s in order to get married?
This is more a genealogy question than a historical event but I couldnt think of anywhere else to ask it. (I hope it not off topic)
In 1787 my Great (x6) Grandfather paid a bond of £200 the equilivent of £13,000 in todays money as a bond to marry…
stephenmyall
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9 answers
Why did Stalin push for the Great Purge against the Red Army in 1936?
From what we now know of Stalin, he seemed to have believed in the basics of Marxist-Leninism. As a communist, didn't he fear that killing his own military's leadership would seriously endanger the world's only socialist experiment against…
David Charin
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