texts: What motivated the Eritrean separatist movement?

texts: The Eritrean War for Independence was a bloody 30-year war fought between Eritrean separatists and Ethiopia (under various administrations) from 1961 to 1991. I understand that the conflict was triggered by Ethiopia annexing Eritrea (they had been joined in federation per UN decree since 1952), but I still don't understand the root of Eritrean discontent with Ethiopian rule. What Ethiopian policies or actions motivated the Eritrean separatists to begin their armed struggle?


texts: Why was the northern boundary of the Mongol empire set where it was?

texts:
The Question
By the latter part of the 13th century, the Mongols' frantic territorial expansion was losing momentum. In the east, their empire reached the Pacific, and their efforts to conquer Japan were thwarted by the famous "Divine Wind". In the south, their empire reached both the Himalayas and China's historic southern border. In the west, the expansion of the empire's Middle Eastern fiefdom, the Ilkhanate, was checked at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260, while the Golden Horde, the empire's Eastern European component, had its armies annihilated during the Second Mongol Invasion of Hungary in the winter of 1285-86.

But what about the north? Why did the empire not expand all the way to the Arctic Ocean? On one level, the answer is obvious and straightforward: the territories to the north of the Mongol empire were extremely inhospitable and, from the Mongols' point of view, did not contain much in the way of resources worth extracting. But this answer does not explain why the boundaries were set where they were set specifically, and not, say, a hundred miles to the north or to the south.
A Possible Answer
The Mongols, of course, were great horsemen. Their armies employed vast numbers of horses, and the only way practical means of feeding so many horses for more than a single campaign would be to pasture them in massive tracts of grassland. Such grasslands are easy to come by in the southern portions of Siberia, but venture any further north and one runs into the taiga: dense coniferous forest with little vegetation that could sustain a horse. Is it possible that the taiga turned back Genghis Khan and his sons? Comparing the northern boundary of the Mongol empire with a map of Russia's biomes, it does seem that way; although the Mongols' control over the region around Lake Baikal remains to be explained by such a hypothesis.

Supplementary Questions
Amur River
The various maps of the Mongol empire which I consulted - no two are quite the same, even for the same date - are almost unanimous in stating that at least some portion of the Amur river formed a part of said empire's northern border. This suggests to me that, at some point, the Mongols made a conscious decision not to cross the Amur. But is there any other evidence for that point of view?
Khanate of Sibir
The Khanate of Sibir emerged from the collapse of the Mongol empire, and this state did extend as far north as the Arctic Ocean. (I am basing that claim wholly on the Khanate's Wikipedia page, which itself quotes page 148 of Riasanovsky's History of Russia (1999).) Was this Khanate truly Mongolian in character? That might seem like an unacceptably vague question. What I mean to ask, more specifically, is: was the Khanate of Sibir ruled by a corps of horsemen wielding composite bows? If so, that would seem to refute my hypothesis about the Mongols' advance being halted by dense forest, since the Khanate extended deep into the taiga; if not, then it might confirm it. The accounts of the Battle of Chuvash Cape that I've read seem to imply that the bulk of the Khanate's forces were foot archers, and not cavalry. Is that correct?


texts: What's the point of fortified castles inside fortified cities?

texts: In the Middle Ages, people built highly fortified castles for royalty inside cities that were already fortified by walls. What was the reasoning behind that? Were they made to protect royal families from internal rebellions or as an additional defense against an enemy who had already taken control of the city? From my understanding, if enemy attackers were able to seize control of the entire city, they should be able to besiege/capture one little royal castle relatively easily. So why would people spend so many resources to defend it? Wouldn't it be better to put these efforts into building more fortifications for the city itself instead?


texts: How did Milton know about Egyptian gods like Osiris, Isis and Orus?

texts: in Paradise Lost, he references tons of ancient religious figures. Where would Milton have learned these things?


texts: Why did Hitler order counter-attacks as late as 21/04/1945?

texts:
On the 21st April 1945, Hitler ordered the Armeeabteilung Steiner (and the ninth Army) to execute a counter-attack on the approaching Soviet forces.

How and why did Hitler become deluded enough to give such an order?

I can understand that capitulation was no option for him. However, he could have allowed his troops to retreat or hold their positions or even to surrender discretely without having to concede to the Allied forces.

Why, however, did he deliberately order a counter-attack that, had it been carried out, would doubtlessly have cost the lives of many soldiers in a situation that was so obviously settled?

Note: An obvious answer would be that Hitler was a fanatical lunatic. This would also explain all too easily the Volkssturm and much else. Not only do I not believe in that, I disregard such reflections as unhistoric since there can't be a reliable analysis of his psyche, especially in the very last phase of the war. Instead, I'm looking for rational motives from a military standpoint.


texts:
Was the Titanic sinking the only time in recorded maritime history that a band was playing while their ship was sinking?

Throughout maritime history, many ocean liners hired musicians and bands to play for the passengers. I have always wondered if any band played music while their ship was sinking other than the band that played during the Titanic sinking. I have searched online for such an occurrence but I have not found one yet.


texts: How were soldiers positioned on a platoon-sized amphibious landing craft in WWII?

texts:
Did the military think through who might need to have the highest survival rate as they offloaded onto a defended beach?

Were the men with different roles (radio, machine gun, medic, platoon leader, mortar or other specialists) purposely positioned toward the front or rear to make the landing safer for the most essential members of the platoon?


texts: Why is the Stamp Act of 1765 known as a "direct tax?"

texts: I'm not exactly sure where to put this question... I am trying to figure out the difference between "direct" and "indirect" taxes in the context of some historical taxes I'm learning about in an American Politics class, which my book claims part of the cause of the American Revolutionary War. There seem to be several different definitions of these phrases scattered about on the Internet. Can somebody help clarify the meanings of these phrases?


texts: When did women start sailing (as passengers) on ocean-going ships in large numbers?

texts:
My understanding is that women sailed on sail powered ships (caravels) such as the Mayflower. On the other hand, I have read few accounts of women sailing on earlier, oar-driven ships such as triremes or galleys. (OK, Cleopatra did at the Battle of Actium, but she was Cleopatra.)
When did women start sailing as passengers on ships in meaningful numbers? Was it when wind-driven ships meant that it was no longer necessary for everyone to row their own weight, or was there an earlier dividing line?
This question relates to ocean-going vessels, and not ships on rivers or near the shore. (In the game,  "Civilization," a trireme (rowed boat) has a 50-50 chance of sinking if not adjacent to the shore. Admittedly, this is a game, but it illustrates a point that rowed vessels might not be considered safe enough for women on oceans.)
Edit:
When I refer to "women" on ocean-going ships, I do not include female slaves (who had no choice in the matter). And women who were the "wives of governors" would be included under the heading of "Cleopatra." So "women" in this context would refer to "middle class" women (neither rulers nor slaves) travelling on their own account.


texts: What was the median price for a slave child in the Augustan Rome?

texts:
Just for example, 8 years old boy or 9 years old girl. So, not a newborn baby or toddler (no need for extended expenses for dedicated child-rearing nannies, wet nurses, etc.), but still too small to work fully, like adult slaves do.

Augustan period of Roman history was chosen because very well documented, in comparison with scarcely known early- or middle-Republic or decadent chronists of Dominate.

Also I'm interested, in comparison, using purchasing power parity - what could you buy for the same price as for child slave, how many (staple) food or property?

Just for understanding - how expensive that was. Median yearly income of that time for legionary? Two-year median income? More, less? Thank you very much!

(Sorry for my English, it's not my native language)


texts: Why were so many more Jewish men than Jewish women killed during the Holocaust?

texts:
On the Wikipedia page Jewish Women in the Holocaust, it says:

  Of the estimated six million Jews who were killed1 during the Holocaust, 2 million of them were women.2

Conversely, this means that approximately 4 million Jewish men died in the Holocaust. Even if this statistic does not include the females among the 1.5 million Jewish children killed during the Holocaust (whom I'd think it odd not to include), that would still leave about 2.5 million men killed.

This was very surprising for me to read as I have heard much about how Jewish men were often able to survive the war by doing hard labor, but have never heard of the Nazis ever sparing jewish women, or mechanisms by which they could increase their chance of survival relative to men. Given that this was a genocide against a largely civilian population, it seems that men's much higher rate of military service would not be relevant.

Are there any known mechanisms by which this happened, or any known large-scale killings of Jews that targeted only men?


texts: What does this Italian soldier's 1930’s uniform tell us about his job and rank?

texts:
The below photo of a soldier was taken in Sicily in the mid to late 1930’s. I have been told he may have served in Libya for the Italians.

What type of soldier was he and what rank did he have? What job would he have done?


texts: What happened to the French gold at Martinique during WW2

texts:
I am curious as to what happened to the gold stored on the island of Martinique by the French during WW2, I know that the French controlling the island switched sides a few times, and that there were blockades on the island by the Americans and the British.

Also, that the British and Americans 'used' the gold stored on Martinique on credit to help support the war effort, as long as they controlled the blockade, the gold was as good as theirs. but when the war was over, or during the war - at any time, was it not necessary for them to eventually pay on their debts either using the gold or otherwise?

But what happened to the gold there? I can't find any mention of it.

reference: wiki link. but some of the information comes from reading this book (Man Called Intrepid).


texts:
As Faroe Islands' "low temperatures during the growing season, stormy winter weather, and variable winter temperatures are unfavourable for tree growth", there are hardly any trees on Faroe Islands. What have the Faroese used as fuel to warm and light their houses with?

I am asking about period before the Faroese started importing fuel from other places.


texts: Did the Roman Empire extend as far north as the Romans could grow wine?

texts:
I've heard (in an interview with German biologist Josef Reichholf) the argument that the Romans extended their empire as far north as they could grow their wine. A first glimpse at the map suggests that this could be true at least as a general rule. (The climate in Britain was warmer at the time.)

Would this then be a coincidence or could it be something that indeed had influence on the expansion strategies of the Roman empire? In particular, are there any relevant traces in contemporary (Roman) sources that point towards an answer?


texts: Did any intelligence agents defect to the Cheka before 1921?

texts:
Did any intelligence agents defect to the Cheka (USSR secret police) before 1921? Does that have any historical precedent? If not, 1926.

Either former Czarist agents, or spies working for other nations.

  There are two types of defections: those who fully defect, leave the job and physically cross the boundary – 'defectors-in-fact' – and those who defect but remain in their job 'defector-in-place' passing information

The ethics of intelligence -- Bellaby


texts: Why didn't King Ferdinand take over Portugal during the Spanish Reconquista?

texts:
After unifying Castile, Leon, Navarre, and Aragon through marriage, Ferdinand I proceeded to conquer the Emirate of Granada and almost unified the Iberian Peninsula, but left Portugal alone.

Is there any satisfying reason why he did this?

Possible reasons that I've thought of include a reluctance to attack another Catholic country, or a language barrier. However, both of these seem unlikely, as each of the other four kingdoms had its own language (what we now call Spanish is the Castilian language), and, prior to reunification, fought amongst each other frequently.


texts: Why do people say, "Alexander the Great conquered the world?"

texts:
In many books, articles, or even in folktales, whenever Alexander III of Macedon (referred to as Alexander the Great) is mentioned, it is said that he conquered the world. Even some historian say that he conquered the world, most of the known world at that time.

But if we look at the Macedonian empire at its apex under Alexander we can see that he only controlled a very small part of Europe, most of the central Asia, and part of Africa (Egypt). That map does not include the two biggest & oldest civilizations, India & China.

Alexander did try to enter India, but he was unsuccessful. The reasons for his retreat are ambiguous, ranging from fear of mutiny among soldiers, defeat in India to a very costly victory against a small kingdom in India. Apart from these, until now I've never heard that Alexander had any plans to invade China. (India was much closer & accessible than the Chinese heartland).

Having stated this information, why do people say that Alexander the Great conquered the world? If there are any reasons then what are they?, Why do the conquests of Alexander have so much significance?

Edit:

Editing my question to clarify intentions. A good answer by the @DevSolar, but only provides numbers as facts. I asked the question from non Greek point of view. Yes I've read the concept of Hecataeus map, and as per it yes he indeed conquered the world. But that does not change the fact that a far greater part of civilized world remained unconquered by Greeks. So the intention of me asking was why this concept in so prevent in cultures across world that Alexander conquered the world? Why it was not falsified as we grew in knowledge about world?

I know many times, the term 'known world' is used instead of 'world' which best describes this scenario. But I am more interested in the cultural & historical impact of the Macedonian empire which might have strengthened the belief to this extent.


texts: What happened to the French royal navy during the french-revolution?

texts: Similar to my other question about her colonies I am interested in knowing what happened to the french royal navy of the period. Some ships must have been at sea and only learned the news as they returned to port and their unfortunate captains and officers, possibly, executed or jailed? Furthermore, what of the fleets in port, did the sailors mutineer or hold steadfast? Were some ships sabotaged, sunk or torched to stop them landing in revolutionary hands? The question is mostly centered on the early 1790s.


texts: How do archaeologists prove that two settlements belonged to the same civilization?

texts:
Suppose I found two different settlements named A and B. These settlements are located near the river X. The distance between A and B is so that it would take at least M months of continuous travel to go from A to B.

  What are the things I need to look at to prove that the two settlements belongs to the same civilization (say C) ?

If nuclear dating establishes that the two settlements,

(a) existed around the same time. (i.e. range given by nuclear dating merge)

(b) were separated by some time T years. (obviously T > least count of nuclear dating technique)

Kindly answer it in a very general sense so I can understand the basic underlying assumptions.

EDIT
Okay, now a much specific question.

  How can we say that Mohan-jo-daro, Harappa and Kalibangan belong to same category ? I mean what is the evidence to support this claim?


texts: Is it true that Nazi Germany replaced prices ending in .99 by round prices and called this "Aryan pricing"?

texts:
On a questionable website full of revisionist pro-nazi propaganda, which is not worth linking to (*), I found the following statement:

  Along the same lines, I remember a National Socialist bookseller that used what it called “Aryan pricing”—$5, $10, $15, rather than $4.99, $9.99, or $14.99.

(*) Please don't ask me what I was doing there. If you really want to find the quoted site just put the quote in your favourite search engine.

I find the concept very interesting. According to that other question those psychological pricing ending in 99 were already around since the end of the XIXth century (which I find shocking as I always believed this was a modern idea).

So such prices could have been seen in pre-Nazi Germany. And I can totally see how people were annoyed at the sellers trying to rip them off with those $.99 prices and be relieved that this annoying practice end once the NS regime is in place. This would increase the confidence of the regime which would be perceived as less corrupt. Unfortunately I cannot find any other reference about that than this revisionist site.

So is there any verified truth about this statement?

EDIT: About the $ sign in the quote: it could have been used as a general symbol meaning money in an English-language text, and does not necessarily refer to the USD currency, which obviously was irrelevant in Nazi Germany. But the implication seems to be: as the seller seems at least to refer to his ideology – originating from Nazi Germany – the question is still whether this was a) a thing for a national-socialist then 'to not like psychological pricing' and call round prices 'Aryan' pricing, declaring that the 'Aryan' and thus preferred behaviour for sellers and b) whether this then found its way into actual German law when the Nazi's were legislating, outright forbidding such pricing strategies.


texts: What it was like to travel on a Viking ship?

texts:
What it was like to travel on a Viking ship back then?

Please, focus on these points:

How long it would take for a Viking raider group to get to their favorite destinations using a Viking warship?
How long it would take to transport the goods to their most common trade partners for a Viking merchant using a Viking trade ship?
What was the average speed of a Viking warship and Viking trade ship?
What factors affected the speed of Viking warships and trade ships and how much?
What is the greatest distance they could travel and what would be the limiting factors?


texts: What did the letter theta symbolize in ancient Greece?

texts:
In a Hubbard Communications Office bulletin, L. Ron Hubbard claims:

  A THETAN is, of course, a Scientology word using the Greek “Theta” which was
  the Greek symbol for thought or life.

  Source: HCO BULLETIN OF 5 FEBRUARY 1970, HUBBARD COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE, L. RON HUBBARD

I find this very hard to believe. The only symbolic use of the letter I know of is as an abbreviation of the word "θάνατος" (thanatos, death) when voting for the death penalty in classical Athens.

I do not consider Mr. Hubbard's writings a source of historically accurate information. However, it seems that a significant amount of people believe he knew what he was talking about. Hence, the question: Was the letter theta used to symbolize "thought or life", or anything other than death at any point in ancient Greece?


texts: What percent of Sparta's population were citizens in various centuries?

texts:
I've found sources saying that Sparta's population was about 3% citizens, but obviously that number fluxed over time, and given that at one point the Spartan Empire was about 80% helots, it makes me wonder if at an earlier time a much larger population were citizens (say 15%).

Does anyone have any sources mentioning the percentages of citizens at various times, or the populations of citizens and corresponding total populations so I can calculate percents?


texts: Why weren't colonies accepted as part of their colonizing countries?

texts:
I'll use the British empire as an example, although in principle the same question could apply to every other colonial power.

The British empire was ruled by the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom was made up of Ireland, Wales, Scotland, and England. Why didn't the UK simply expand to become the United Kingdom of Ireland, Wales, Scotland, England, Canada, Egypt, Sudan, India, etc?

Was it because the UK wasn't willing or because the colonies weren't willing? If the former, why would the UK be unwilling since the empire makes it more affluent? If the latter, why would the colonies be unwilling since the empire also makes it more affluent (especially in the wake of WW2, when many of the colonies were directly threatened or occupied and needed the support of the rest of the empire)?

From what I've seen, this was briefly tried by the Portuguese empire, but it oddly led to Brazil declaring independence within a few years. The trigger appears to be political events in Portugal that Brazil didn't have an influence in (since they didn't have much representation), but that doesn't explain why the Portuguese government can't just give them more representation. It's not like this hasn't been done before either: the US started from 13 states to 50 and by most accounts this has been mutually beneficial, so why can't colonial powers do the same?


texts: Was Kerala part of Vijayanagara Empire under Deva Raya II

texts:
This question is in the context of my previous question.

Wikipedia article on Deva Raya 2 mentions that he defeated the ruler of Quilon, and also that Zamorin paid tribute to Deva Raya 2. But Kingdom of Cochin was under the protection of Ming Dynasty.  So, was Kingdom of Cochin under the suzerainty of Vijayanagara Empire, as the article says, or was it just alliance and co-belligerence?


texts: Ancient Greek or Roman Teenaged Suicide for Glory

texts:
I'm trying to track down an anecdote I remember hearing many years ago about a ancient Roman (or Greek) teenager who attempted to immortalize his name by a particularly flashy act of suicide.  The ironic coda to the story is that we do in fact remember him all these many years later.

Does anyone know the actual details of this story?


texts:
I recently watched a new mini-series on the rise of Adolf Hitler and learnt an insight that hadn't been apparent in other material I had read and watched on the era:

There were many proto-fascists in the aftermath of the Great War, but Hitler rose out of the general milieu almost solely due to his oratory skill. Put simply he was a great recruiter for the DAP and then the NSDAP; and so could name his own terms in the party.

Was oratory was considered Hitler's fundamental political strength by his contemporaneous friends and foes?

Because most documentaries don't touch on the matter very deeply. Which I now wonder may have been because acknowledging it would have to acknowledge that a generation of people had to have met him half-way on the road to evil.


texts: How accurate is the respresentation of York/Jórvík in the manga Vinland Saga?

texts:
In the manga Vinland Saga, the heroes arrive at "York".  Clearly, it should have been called Jórvík but let's forgive them that for now. Below is how the manga shows the city from the sky. Comparing this map to a current map of York, the resemblance is striking.

However, how accurate is it for Jórvík?


texts: Is there a civilization that never believed in God in the ancient times?

texts:
I'm not obviously talking about small groups or individuals but about an actual civilization that never believed about the existence of a supreme essence.
Is atheism just a modern concept?


texts: Why is North-Korean communist leader Kim Il-sung called Kim Ir Sen in some languages?

texts:
Looking on Wikipedia I see that in many of the languages of the former communist countries, namely East European, the North Korean leader Kim Il Sung (or Song) (1912-1994) is called Kim Ir Sen.  (I am posting the Polish page because it has more links to other languages than other pages have.)

The difference is not in the family name - which is Kim.

It seems a difference based on the former political divide of the Cold War, as in French and other West European languages, but also in Turkish and Greek (Turkey and Greece already being NATO members at the time), the name used is the same as in English. On Wikipedia I have not found a non (former) communist country that calls him Kim Ir Sen.

I see no linguistic similarity between countries using the same form of the name (Russian, Latvian, Albanian, Romanian share the same "communist" form), so the cause must be politic. But how has been the political divide projected in the name of this man?

To make things more interesting, there are also some exceptions: in former-Yugoslav countries, that is on the Wikipedia pages in Serbian, Croat, Slovenian and Macedonian, he is called like in the Western Europe: Kim Il Sung.

In Bulgarian, which is close if not identical to Macedonian, it's Kim Ir Sen. At least Croats and Serbs use the same name... But not Slovak and Czech, which were in the same country during the communist era: the Wikipedia page in Slovakian uses the "Western" form.

Maybe this differences between neighbours are recent.  Are they also political?

The difference in pronunciation between "Ir Sen" and "Il Song" may be bigger in some languages than in others. In some languages it seems big to me (French, Romanian); maybe it's less striking in English... This is even more confusing by the fact that the Kim dynasty includes already three names of presidents all called Kim, a series in which the aforementioned difference might suggest a fourth one.


texts: How did Muslim traders raise investments given Islam's prohibition of usury?

texts:
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 would people lend money for merchants to buy their goods if they can't get interest from it?
How did the merchants raise investments, like for buying goods, ships, funding sailors and employees? Were Muslim traders disadvantaged compared to their competitors due to the usury  prohibition, and how did they manage to compensate this disadvantage?


texts: Where was the U.S. president when Captain McGonagle was awarded?

texts:
The USS Liberty incident was an attack on a United States Navy technical research ship, USS Liberty, by Israeli Air Force jet fighter aircraft and Israeli Navy motor torpedo boats, on 8 June 1967, during the Six-Day War.The combined air and sea attack killed 34 crew members (naval officers, seamen, two Marines, and one civilian), wounded 171 crew members, and severely damaged the ship.

William Loren McGonagle (November 19, 1925 – March 3, 1999) was a United States Naval officer who received the Medal of Honor for his actions while in command of the USS Liberty when it was attacked.

The Medal of Honor was presented to him at the Washington Navy Yard by the Secretary of the Navy, rather than at the White House by the President.

So, as John Thurber commented in a obituary article in The Los Angeles Times on March 11, 1999, "[w]hen Navy Capt. William L. McGonagle received his Medal of Honor, it was not bestowed on him by the president, as is customary, or even presented at the White House. McGonagle, who died last week at 73, was given his award in the relative seclusion of a shipyard near Washington by the Navy secretary".

His Medal of Honor citation reads:

  For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as Commanding Officer, USS Liberty (AGTR-5) in the Eastern Mediterranean on 8–9 June 1967. Sailing in international waters, the Liberty was attacked without warning by jet fighter aircraft and motor torpedo boats which inflicted many casualties among the crew and caused extreme damage to the ship. Although severely wounded during the first air attack, Captain (then Commander) McGonagle remained at his battle station on the badly damaged bridge and, with full knowledge of the seriousness of his wounds, subordinated his own welfare to the safety and survival of his command. Steadfastly refusing any treatment which would take him away from his post, he calmly continued to exercise firm command of his ship. Despite continuous exposure to fire, he maneuvered his ship, directed its defense, supervised the control of flooding and fire, and saw to the care of the casualties. Captain McGonagle's extraordinary valor under these conditions inspired the surviving members of the Liberty's crew, many of them seriously wounded, to heroic efforts to overcome the battle damage and keep the ship afloat. Subsequent to the attack, although in great pain and weak from the loss of blood, Captain McGonagle remained at his battle station and continued to conn his ship for more than seventeen hours. It was only after rendezvous with a United States destroyer that he relinquished personal control of the Liberty and permitted himself to be removed from the bridge. Even then, he refused much needed medical attention until convinced that the seriously wounded among his crew had been treated. Captain McGonagle's superb professionalism, courageous fighting spirit, and valiant leadership saved his ship and many lives. His actions sustain and enhance the finest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

After reading the reasons of the Medal, which seem really remarkable, and after taking into account the exceptional nature of the event—since the end of the WWII, it has never happened that an American ship had been attacked and almost destroyed—I wonder what event or cerimony the president was attending during the award to McGonagle.

Therefore, my question is: What was the president doing during the award to McGonagle—was he perhaps abroad?


texts: Has there ever been an encirclement without superior numbers or mobility

texts:
I can't find any examples. It seems like encirclement is always just a result of some other advantage, and doesn't affect the battle in itself.

For example the classic case is Cannae. The Carthaginians had smaller numbers but a combination of terrain and cavalry advantage destroyed the Romans. It doesn't seem like the encirclement mattered because Carthage had better cavalry which is part of the reason they could flank them. The battle of Walaja in the Arab Persian wars seems similar. At Kars it doesn't seem encirclement mattered either, it only happened after the Turkish force had been broken in the initial contact.

Also stuff like Tannenberg etc, it seems like the real problem was division of forces which resulted in smaller numbers rather than anything related to entitlement. Likewise in the battle of France it appears that France didn't deploy its forces properly and the Germans had more supplies at the key points they were needed.

So I just wonder if encirclement was ever actually decisive and not just a result of already winning.


texts: What do historians mean when they talk about "supply side" and "demand side" explanations of the industrial revolution?

texts:
Joel Mokyr writes in Demand vs. Supply in the Industrial Revolution that

  The determination of 'when,' 'where,' and 'how fast' are to be sought first and foremost in supply, not demand-related process.

I am confused as to what is meant by "supply" and "demand" in this case. What are specific examples of supply-side explanations? Would it be similar to the argument that supply creates its own demand due to overproduction leading to excess inventory and price drops? Any help on understanding the terminology would be great.


texts: Who decided to confront the Japanese at Midway?

texts:
George Walsh (The Battle of Midway: Searching for the Truth) points out that Operation Plan 29-42 says

  Inflict maximum damage on enemy by employing strong attrition tactics.
  Do not accept such decisive action as would be likely to incur heavy
  losses in our carriers and cruisers.

but (says Walsh)

  The ‘calculated risk’ was taken and became an ‘all in’ gamble, pitting
  our exhausted and largely inexperienced air groups against the fresh,
  battle hardened pilots of the world’s most powerful naval force.

and

  From published documents I have concluded that Admirals King [COMINCH & CNO], Nimitz [COMPACFLT],
  Spruance, and Fletcher were all reluctant to risk our three carriers
  to save the atolls of Midway from Japanese occupation; the OP-PLAN’s
  calculated risk option. Who ordered them to attack?

Walsh seems to suggest that Churchill was behind it.

There is a fair amount of verbiage on this topic on the web, but I have not found a clear explanation for how the decision was made.


texts:
Perusing this gallery of candid photos from 1890s Oslo, Norway, by Carl Størmer (1872-1957), again I found such a curious image, yet was unable to verify the existence of any portable music player back then.

According to Wikipedia,

  Over several years starting in 1894 the Italian inventor Guglielmo
  Marconi built the first complete, commercially successful wireless
  telegraphy system based on airborne Hertzian waves (radio
  transmission).

That device looks awfully small, though; could it be a brush? Was brushing your hair in public without a mirror common then?

Are these things from 1928 movie The Circus by Charlie Chaplin and 1938 Dupont Massachusetts factory footage the same kind of device?

I was only able to find others with the same question: What are those things?


texts: Why did Hitler send Manstein's army (and not some other) to Leningrad in the summer of 1942?

texts:
In July, 1942, Germany's General von Manstein won the siege of Sevastopol. Shortly thereafter, Manstein and his 11th Army were sent to Leningrad, which the Germans were also besieging.
I don't question why Hitler wanted to reinforce the siege on Leningrad. I do question why Hitler moved the 11th Army all the way from the extreme south to the extreme north for this purpose. (I can understand the transfer of Manstein "personally" to Leningrad.)
Was it a case of the 11th Army representing "picked" troops, perhaps because of their recent success with at Sevastopol? Was this Hitler's rotating "spare" army? Or was there another reason to use the 11th Army and not another one as reinforcements?


texts: When did the practice of formal declaration of war start?

texts:
Up to World War 2, formal declarations of war was the standard way to start a war, at least between major powers.

When did this practice start and why? Since when did it become the norm?


texts: What was the role and the level of involvement of the United Kingdom in Yugoslavia during World War II?


texts: Were there any plans to install a Western Roman Emperor after Belisarius reconquered the west?

texts:
Emperor Justinian I sent his general Belisarius to the west in 535 AD to reconquer the lost provinces of the Western Roman Empire after its fall in 476 AD.

Did Justinian I have any plans to install a Western Roman Emperor after the provinces were reconquered?


texts: How did the world react to Trotsky's assassination?

texts:
Exiled former Russian leader Leon Trotsky was murdered in Mexico in August 1940 (with an ice pick) by a Soviet agent in the interest of Trotsky's old rival for power, the then Soviet dictator Stalin. What impression did this make on World opinion and did it harm the image of the Soviet Union?

I would guess that Trotsky's assassination was somewhat overshadowed by news of World War II in Europe, as France had recently fallen and the World was waiting to see if Britain would suffer the same fate. Even so, it must have been seen as significant.


texts: When and how did the West lose its dependency on the USSR for Titanium?

texts:
This question was prompted by another one.
A long time ago, before I well-documented my internet research, I looked into the history of Titanium, its procurement, refinement, and work-ability. I cannot remember any sources beyond a few Wikipedia articles that have since changed significantly. I was fascinated by this metal for several reasons: It was only available in the Soviet Union (and Manchuria?) during most of the Cold War. It's a very useful metal with very high melting temperature and tensile strength. And strangest of all, titanium dioxide exists almost everywhere in the ground, yet in the 1960's, the USA had to secretly purchase titanium from the USSR to build its super spyplane, the A-12 and SR-71 Blackbird.
So what's the deal with Titanium? When was a TiO2 refinement process invented that let us not be dependent on Ilmenite (FeTiO3)? When were major sources of Titanium found and exploited outside of the Soviet Union and China?
Ultimately what I'm asking is: when and how did the West lose its dependency on the USSR for Titanium?
EDIT: If I recall my research correctly, something changed in the early 1990's. I think some new refinement process. Does anyone know?


texts: Did Andrew Jackson threaten to kill the Vice President?

texts:
In my Government and Politics class the other day, we were taught that Andrew Jackson threatened to kill the vice president. This sounded a bit odd to me so I wrote it in my notes and resolved to look into it later. Not finding much on the Internet (besides the Charles Dickinson incident), I've turned to the History SE.

Now, I first assumed this to be John C. Calhoun, Jackson's own vice president. Of course, I suppose that the  mentioned vice president could have been another one serving the US during Jackson's lifetime, or even the VP of another organization. So my question is threefold: (1) Did Andrew Jackson threaten to kill a vice president? (2) If so, whom? (3) For what organization did this figure serve as vice president?


texts: Did any prominent Romans openly question the crucifixion of 6,000 slaves along the Appian Way following the defeat of Spartacus?

texts:
While the Wikipedia article on the Third Servile War has a few details on the effects of the slave revolt (e.g. less harsh treatment, reduction of the number of slaves on the latifundia), it says nothing about what Romans, prominent or otherwise, thought about the crucifixion of 6,000 slaves along the Appian Way. Nor is it totally clear (after checking several sources) who authorized the mass crucifixion, or whether Crassus actually needed anyone's authorization.

Although I do not doubt that many Romans approved of his actions in crucifying and then leaving them to hang on the crosses for several months, Crassus was more ruthless (and unscrupulus) than most so can we just assume that no one voiced concerns about the gruesome spectacle along the Appian Way?

With reference to sempaiscuba's comment on why slave-owners would care, some slave-owners' children were brought up with slave children. Thus, some slaves

  were the confidantes and even friends of their masters and might
  receive educations, have their own families, and live nearly as well
  as the free members of the family

Source: Gregory S. Aldrete, 'Daily Life in the Roman City'

One potential source of dissent or disagreement might be stoics. Although most stoics did not oppose slavery, there were clearly concerns about the brutal treatment of slaves prior to the Third Servile War.

  Stoics certainly offered a view of slavery that was more liberal than
  the contemporary views of the rest of society, and were united by the
  belief that masters should treat their slaves in a more humane way
  than they seem to have generally been treated. In Diodorus Siculus'
  account of the Sicilian slave-rising of 135-132 BC, much of what he
  wrote was heavily drawn from the Stoic philosopher Posidonius.
  Crucially, the depraved natures of the rich slave-owners such as
  Damophilus are blamed for the behaviour of the slaves rather than the
  slave's innate savagery.

(my highlighting)

QUESTIONS

1. Who authorized the mass crucifixion, or did Crassus not need anyone's authorization?

2. Were there any dissenting voices in the senate or among other prominent Romans concerning Crassus' actions? There were a number of senators in the late republic who were not afraid to speak their minds (at least on matters other than slavery), even at the risk of their lives (e.g. Cato the Younger, Cicero).

3. Is there any evidence of Romans complaining about the corpses lining the Appian Way? Presumably, at least some Roman travellers, including prominent ones, would have found the scenery rather displeasing to the eye. Is there any evidence to be found in, for example, poetry or plays?

Note.
Other sources checked include:

The Cambridge Ancient History

http://spartacus-educational.com/ROMspartacus.htm

http://www.biblestudy.org/biblepic/the-appian-way.html

http://spartacus-fanon.wikia.com/wiki/Crucifixions_along_the_Appian_Way


texts: What did Nikolas Mystikos call his countrymen in official correspondence?

texts:
Inspired from a quote I used in one of my previous answers here,  Patriarch Nikolas Mystikos of Constantinople wrote the following letter to Abbasid Caliph al-Muqtadir:

  Two Sovereignties, That of Arabs and of Byzantines, surpass all
  sovereignties in the world, like the two shining lights in the
  firmament. For this one reason, if no other, they should be partners
  and brethren. We ought not, because we are separated in the ways of
  our lives, our customs and our worship, to be altogether divided nor
  should we deprive ourselves from communication with one another in
  default of meeting each other in person. That is the way we ought to
  think and act, even if no necessity of our affairs compelled us to it.

This is cited in Muslim Perception of other religions by Prof. Jacques Waardenburg, available on google books here.

What sticks out as a sore thumb here is the usage of the word Byzantine. The Patriarch was unlikely to use this word to refer to his country or countrymen as the term Byzantium was used only in the west to refer to ERE, that too only since 1555 after the usage in that sense was introduced by Hieronymus Wolf. Note that Empire had ceased to exist a century before that. In times of the Empire, Byzantium referred only to the Capital city of Constantinople.

It is my understanding that the Byzantine Greeks called themselves Romans (Ῥωμαῖοι - Rhōmaîoi ) or Greeks (Γραικοί - Graikoí).

So from this, it is my assumption that the Patriarch must have used Graikoí or Rhōmaîoi in the original letter. It should also be noted that Abbasids and the Caliphs before them called the Byzantines as Romans (رومی - Rumi).

So my question is, What did the Patriarch call his people in his letter? Greeks or Romans? There must be original Greek text somewhere as Prof. Waardenburg managed to find it as well.


texts: Where does this hairstyle originate from?

texts:
I've seen the shaved head with a pony tail hairstyle in some cartoons and video games. Examples:

Are these hairstyles "historically accurate"? Are they based upon a certain culture / history or were they something just thought of by their respective authors?


texts:
I heard there were 3 ships in the Yamato class but I can't find any information about it.  Some sources say it was a transport vessel to transfer spare airplane parts and ammo and some say it was a full aircraft carrier with a capacity of 85 planes and thousands of crew?

Can you please tell me the true purpose of this vessel?


texts: Why did World War I victors let Germany pay reparations in German Marks and gave it the option to default via inflation?

texts: Under the Treaty of Versailles, Germany was forced to make heavy war reparations to the victors of World War I. What puzzles me was that the reparations were denominated in Marks (German Currency at that time). This gave Germany the option to default via inflation. It was exactly what happened. Given that war victors have always been able to dictate the terms, why did the victors not denominate the reparations in solid Gold which is unprintable? Given that the world was still on the Gold Standard at that time, it seemed Gold would look like a more logical currency.


texts: Did Henrietta Maria leave any writings in which she described her thoughts with respect to Charles I's afterlife?

texts:
Henrietta Maria, Charles I's queen consort, was a famously strident Roman Catholic. She outraged her husband's subjects by praying publicly under the gallows at Tyburn, where many Roman Catholics had been killed for their faith, and, in private, attempted to convert her Calvinist nephew, Prince Rupert.
Her husband, Charles I was beheaded in 1649 at the close of the English Civil War, and Henrietta Maria survived him by over twenty years. Charles I was still a Protestant at the time of his execution. Is there any evidence as to what the queen dowager thought - or might have thought - regarding his eternal fate? Did Henrietta Maria herself, or her courtiers (based on what Henrietta Maria had told them), leave any writings which elaborated on what Henrietta Maria thought had happened to Charles in afterlife? Did she believe he was in heaven or in hell?
If she did not mention this or if this mention has not survived to our time, a general answer with respect to what being out of communion for Catholics of the mid-17th century meant is also suitable.
What spurred me to ask the question was reading about Henrietta Maria, and then recalling an article I had read a while ago about the many mixed marriages—Catholic and Protestant—in Europe during the Thirty Years War. Henrietta Maria and Charles I are the most famous example of such a marriage that I can think of, and seemed like an interesting test case of what such spouses might have thought about each other.
Note: Current edits have incorporated suggestions and clarifications from the comments.


texts: At what point in time did Judaism become popular? [Pre Christianity]

texts: When did Judaism become popular in the ancient world, and what caused it to spread faster at that point in time? (ex: Christianity had its spread assisted by Emperor Constantine in the Roman Empire)


texts: Do we know how much the Aurelian Wall would have cost to build?

texts: I've been reading about the Aurelian Wall and it's very fascinating, though I wonder how much, in denarii, sestercii, or other, it would have cost the Romans. Is there any way we could possibly estimate the cost? I know the economy was in a bad state at this time, but I also know that it wasn't built by slaves. Also, would the cost have come from the imperial fiscus or the state treasury?


texts: Why didn't Anne Boleyn consent to divorce?

texts:
In the recent past I've seen two televised depictions of the life-and-times of Henry VIII: The Tudors and Wolf Hall. Henry VIII wanted out from his marriage to Anne Boleyn because she failed to produce a male heir, and his romantic interests had veered to Jane Seymour.

Granted, these dramatizations take creative liberties, but I think it's more or less accurate that a campaign to find a treasonable wrongdoing by Boleyn was undertaken (possibly largely spearheaded by Thomas Cromwell, and possibly at Henry's instigation).

Question: Why didn't Boleyn grant the king a divorce, to spare her life when it became apparent that she was being investigated for crimes punishable by death? Wolf Hall, particularly, depicts Cromwell as imploring the queen to accede to a divorce.

Was she actually unaware of what was going on? Did she not know or believe that Henry himself wanted her gone? Did she believe Henry would come along at some point before the actual execution to spare her life? Or was divorce not an option for her? I'm curious to learn if there's evidence of her rationale to not accept or offer divorce when it became evident - as I'm sure it eventually must have - that the alternative was execution.


texts: How much did a transatlantic telegram cost in 1914?

texts: How much did it cost to send a transatlantic telegram – if the specifics matter, say from New York to Berlin – in 1914? (Early 1914, before the war disrupted communications.) How much per word, and was there a minimum number of words?


texts: Does any evidence exist that suggests Hitler’s primary reason for declaring war on America was an attempt to draw Japan into his war with Russia?

texts:
During the first few months of the Nazi invasion of Russia, Stalin feared a Japanese attack from the east would create a two front war. In August, he was finally convinced by intelligence reports that the Japanese had no immediate plans for attacking Russia. As a result, he allowed well-trained, well-equipped Russian troops to be transferred west to assist in defense of Moscow. These additional 70 divisions played an important role in stopping the Nazis short of capturing the city.

It was during the same week that Hitler was becoming aware his forces simply could not capture Moscow in 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor (December, 7). The U.S. declared war on Japan the next day. Between December 8 and 10, Hitler made the decision to declare war on America. He made the announcement in a speech on December 11, 1941.

This reason was NOT mentioned in his speech declaring war but then it would not be. Hitler would not have allowed the German people to know he needed any help in Russia--but he obviously did know--as his Generals were making it clear daily from December 5th on that the Russians had not ran out of troops or equipment and his armies were stuck.

I have researched this to death and cannot find any evidence in existence that supports my hunch this is true. I just want to see if any other history buffs know of anything I may have missed???


texts: How and why did limerence come to be idolized as it is in modern Western society?

texts:
Limerence - the involuntary, infatuated state that has been romanticized as love.

Before you read in, the basics of my question have to do with the historical forces that have shaped the modern popular conception that limerence is a virtue, a necessity for a full life, etc. - romanticized beyond reason.

I am not a history buff, but this topic is intensely interesting to me.

To my understanding, limerence did not become idolized to the point that it currently is until recently. Nowadays, it is a major theme of many movies and novels, wherein characters are unfulfilled without it. In popular culture it is held up as one of the most important things to experience in life, perhaps even a virtue. It is an ideal to which we should aspire. It is an acceptable and often used reason for marriage - which, as I understand it, is not how marriages generally used to work. There is no end to the number of Nicholas Sparks-style imagery, movies, novels, etc.

All of this despite the fact that science has high confidence that it is a transient phenomenon lasting on average 18-36 months.

Of course people have always experienced limerence, but to my understanding it was not such a central aspect of societies throughout history.

Perhaps I am fully incorrect in my assumptions; if so, please explain! Please don't downvote the question into oblivion. Or if you do, please leave a comment about why. I'm really interested in the historical forces that have shaped the modern popular conception of limerence to being a necessary component in a full, happy life.

If I were to hazard a guess, it is that people often don't have any better criteria to choose mates nowadays, and limerence is a very strong force. Even if that were true, it doesn't explain how the situation got this way.

Thank you very much!


texts: Was there really a labor shortage in the USA until 1970?

texts:
After watching several video lectures made by Richard D. Wolff I noticed he frequently draws historical events as evidence to base his arguments on. One thing he mentions frequently (in several videos) that I was unable to verify on the web was the USA labor shortage.

I don't remember the exact details but he says that since around 1866 (after the civil war) and up until 1970 there was a labor shortage in the USA that caused, among other things, a steady increase in real wages throughout the whole century.

Was there really a labor shortage in the US? Was it as long as he claims?


texts: What was the population of late Pre-Islamic Arabia and the population of Arabic speakers before Islam?

texts:
The Arab tribes were spread out widely, and the land of Arabia was not as viable to live on as the Fertile Crescent, so I would expect the population to be lower. But, how much in an estimated range was the population exactly before Islam and its conquests according to historians?

As a related question, how many people spoke Arabic at the time in and outside of Arabia?

As a follow up question, how much of a role did the population play in the ability of the Arabs to conquer what they did?


texts: Did Louis XIV actually say "The State? I am the State."? Could he have said it?

texts:
In "The French Revolution, A History" Chapter 1.1.II, Thomas Carlyle reports that Louis XIV once proclaimed:

  "L'État, c'est moi" - The State? I am the State (Carlyle's rendering into English)

Carlyle cites no source for this seemingly incredible statement. In Wiki we find: Louis is claimed to have said "L'État, c'est moi" ("I am the state"), though no proof exists that he said this,  but I tend to be skeptical of Wiki's claim: Carlyle engaged in years of research in preparation for writing his History, and read numerous primary sources. It is unlikely that he committed to "the record" a statement from Louis XIV without a source. (But perhaps he did not consider his source sufficiently reliable to cite it formally - it was some sort of "oral tradition" - and so Wiki would be correct in claiming there is no written proof.)

Regardless, the story was "out there" or Carlyle wouldn't have mentioned it at all. Perhaps there is another source, one that Carlyle didn't know about at the time? (In all probability, Carlye's source was Dulaure’s 1834 History of Paris,  and because it appears only so much later in the record than the actual event, he chose not to cite it.)

Is it confirmed from any reliable contemporary sources that Louis XIV actually said such a thing?

More importantly, whether or not we have another source (perhaps we'll consider Carlyle a source), is such a statement sustainable? Could Louis have said such a thing and remained within the bounds of the laws of his time? Did the French King represent an embodiment of the State itself? Is it part of the doctrine of the Divine right of kings, or at least implicit therein? Could Louis perhaps have been speaking metaphorically - i.e.,  as an absolute monarch, his dictates of necessity represented the position of the State on all matters?

If  Louis XIV did indeed say such a thing, what can we make of it? From Carlyle's context it appears that it was not simply haughty bellicosity on the part of Louis XIV. Nor was Louis XIV some sort of eccentric, crazy "one off" sort of monarch: He sat on the French throne for over 72 years, brought France to perhaps its pinnacle of power, and is widely considered one of the great monarchs of History. If he said such a thing, IMO it deserves attention.


texts: Did the German Enigma machine use multiple encryption keys?

texts:
The German Enigma machines are the key for German victories during the early years of World War II. When the Allies managed to capture few Enigma machines and decode then the face of war began to change in favor of Allies.

My question is, is it possible to have multiple encryption/decryption keys in a same enigma machines?
So that it enables the users to send/receive the 1st message using a different encryption/decryption  key and the next message using a different key.


texts: Why are there distinct Orthodox and Catholic Christian communities in Bosnia and Hercegovina?

texts:
I've been trying to find out why there is an Orthodox and a Catholic Christian population in Bosnia and Hercegovina that don't consider themselves as Bosnians. Didn't the Bosnians have one religion, the Bosnian church, when the country was a banate (1154-1377) and then a kingdom (1377-1463)?

Then the Ottomans came and brought Islam with them, so I understand why some of the population that consider themselves as Bosniaks/Bosnians are Muslims. What I don't understand is why Catholics and Orthodox Christians don't consider themselves as Bosnians too and not Croats and Serbs?


texts: Could George I (of Great Britain) speak English?

texts:
Web based sources differ wildly in stating how well King George I could speak English. Brittanica says:

  Since he could not speak English, he communicated with his ministers in French.

Wikipedia, in its own inimitable way, waters this down quite a bit:

  Though he was unpopular in Great Britain due to his supposed inability to speak English, such an inability may not have existed later in his reign as documents from that time show that he understood, spoke and wrote English.

And then we have a more popularized history site which doesn't mince any words:

  George I was a short, irascible German who failed to even speak English and could not be bothered to learn the language.

Are there any contemporary accounts which attest to George's command of English, and perhaps whether we can deduce that he learned on the job?


texts: Where was the Battle of Antioch (613 CE) fought?

texts:
The Byzantines were severely defeated in this battle by their Sassanid counterparts.

But where did this battle take place i.e. what was the precise location of this battle?

According to Wikipedia, it took place outside Antioch, Syria.

But according to this, this and this, the Romans where defeated near the Dead Sea Basin

So which of the information is correct?

This should help you in answering the question.

If there's any problem in my question please inform me. Thanks!


texts: What's the relationship between Solomon's Temple and Christians?

texts:
An Evangelical-Pentecostal church has built a huge replica of Solomon's Temple in Brazil. But why Solomon's Temple? What does it have to do with Jesus Christ and the Christian faith?
It's very odd to me that they are embracing elements that seem more Jewish than Christian like Solomon's Temple, the Ark of the Covenant and a kippah when preaching. But maybe my idea of Christian traditions is too modern. Have these elements ever been part of any Christian faith?

Further information about this replica: It's from the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God that operates in more than 100 countries and was even banned from some African countries. The owner is Edir Macedo, that also appears on Forbes's list of billionaires. He spent 300 M on the construction. Here's the story as covered by The New York Times. Here's the inauguration video, where you can also see how they have used the religious elements I've talked about.


texts: Why does the UK buy some of its major military hardware from the USA while France is self-reliant?

texts:
UK:

Trident missile.
M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System.
AgustaWestland Apache
Boeing E-3 Sentry.
Raytheon Sentinel

some other examples

In contrast, France isn't nearly as reliant on USA. Why did UK prefer to become so reliant on US-made equipment? Were there historical diplomatic or political forces at work?


texts: Did Hitler really support Subhash Chandra Bose's cause and did he do anything to help Bose?

texts:
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 support Bose's cause? Was there anything that Hitler really did to help Bose?


texts: How do we know that Louvre version of Mona Lisa painting is the original one painted by Leonardo Da Vinci?

texts:
Please excuse me if this question seems trivial to art and painting experts but recently I became aware that besides the Louvre version of Mona Lisa, there is another version called Mona Lisa Prado. I know it's already known that Mona Lisa Prado is painted relatively at the same time when Louvre's Mona Lisa painted in Da Vinci's studio. Also, I'm aware that despite several similarities between the Louvre's Mona Lisa and the Prado version, there are significant differences between these two paintings. The most important information that I found is that based on experts' opinion, the Prado version is also painted in Leonardo Da Vinci's school probably by Salai or Francesco Melzi or other Spanish Da Vinci's pupils.
My question is that if the Prado version is painted at the same time as the Louvre's version and it comes from the Da Vinci's studio, how do we know that the Louvre's version is painted by Da Vinci himself but the Prado version is probably painted by one of his pupils? In all articles about the Prado version, the main hypothesis is that the Louvre's version is the masterpiece of Da Vinci but the Prado version is just a copy by Salai or Melzi, but nobody describes why art experts think that is the case. I really appreciate any suggestion or hint here.


texts: Has there ever been a massacre or genocidal act via people thrown off a cliff?

texts:
I was wondering if there ever was a genocidal act or massacre where people were thrown off a cliff?

I don't mean killed and then thrown off, I mean instances where people were thrown off and killed by the fall.


texts: We are currently working on a project which purpose is to depict the Vikings through a digital card video game and we are in the process of researching which cards to put into the game. We have some difficulty with horses in the Viking period as are archeologists have shown us evidence that horses were found in some graves from that time, but that doesn't prove whether or not they were used in battle. So my question is, do we have any sources, archeological or written ones, that places horses on the battlefield in the Viking period?


texts:
This is probably a very naive question, but here it goes: Was there an economical or political reason for the invasion of Tibet by China in 1950?

It does not seem to me that Tibet is a particularly wealthy place. Is there some resources there that I did not hear about? Did the Chinese government need to distract its people for some reason? Or is it just that the bigger you are, the better for you and Tibet was simply colonised?

It's true that China has "claimed" Tibet. But why would China claim such a barren land? Does it have some sort of strategic value, and if so, what would it be?


texts: Did the French Revolution help produce French military "elan?"

texts:
In earlier wars against the British and Germans (e.g. the Seven Years' War of 1756-1763), French armies did not particularly distinguish themselves, even with a numerical advantage.

Yet during the French Revolution and the Napoleonic era (1792-1812), French armies were generally victorious, even against professional Prussian, Austrian, and Russian armies, when the French had no numerical advantage. This was true even though French armies consisted of a mixture of enthusiastic, but non-professional troops that seemed to have no fear, bolstered by the presence of veterans. (This was a mix similar to the last, victorious days of the American Revolution.)

What led to French advantages? Did the ideology of the Revolution lead to morale boosts that gave "amateur" French volunteers an advantage over professional, but conscripted enemies? Did the Revolution create a "survival of the fittest" ethos that led to the rise of the best generals such Napoleon? Did the French benefit from a "home field" advantage in the early days?


texts: What did Japanese architecture look like with heavy materials such as stone, mortar and clay?

texts:
In the Wikipedia article on Japanese architecture, it says in the Heian era, and I quote, "Heavy materials like stone, mortar and clay were abandoned as building elements, with simple wooden walls, floors and partitions becoming prevalent." As someone mentioned, it doesn't give a clear reason for the discontinuation of the use of such materials.
What did Japanese architecture look like with those "heavy materials?" I tried searching things like Jomon and Yayoi architecture, but the buildings look like they're made of wood and straw, and Asuka and Nara architecture looks less obviously wooden, but in the study.com article I will link to, quote, "Most buildings of (the Nara) period were made out of wood, usually painted in red, black and golden colors."
Sources:

Study.com
Wikipedia:JapaneseArchitecture

Edit: I came across a series of history PDFs by the Japan Lime Association. They're in Japanese, but they could be used as a partial answer to the question of non-wooden architecture in general.


texts: What is the ancestry of the Robertians, progenitors of the Bourbon dynasty?

texts:
The countries Spain and Luxembourg are currently ruled by kings from the House of Bourbon, so I thought I'd try to trace their (patrilineal) ancestry as far back as possible.  Well, the Bourbons are descended from the Capetian dynasty, which in turn is descended from a noble family known as the Robertians.  The Robertians came to rule France in the ninth century, but before that they were counts of Worms, going back to their namesake Robert of Hesbaye.  His ancestors were dukes of Neustria and counts of Haspengau (an older name for Hasbaye), going back to Charibert of Haspengau.

But here I'm hitting somewhat of a dead end.  The site that Wikipedia relies upon for all this information doesn't list any ancestors of Charibert.  But this site claims that his father was Tassilon I, one of the first rulers of Bavaria.  Can anyone verify this claim?  (Note that this would be impossible if we go by what Wikipedia says about when Charibert lived, but Wikipedia's own source contradicts that information.)

I'm somewhat skeptical, because Bavaria (in modern-day Germany) is about 400 miles from Hespengau (in modern-day Belgium).  But I suppose it's possible that one of Tassilon's sons went on a long journey west for some reason and established a new estate there.  (This would be a case of a Frankish nobleman going to another Frankish territory.). In any case, if it is true then that would mean that the Robertians are ultimately descended from the Agilolfings, a noble family that traces its origins all the way back to Hermeric, a Germanic ruler who was an enemy of the Romans.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank You in Advance.


texts: Disappearance and reappearance of helmets in European armies circa 1600 to 1900

texts:
What factors lead to the disappearance of military helmets from European armies during the 17th through 19th centuries, and then to their return to use in the early 20th century? To what extent were these reasons technical as compared to stylistic or fashion, and were other factors involved as well?

For example, during the Napoleonic period shakos, bearskins and similar headgear were the most common, while 200 to 150 years earlier (the Thirty Years War and Eighty Years War) helmets were commonly worn by pike-men and musketeers.

EDIT: In addition, does anyone have rough dates as to when the helmet re-appeared in European armies?


texts: Why was the Soviet Naval Infantry disbanded in 1947?

texts:
According to Peter Antill:

The naval Infantry performed a number of important landings in both World Wars including raids against the Turks around the Black Sea and the capture of Sakhalin Island and the Japanese-held ports in North Korea. However, they were disbanded in 1947 and remained so until 1961. There were several reasons for this. Firstly, the countries that had maintained a strong amphibious capability (the USA and UK) have been active in seaborne empire building (militarily and economically) and trade, and so for many years after the Russian Revolution, the Kremlin regarded marines as a symbol of imperialism. Secondly, the appearance of a Soviet ‘blue-water’ fleet is a fairly recent phenomenon. There have however, been many historical examples of the Russians using armed parties of sailors ashore. The 1st Separate Naval Infantry Brigade earned a fearsome reputation during the siege of Leningrad in World War Two. However, several factors came together at the start of the 1960’s which heralded the Naval Infantry’s resurrection. Firstly, there was a growing unease about the all-out nuclear strategy introduced by Krushchev in the 1950’s (which mirrored the unease in the USA over massive retaliation at the same time). Secondly, the study of US and British operations during World War Two, showed the utility of amphibious forces in conventional operations (as did the landings of the US Marines in Lebanon in 1958, and the Royal Marines at Suez in 1956). Thirdly, the Cuban Missile Crisis underlined the need for a more balanced Soviet Navy and fourthly, Admiral Gorshkov (who had been involved in amphibious operations during the war) took command of the Soviet Fleet and was determined to build it into a true ‘blue-water’ navy.

How accurate is this assessment? Did the Soviet Union disband its naval infantry (Морская пехота) purely for ideological reasons?
Antill cites Andres de Lionis's article for Jane’s Intelligence Review. However, I cannot find this article. Corroboration (or refutation) by other sources would be appreciated.


texts:
I'm referring this question in this way and tell me if I'm wrong:

The first humans were just surrounded by: rocks, trees, plants, water, sand, animals, fruits. So how just with hands, mouth, feet could they do for example a knife? They would need to take wood but the trees are too heavy for taking from there...


texts: Did the Germans invent "Unexpected Pot-Shots"?

texts:
I recently watched the TV-show "The Americans" where an execution scene was shown in a way that I have never seen before. The show is about spies during the cold war. In the scene the Russians deliver a death sentence and then immediately shoot the prisoner in the back of her head without her even realizing what was coming.

Today I read an article that said that the German Democratic Republic secretly performed "Unexpected Pot-Shots", similar to what can be seen on the show. It was considered to be more humane. However, I could not find any sources that say that other nations, for example Russia, did that too.

So my question is: Did the Germans invent that or did they steal it from somewhere? Maybe Russia? Are there reports about this execution method being performed before? Maybe by someone else?

In German that method is called "Unerwarteter Nahschuss" which literally would be something like "unexpected near shot".


texts: What were the casualties and ship damage on each side of the Battle of Plum Point Bend, Tennessee?

texts: Specifically, how many were killed/wounded/missing on each side?


texts:
Is there a confirmed historic record of using "non-standard" live animals for military purposes?

To clarify, the following doesn't count due to either being standard or non-military:

"Standard" well known animals (e.g. horses/camels/elephants for mounts, dogs for a variety of purposes, dolphins by the navy). Doesn't have to be universally standard around the globe, e.g. camels are standard despite not ever being used as military mounts outside their habitat.
Animals typically used for non-military food/supplies included for similar logistical purposes.
Animals used for purposes identical to their civilian use with no clear military angle  (e.g. carrier pigeons for communications, donkeys/mules for carrying/dragging things, cats for catching mice, leeches for medicinal purposes, monkeys for medical research).
Using animals' behavior in the wild (e.g. Rome's geese or forest animals for alarm purposes).

I'm thinking of really unusual uses, such as Odysseus' use of Cyclops' sheep to hide under in Odyssey, except in real well documented historical situation.

Ideally I'm looking for a good (well referenced) single resource such a book or web page on animal use for military purposes; or a single "yes" answer with strikingly unusual/unexpected example.

Extra plus if the use was either a spectacular one-time success, or a stable practice for a specific culture/location/commander.


texts: Any history to the current flag used by ISIL?

texts:
I know the current flag used by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is black with white letters stating: "There is no God but Allah" and in the middle of a white circle in black letters the words: "Allah Messenger and Mohammad"... The handwriting reminds me of the style of seal which was pretended to be used by the Prophet Mohammad!

On the other hand Islam is often related to the color green!

Yascine - Public Domain

Has this flag ever been used by any Muslim groups before?

Does it have any proven historical background?


texts: Early use of unit tokens on military situation maps

texts:
I've seen many TV documentaries on historical conflicts where actors representing the leaders would gravely look at a map with tokens for military units, reminiscent of WWII air defense situation rooms, while there was a voiceover from the narrator. The same visual trope is used in fiction, as in these two examples from Game of Thrones, but my question is about the use in documentaries.

It seems that by the 17th century, tactical plans with unit symbols were written like this one on Marston Moor, 1644, but those were plans before battle and not situation maps.
Likewise, maps were created after the fact like this one for Nieupoort, 1600.
To me, maps from the late middle ages would appear unsuitable for tactical visualizations, but that could be a gap in my knowledge. Renaissance maps were probably good enough, at least for the defender, but not everything that could have been done was done.

So the question is, when did military leaders in the field start to put units or ships as tokens onto a map and to move them around?


texts:
Redemptive anti-Semitism is a theory expounded by Saul Friedländer.

According to Wikipedia:

  he maintains that Nazi anti-semitism was distinctive for being “redemptive anti-semitism”, namely a form of anti-semitism that could explain all in the world and offer a form of “redemption” for the anti-semitic.

In his book The Years of Persecution, he explains:

  Whereas ordinary racial anti-Semitism is one element within a wider racist worldview, in redemptive anti-Semitism the struggle against the Jews is the dominant aspect of a worldview in which other racist themes are but secondary appendages. (Page 87)

And that:

  Redemptive anti-Semitism was born from the fear of racial degeneration and the religious belief in redemption. ... Redemption would come as liberation from the Jews - as their expulsion, possibly their annihilation.

Does this mean that redemptive anti-Semitism means the Germans would 'redeem' themselves after getting rid of the Jews?  That they are saving themselves, hence anti-Semitism is excusable? What are they 'redeeming' themselves from?

How is redemptive anti-Semitism any different from the anti-Semitism that came before? (Which, according to Friedländer was religious anti-Semitism and non-racial anti-Semitism, the difference being 'a solution to the “Jewish question” was possible within society in general for the non-racial anti-Semite, whereas the only solution was exclusion from society in general for the racial.' (Adapted from page 82))  It sounds similar to racial anti-Semitism from my perspective.


texts: Who is the oldest ruler whose remains can be positively identified?

texts:
I realize this question can be quite controversial since "positive identification" is rather subjective especially with regards to ancient history. Regardless, I am curious to know which ancient rulers historians are fairly confident we can identify remains for.

My first guess would be one of the early Egyptian pharaohs, perhaps Narmer?


texts: Is there a difference between original 1768-71 and 1968-71 facsimile of 1st edition Encyclopaedia Brittanica

texts:
I was browsing a second hand book store and stumbled upon a 1968 facsimile of the 1768 1st edition Encyclopaedia Brittanica.

I am aware that a facsimile is an exact replica, but I still assumed that the publisher would provide some small hint somewhere that it was not the original but was unable to find one.

Other than the obvious sensual differences the naturally aged original has to the faux aged facsimile is anyone aware of any difference (intended or not) by the publisher?


texts:
According to Wikipedia, other sources, and politically-incorrect stereotypes  the majority of the famous conquistadors were from the present-day Spanish autonomous community of Extremadura:

Hernán Cortés
Francisco Pizarro
Hernando de Soto
Pedro de Alvarado
Pedro de Valdivia
Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca
Alonso de Sotomayor
Francisco de Orellana
Vasco Núñez de Balboa

Note that Extremadura is landlocked and ships bound to the Americas typically departed from Andalusia's Atlantic coast:
 Source: Wikimedia Commons
 Source: Wikimedia Commons
Nevertheless, John Michael Francis mentions that the majority of conquistadors were from Andalusia:

The makeup of each expedition was similar, with an average of 30 percent from the southern Spanish kingdom of Andalusia, 19 percent from neighboring Extremadura, 24 percent from the core kingdoms of Old and New Castile, and the remainder from other regions in the Iberian peninsula. Other Europeans were rate, restricted to the odd Portuguese, Genoese, Flemish, or Greek man.

I can think of only a few conquistadors working for the Spanish Crown that were not from Extremadura:

Christopher and Bartholomew Columbus were from Genoa
Jaun de la Cosa was from Santoña in present day Cantabria
Juan Ponce de León was from Santervás de Campos in present-day Castile and León
Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada and Sebastián de Belalcázar were from Cordova and the Pinzón brothers from Huelva, in Andalusia
Alonso de Ojeda was from Cuenca in present-day Castile-La Mancha

What led Extremadurans to take a leading role in the conquest of Spain's territories in the Americas?


texts: What did the people of the Middle Ages call their period?

texts:
It's clear that Middle Ages is a term from the Renaissance. My question is:

What names did scholars use during the Middle Ages for their own period?

Well, of course Middle Ages is a single name for a very heterogeneous period that covers approx. 1000 years, so different periods of the Middle Ages might have different names and, of course, in the same period many names could have been used by different people, so every name  is welcome and wanted.

edit: I know this is a broad question, but I don't think it's too broad. I don't want a comprehensive list, I'm just curious about any names you can remember :)


texts: Popularity of knight-robbery in the 15th century in Germany, Poland and Silesia

texts: I've found the term Raubritter (German), which is translated to Robber-knight, and I was wondering - was it a popular thing in the 15th century? Were there many such knights? If they were tolerated by the appropriate king, why was that so? Are there any examples of famous, factual (meaning - they really lived) robber knights in the lands and times I'm interested in?


texts: Genghis Khan, Alexander etc. are rulers who had kingdoms which were larger than most of the countries now. How would they have ruled their countries efficiently when it would take weeks for information from one place to reach another. For example, if unrest broke out in a far corner of their kingdom, wouldn't it take longer for them to hear of it and longer still to quench it?


texts: What were the major objections that Augustine had with Jerome's translation of the Septuagint?

texts:
I was having a discussion with someone who insisted that one of the major reasons I thought that Augustine objected to Jerome's translation of the Septuagint was completely not true. He argued that the primary reason was more trivial (imo).

I answered this question on Christianity.SE, however, since one on the other members completely disagrees I was hoping for verification or a different opinion. To sum up my answer there if you do not want to read it is that Augustine did not want Jerome to use the Hebrew texts instead of the Greek because there were differences. Jerome argued back that the Hebrew was more reliable to the actual 'ancients.' Augustine came back again saying that the Greek is too wide spread and there may be divisions in the Church if some followed the Hebrew while others followed the Greek because there are significant differences.

My opponent in this argument did not agree with me that Augustine was willing to have Scripture less accurate to the 'ancients' for the sake of church unity.

Is my evaluation reasonably correct or am I wrong, in which case, what was the major objections?

I would think it is on topic according to your faq because it is about the historical argument between two ancient persons who really existed and there is a record of their argument.


texts: What was the world population around 970 BC? Does it fit the biblical narrative?

texts:
What was the world population around 970 BC?
What was Palestine's population around 970 BC?
Does the following bible verse fits in the current historical world population estimatives?

  In Israel there were eight hundred thousand able-bodied men who could handle a sword, and in Judah five hundred thousand.

2 Samuel 24:9

Accordingly to Bible Timeline the verse is about somewhen around 970 BC


texts: Where in the sources does it say that Syagrius claimed to be "merely governing a Roman province"?

texts:
I have read on Wikipedia:Soissons and elsewhere that Syagrius, the last ruler of the Kingdom of Soissons, always claimed to be merely the ruler of a Roman province rather than the king of an independent entity. I have yet to find an original source attesting this.
Given the fact that - at least to my knowledge - the only original source that even mentions Syagrius's name is Gregory of Tours (original in the sense that all other sources like Fredegar's chronicle and the Fränkische Völkertafel are derived from him) I have hard time believing that this is attested anywhere, and it is merely an example of Wikipedia's lack of precision.


texts: Significance of division of Caledonia by Northumbrian Advance

texts:
In Chapter 4 of The Isles by Norman Davies, he writes:

  One effect of the Northumbrian advance was to split British territory
  in Caledonia into two. By the eighth century at the latest, the
  southern chunk that was soon to be called Cumbria, i.e., a second
  Cymru, was completely separated by Bernician territory from the
  British kingdom of Strathclyde, with its capital at Dumbarton

But I'm unable to realize what does he mean by this  point or what is so significant in what he said. I guess he wants to say that two celtic kingdoms were separated by an anglic kingdom which led to their languages and culture diverge with Cumbria more like Welsh and Strathclyde more like Scots. Is this right ?


texts: What was Hitler’s personal involvement in the Holocaust?

texts:
For the purpose of this question, I define Holocaust as the campaign of extermination of the Jews, not the persecutions that preceded it like Kristallnacht.

I found that Hitler gave an order to start the Holocaust on December 12, 1941 (however there were earlier massacres like Babi Yar), but I want to know how did he control the process afterwards.

Were there additional verbal or written orders from Hitler considering the details of the extermination campaign? Did he receive reports on its progress? Did he visit any death camps? Did he mention the Final Solution in his later speeches? Was he discussing it in his infamous table talks?

To clarify, I’m far from trying to “prove” that Hitler was not the ringleader of the Holocaust. Considering that he named “world Jewry” as the main enemy in his political will before his suicide, he clearly considered the Jewish genocide one of the main goals of his regime, worthy of diverting significant resources from the war effort. Still, I’m interested whether he micromanaged it just as thoroughly as the frontline operations, whether he was feeling the genocide goes fast enough or not.


texts: Why does the Canadian Air Force name its ranks like its Army, whilst the Australian and New Zealand Air Forces use the Royal Air Force's?

texts:
Like the US's, the Canadian Air Force's ranks are named identically to its Army's.

But Australia's and New Zealand's rank names follow the RAF's. Why?


texts: Which Roman emperor destroyed a weaving machine?

texts:
A slave created a revolutionary weaving machine which needed many less slaves to produce fabrics. The machine was so amazing that it was presented to the Emperor of Rome himself. That emperor was very impressed by the prototype and its potential. So much so that he granted freedom to the inventor and destroyed the machine.

He explained that the machine as wonderful as it was represented a risk for Rome since it would make so many slave idle.

What is the origin of this story, or the name of the Emperor?


texts: Who was the longest lived European monarch of the middle ages?

texts:
After a lot of googling, I'm still not sure about this. Finding the longest reigning monarchs is easy enough, but I'm less sure about the one who lived the longest.

A good candidate would appear to be Harold Fairhair (ca. 850 to ca. 932) but his dates of birth and death are not certain. Next would appear to be Alfonso I of Portugal (1106 or 1109 or 1111 to 1185).

Did any European monarch of the middle ages live longer than these two? If not, who is the longest lived European monarch where we are reasonably certain of their dates of birth and death?

By middle ages, I mean from around 500 AD to around 1500 AD.


texts: Why did the National Origins Act of 1924 use the 1890 census data?

texts:
In our US history course, we're learning about the 1920s era (New Era, Jazz Age, Roaring Twenties, etc), which was characterized by a wave of conservatism and nativism. We also learned that as part of the nativist desire to maintain a uniform national identity following WWI, the government passed the National Origins Act of 1924, which limited the number of foreigners who could come to the US from a particular foreign country to 2% of that country's people residing in the US at the time the 1890 census was taken.

Did it use the 1890 census because there were fewer immigrants in the US at the time? If so, why didn't the government use any previous censuses, such as the 1880 census, seeing as how there would have been even fewer foreigners in the US at that time?


texts: Was PepsiCo really sixth largest military force?

texts:
There are several claims on the internet that for a brief time PepsiCo owned the sixth largest military force in the world. You can read about it, e.g., at Wikipedia.

This seems quite fishy to me, so I wonder how anyone came to this conclusion.

From a source upstream of Wikipedia:

  So, in the spring of 1989, Pepsi and the Soviet Union signed a remarkable deal. Pepsi became the middleman for 17 old submarines and three warships, including a frigate, a cruiser, and a destroyer, which the company sold for scrap. Pepsi also bought new Soviet oil tankers and leased them out or sold them in partnership with a Norwegian company.


texts: What were British voting qualifications in the 1770's?

texts: I'm writing a paper about what events and ideas led to the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and one thing I'm using is the corruption in the English government. My evidence includes the fact that 120,000 people out of a population of about 7 million in Britain were able to vote. First of all, is that true? Second, if so, what were the voting qualifications? Property? Wealth? What made someone able to vote?


texts: What is Lorenzo de' Medici holding in this painting?

texts:
Recently someone I know visited the Palazzo Pitti in Florence, Italy. I'm told this painting of Lorenzo de' Medici by Girolamo Macchietti hangs there. We've been unable to figure out what he's holding in his right hand - what is it?

And in closeup:


texts: Meaning of carving on backside of headstone?

texts:
Did this carving (on the backside of a headstone from 1903, in the Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, IL, USA) have some particular meaning at that point in time?  I ask because the family at the time was very poor, and I would be surprised if they spent the money on extra carving if they didn't feel very strongly about it ...

Front side:


texts: What were the rights and responsibilities of (various classes of) 11th century English commonfolk?

texts:
I have been dismayed to see (what I see as) gross mischaracterizations of serfdom on this site; usually conflating it with slavery, and often even with the particularly abhorrent version of slavery practiced in the American South before 1865. I am looking to build a canonical question that can be used as a reference for "classical high Middle Ages Western European serfdom" going forward.

Why England only?

England was remade following the conquest, deliberately, in a rather uniform fashion. This results in less regional discrepancy (I believe) compared to other possible choices.
The Doomsday Book provides an unparalleled reference for the time period in question.
England is the origin of the Common Law traditions that characterize Western democracies

Definitions (for the purpose of this question):

11th century: 1066 (the conquest) to 1180 (Henry II's rework of legal system)
England: that portion of the British Isles conquered by William I at Hastings in 1066, even though consolidation of such conquest may have occurred in the following years.
common folk: The slaves (if any), serfs, villeins, yeoman, freemen and clergy (and others?) who were not in possession (or a direct family member thereof) of any of a knight's fee, a peerage (barony or higher), bishopric, or abbey.

Intent

I will up-vote all answers that I see as not possessing a gross mis-statement. I will (eventually) accept the best overall answer, and possibly award a modest bounty to supplementary answers of particular quality or coverage. I would prefer that this NOT become community wiki, so that contributors can be rewarded for their research efforts with rep.


texts: Which European country sent the most slaves to the Americas?

texts: I'm asking for a history project; I have searched online, but have been unable to find an answer.


texts: Why did it take Rome so long to supress the Spartacus Revolt?

texts:
I've been thinking and why did it take Rome so long to suppress the Spartacus Revolt, and what did Marcus Licinius Crassus do differently than other Roman Generals, as he was able to defeat Spartacus & his rebels eventually.

A few links which I've read some time ago for info / curiosity.

http://www.historynet.com/spartacus.htm

http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/spartacus.html


texts: What do we know about "Honorary Aryans" like Milch, Warburg and a few others?

texts: The story of special exemptions for very useful Jews or in one case a good friend of Hitler -- these exemptions resulted in people like Milch being able to serve at a very high level in Nazi Germany and again in Milch's case, even be tried for war crimes. What I am wondering is, do we have any indications of what Milch et. al. expected once the war was over? Were they treated just like other non-Jews once exemptions were granted? Were they sometimes able to save Jewish relatives or did they studiously avoid doing anything that would adversely affect their Aryan status?


texts: Was Voltaire actually present at the British Raid on Lorient in 1746, which was attended by David Hume?

texts:
Voltaire wrote a satirical account of the raid at which Hume himself was personally in attendance with General St Clair. However, it is difficult to find out if Voltaire was actually an eyewitness also, or if his accounts were second hand.
Some resources:
Meyer, Paul H. 1951. “Voltaire and Hume’s Descent on the Coast of Brittany.” Modern Language Notes 66 (7): 429–35. doi:10.2307/2909982.
Raid on Lorient (Wikivisually)
Neither source mentions if Francois-Marie Arouet (Voltaire) was present at the engagement, and it is difficult to find any mention of it in Voltaire's biographies available on line.
Further research (still no conclusion as yet):
From Chateau de Cirey
 (Source)
From the SEP
 (Source)
 (Source)
From Ernest Mossner's The Life of David Hume
 (Source: Mossner, Ernest Campbell. 1980. The Life of David Hume. Oxford : Clarendon, 1980, p 201.
)
Primary Sources and Older Commentaries

Condorcet, marquis de, Jean-Antoine-Nicolas de Caritat. 1792. The
Life of Voltaire: By the Marquis de Condorcet. To Which Are Added
Memoirs of Voltaire, Written by Himself. Translated from the French.
In Two Volumes. Vol. I[-II].  Philadelphia: Printed by and for W.
Spotswood.
Duvernet, abbé. 1787. The Life of Voltaire; with Notes Illustrative
and Explanatory: Translated from the French, By G.P. Monke,
Lieutenant in the Navy. London: Printed for T. Becket, in Pall-Mall,
bookseller to His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, and their
Royal Highnesses the Princes.
Tiedeman, H. 1870. “Voltaire’s Farewell to Holland.” Notes and Queries s4–V (129): 581.
Voltaire. 1784. Memoirs of the Life of Voltaire: Written by Himself.
Translated from the French. London: printed for G. Robinson, No 25,
Pater-Noster-Row.
Voltaire. 1990. The Complete Tales of Voltaire. New York: H. Fertig.

Newer Sources/Commentaries

Aldridge, Alfred O. 1976. Voltaire and the Century of Light. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press.
Darnton, R. 2015. “Voltaire, Historian.” RARITAN-A QUARTERLY REVIEW 35 (2): 20–28.

 (Source: Cronk, Nicholas, and Cambridge University Press. 2009. The Cambridge Companion to Voltaire. Cambridge; New York; Cambridge University Press.)


texts: How did the Carthaginians manage to survive three years of siege?

texts:
The siege of Carthage was the main event in the third Roman war. It went on from 149 B.C. to the spring of 146 B.C. According to Wikipedia the Carthaginians would have had about 410 000 citizens and 90 000 defenders.

How did the Carthaginians keep their population alive? It wasn't like everyone in the city was doing nothing either, as

  The city managed to produce 300 swords, 500 spears, 140 shields and 1,000 projectiles for catapults every single day

according to Appian of Alexandria.

As the image above shows most of the peninsula would have been occupied by the Romans, so more then a little farming seems impossible.

So my question is twofold:

1) How did the Carthaginians manage to procure enough food to keep most of their population alive and working for three years and

2) How did they manage to get enough drinking water? (I know they had large cisterns to store water, but can that really have been enough for the whole population, Especially with large amounts of refugees from the countryside?)


texts: Why was Ormond Castle in Scotland so called?

texts:
There was a castle in Scotland known as Ormond Castle which had existed since at least the beginning of the 13th century. It sat upon Ormond hill in the Black Isle.

Why was it called Ormond Castle? What was the etymology of "Ormond" in reference to this castle?

There appears to be a place in Ireland called Ormond but that came from the Gaelic Urhmumhain meaning "East Munster" I believe.


texts: Why did the USSR give Crimea to Ukraine?

texts:
In 1954 Soviets transferred Crimea from Russian Soviet Republic to Ukrainian Soviet Republic.

Why is this strange?

The whole act, at least officially, was meant to be "a gift", a token of friendship. You do not normally give huge pieces of land in moderate climate, which are also strategically located.

Russians are not known for giving land away, quite the contrary - Russia has been constantly expanding since XVII century.

After the deportation of the Tatars by Stalin Russians were the majority population of Crimea at that time (and still are).

Russia doesn't seem to have a solid foothold of the Black Sea coast - it seems that their only usable naval port apart from Sevastopol (which is in Crimea and is only leased from Ukraine!) is Novorossiysk.


texts: What does this sentence from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms mean?

texts:
The third paragraph of the first chapter in Romance of the Three Kingdoms (translation by R. Moss), states:

On the fifteenth day of the fourth month of the second year
of the reign Established Calm [Jian Ning A.D. 169], the Emperor
arrived at the Great Hall of Benign Virtue for the full-moon ancestral rites.

What is "Established Calm"? Is that a euphemism for the beginning of emperor Ling of Han's reign? What is the Great Hall of Benign Virtue? And what are the full-moon ancestral rites?


texts: Why has English become the global language?

texts:
I love the English and English.

I am truly fascinated by the expansion of the English language across the globe.
According to linguists all languages are great and unique.
If it is a fact, why English has become global language setting aside all other languages

Is it because of colonization or is it because of the felicity of expression and the resourcefulness of the language?