query stringlengths 19 300 | pos list | neg list | task stringclasses 1 value | instruction dict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
How did Spartas Dual Monarchy Work? | [
"If I may add a question, why did the Spartan system of government become the way it was? It seemed to be a weird hybrid of democracy and oligarchy, which seems uncharacteristically unlike any other city state of the time."
] | [
"Next Week's Theme: 'Royalty, Nobility, and the Exercise of Power' To be followed by: \"Eastern Europe\""
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
I'm interested in learning (and know next to nothing about) the (mostly debunked) Satanic Ritual Abuse scare of the 80's, where can I learn more? | [
"Here is a really good video on one of the most prominent legal cases to come it of the scare, the McMartin preschool trial. _URL_0_ Retro Report is an excellent site to check out in general, especially if you're interested in history."
] | [
"There aren't really any significant number of actual Satan worshipers. First off, you've got your disturbed teenagers that listen to heavy metal & want to piss off their parents. There's no real \"worship\" here, just doing \"naughty\" things to get attention. Secondly you have the [Anton Levey Satanists](_URL_2_) that don't really believe in the Christian mythology - at most, they view it as bad propaganda trying to make Satan look bad. To them, Satan is a symbol of free will & independence. Thirdly, you've got some batshit Christians that need to have something to 'fight' against. They *make up* Satanic cults, just like they did [witches in the Salem Witch Trials](_URL_0_). The early 80s were full of supposed [satanic ritual abuse](_URL_1_) and the like but none of it ever actually turned out to be real. People that believe that angels & demons are real can believe all kinds of far out shit..."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Help me identify a dogtag I found | [
"This is almost guaranteed to be some sort of civilian copy. First, I have never seen a WWII era dog tag that looked like that. Second, there is no reason to have rank on a dog tag. Ranks change, especially during war."
] | [
"I could be totally wrong but I've always thought of it as a shortened version of \"How did this come to be?\""
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
According to Wikipedia, the Transcontinental Railroad cost about $100,000,000 ($2,000,000,000 today.) What was the fight over this bill like in 1862, considering the cost of war also had to be taken into account? | [
"Further, why was it so much cheaper to build infrastructure like this historically? Even when taking into account the cost of inflation? I would imagine it would cost orders of magnitude more now?"
] | [
"The civil war and the end of slavery exhausted the Southern economy. So yes, a lot of the Southern States were very poor. In fact, during the governorship of Theodore Bilbo in Mississippi(1928-1932), the state had less than $2000 in it's treasury and was over $10,000,000 in debt."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the paragraph:"
} |
Can I get some insight to these pictures where a German soldier appears to be using another soldier to prop up his Machine Gun? | [
"This is a method of bracing the weapon allowing for a [somewhat] stable firing position in lieu of being to use the ground, wall, or other platform. While not preferable it is quick and often one cannot always find a good place to bipod, etc. IE: Such as where one is on a decline but firing at a higher or equal elevation or firing over hedge (as is shown in one of the photos) or other things that can obscure a gunners vision. Unlike in fiction, it is very inaccurate to fire machine guns from the hip, shoulder, or unsupported. This method is still occasionally used today (though once again as a last resort and often with a different position) and is used for sniper rifles as well. As for is it uncomfortable and hazardous... it is not comfortable. One needs to ensure they are not too close the the muzzle or the flash can burn, the barrel can heat up rapidly in cases of sustained fire, and just remember that hearing protection was largely absent in combat."
] | [
"I wish to add on to this question. Did the photographers have weapons or were just people with cameras? Like were they just soldiers with cameras?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
Help identifying markings on a soviet SSh-39 | [
"I can't help with the history but would like to point out that the markings you identified as either VV or 55 are actually cyrillic for BB."
] | [
"A google search leads me to believe it is a Belgian Commando Beret form the Congo"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
What shape were latifundia, fiefdoms, haciendas and plantations? | [
"Generally for these things, it depends on local geography, the wealth of the owner, land prices etc. These would nearly always be an irregular shape."
] | [
"The first thing you need to remember is that \"latifundia\" is not an ancient term, it is a modern one coined to describe an agricultural system that people in the nineteenth century thought looked like New World slave plantations. Secondly, where we actually have evidence, particularly North Africa, Asia Minor and Egypt, \"latifundia\" as you teacher probably talked about them did not exist. Wealthy landowners did own massive tracts of land, but they were not worked by large slave gangs, rather by tenants and rent paying peasants. So in most respects, a Roman \"latifundia\" was substantially more like a Medieval manor than a New World plantation. This is not to say there were no slave run plantations, just that they seem to have been vastly overemphasized in the literature by authors making a rhetorical point. A good account of this is in Kevin Greene's *Archaeology and the Roman Economy*."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How have check marks come to represent 'right' while Xs represent 'wrong'? | [
"There are quite a few theories floating around out there, but as it's not a universal standard and mainly contained within Western Europe and cultures influenced by Western Europe, I'm inclined to go with the tick / cross system being distributed by the Romans, especially given the amount of bureaucracy they bought to the world. Common theories: The Roman \"Veritas\" (truth) being the origin of the tick, cross is just a handy symbol / easy to make with a stylus / origin unknown. The Greek \"Nikas\" (νικώ) for win and \"Haneis\" (Χάνεις) for lose. I personally like the Greek theory as it accounts for the cross and the Romans did appropriate an awful lot from the Greeks. But that's 100% conjecture. Be interesting to see if any of the real historians out there have access to Roman or Greek documentation :)"
] | [
"Because 'F' is not a grade on the scale. The scale stops at 'D', and 'F' is just an abbreviation for \"failed\", which includes anything that is not an 'A', 'B', 'C', or 'D' (i.e. anything 'D' or above is consider passing the class, and any score below is considered failing.). It's just coincidence that 'F' is near the other letters, alphabetically-speaking."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the paragraph:"
} |
Why didn't the British re-colonize the US? | [
"From the UK's perspective--what's the point? Peaceful trade with the US was giving them nearly all the same benefits as having America as a colony had, only they no longer had to deal with a bunch of uppity American colonists getting pissed about London's taxes. Also, from Britain's perspective, they had bigger fish to fry in the 19th century than America--first the titanic struggle against Napoleonic France, then the competition with Russia (\"The Great Game\"), and then the emergence of the newly unified German powerhouse. Also, by the mid-19th century (Civil War era, arguably before) the United States had become too powerful to be conquered anyway. So by that point it wasn't even a possibility anymore, even if the British had wanted to take America back."
] | [
"Was any Asian country capable of helping the United States during the revolutionary war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
So...does anybody know how to get back to Greek Lands? | [
"If I were you, I'd negotiate with Artaxerxes. Clearchus has gone over in an embassy to Tissaphernes, who promises to convey us to the Greek cities along the coast. But to tell you the truth, my schizophrenic alter ego, I don't trust Tissaphernes and never have--it was he, after all, who spread slanders about Cyrus' intending to dethrone his brother and caused him to rise up in the first place to defend himself against this injustice. I only pray to lord Apollo that this embassy is fortunate, for the treachery of the Medes is well known to all"
] | [
"And to hijack this in a related way, what were the alternatives to \"America.\""
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Why has no one ever done a DNA test on the child skeletons found in the Tower of London? | [
"\"DNA testing was refused on the grounds that it could set a precedent for testing historical theories that would lead to multiple royal disinterments.\" _URL_0_"
] | [
"Someone wrote a whole new book in the US, said it was buried there by ancient Jews and was the next part of the Bible. Some people believed him and here we are."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
When did time differences start to become an issue? | [
"Time zones were a british invention of the early nineteenth century that only became necessary after the invention of trains and telegraph. prior to that, each town could more or less set its own time because no one could move fAst enough or communicate over a long enough distance for it to matter. they were aware that it could be night somewhere else, but it was not significant enough to be regulAted."
] | [
"Because that would be very hard to control. It might even become a real republic."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
I want to read about history, where do I start? | [
"While you're waiting for other recommendations, check out the [Books and Resources list](_URL_0_)"
] | [
"I would ask you - as I would have asked myself decades ago - what do you want to write about? That's where you start. Then you develop a good question around that. So, what do you want to write about?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about Education:",
"pos": "Represent the post about Education:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
What historical pirate most closely aligned with our contemporary stereotype of them? | [
"which stereotype. the happy go lucky gentleman pirate? the bloodthirsty psychopath? the opportunistic mercenary? the free spirit?"
] | [
"Nothing. Robert E. Lee was a US confederate general, the military leader of the Civil War faction that advocated the continuance of black slavery. The connection between this and the anti-Semitic element of the Nazis it tenuous at best."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
I am the son of a Chinese landowner in the year 1000, how do I prepare for the imperial examination? | [
"If it's okay, I'd like to ask an add-on question: could anyone, theoretically, do the exam, or was it restricted to the middle classes? I mean, clearly a peasant would probably fail because of their poor education, but were they allowed to try?"
] | [
"The Middle Ages is a pretty huge period that spanned centuries, so you might want to refine your question. The daily life of a monarch in the 8th century was incomparably different from that of a 16th century one."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the argument:",
"neg": "Represent the argument:"
} |
What is this? (German WWII decoration) | [
"That is the \"Band\" ( Ribbon) of the Iron Cross second Class worn on the buttonhole. Higher honors were worn on the left breat pocket as you can also see in the picture."
] | [
"A google search leads me to believe it is a Belgian Commando Beret form the Congo"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Is it true that in Feudal Russia, a good horse was worth 8 serfs? | [
"Could you point us to the source from which you drew your question? When you say feudal Russia what years are you thinking of? I have not heard this before personally and would be curious to see what it has to say."
] | [
"Was it possible for a peasant (older brother of a peasant=peasant?) to own/inherit a farm in that time/location? Or was land ownership reserved for higher tiers of society?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
I was just listening to the NPR politics podcast in which they said presidents don't give a state of the union their first year in office. Did that apply to Ford, Lyndon B. Johnson or Calvin Coolidge (IE presidents that inherited the job mid term)? | [
"* Calvin Coolidge was sworn-in by his father, a notary public, in the early morning hours of August 3, 1923. He delivered his first State of the Union four months later on December 6. * Harry Truman was sworn-in on April 12, 1945. Although he addressed a joint session of Congress four days later on the prosecution of the war, he didn't deliver his first proper State of the Union until January 6, 1947. (He did, however, address two additional joint-sessions of Congress in October, 1945 and May, 1946.) * Lyndon Johnson was sworn-in on November 22, 1963. He delivered his first State of the Union on January 8, 1964. * Gerald Ford was sworn-in on August 9, 1974. He addressed joint-sessions of Congress on August 12 and October 8, before delivering his first State of the Union on January 15, 1975. Source: [Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives](_URL_0_)"
] | [
"I think the short version is that President Garfield, and most presidents during the mid-to-late 1800s, were less politically important than they are today. During that era, Congress in general was the main moving force in national politics, and Congress was more likely to persuade the President on what to do than the other way around. Abraham Lincoln is an exception, of course, and to a lesser extent so was his successor, Andrew Johnson (because he fought Congress *hard*), but there's a reason that most Americans have trouble with the names of presidents from that time. They just didn't do much, relatively speaking."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question about History:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about History:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
I'd like to ask whether or not Flandern still utilize pilgrimage, the Camino de Santiago, as penance in their punitive system. If it is a legitimate way of seeking redemption, how far back does this tradition go? | [
"It's a little more complicated than the wikipedia page indicates and I can't really talk about the situation these days as that would be in breach of our twenty-year rule. Basically, what this jumbled info you found refers to is a project initiated in 1982 by a non-profit organisation that deals with juvenile delinquents. They used the walking to Compostela (and other long walking tours) as a way to take the youngsters out of their unfavourable environment and circumstances and give them a chance to reflect on their lives and the choices they had made thus far. They were inspired by the movie *Vision Quest* that tells of a similar initiative in the US. They claim a forty percent success rate and have done the trip with 450 young people so far. These youngsters were not incarcerated at the time and the trip was not a way to gain their freedom. They participated in it voluntarily after they had been released from the juvenile institutions."
] | [
"According to your morality he should be punished for what he has done. According to other moralities he should be reformed to become a good citizen again (as in two wrongs don't make a right). According to other moralities he should pay compensation for his crimes and be done with it. Others might say the punishment should be death whereas others would say lashings whereas others would say incarceration. My point being that morality isn't universal which is why we use laws instead of morality. Those laws are of course written according to the prevailing and compromise morality of the society that writes them. Current laws stand sort of halfway between the punishment ideal and partway towards the reform ideal. The general justification for punishment is that it serves a warning to others not to do the same rather than society wanting to exact retribution on criminals."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
Can anyone identify the origin of this Native American symbol for me? | [
"Was it the [North America Native Museum](_URL_0_)? If so, then I'm going to guess it's an Inuit image for a couple reasons. 1. The museum's site specifically mentions the Inuit. 2. A reverse image search brought me to some German kayaking/canoeing/paddling forums where this image was being used as a profile pic by a couple people. With that knowledge, the image does look like a person in a kayak holding a paddle above his head. The Inuit invented the kayak, so that would fit. I'll note that this guess is based on absolutely no historical knowledge in the area, so I could be utterly wrong. I hope this gets you on the right track, though."
] | [
"I enjoy this kind of detective work a great deal, however, if you could provide a little more information it would make things a great deal easier. Perhaps you could provide a clearer picture of the text around the rim and some additional information on which region we're talking about?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How long did things like Bailey Bridges take to get permanently replaced after the end of WW2? | [
"There was one on the A66 at Greta Bridge about a dozen miles west of Scotch Corner which carried the east-bound traffic until the late 70's, when the road was dualled, bypassing that section. For those unfamiliar with the area, the A66 is a major trunk road across the country. There is a lesser trunk road about 50 miles south, and another 40 miles north, but this bridge carried significant amounts of traffic."
] | [
"Follow up question: What other types of bootcamp training strategies would drill instructors use? Also what were training structures like when there was a massive influx of troops who needed to be trained quickly, such as when the US joined WWII after Pearl Harbor?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
When and why did the term "nuclear" supplant "atomic" in common parlance? | [
"[You can use Google Ngrams to get a good sense of this sort of thing](_URL_1_). If you break it down further, it [can reveal more specific trends about what terms changed](_URL_0_). But the short answer is, \"nuclear\" first crept into the popular parlance through \"nuclear power\" and then \"nuclear weapons.\" The scientists preferred \"nuclear\" as early as even 1945 (\"atomic\" in their mind refers to the entire atom, including the electrons, and not specifically the nucleus), but it was not a term that was considered popularly well-understood enough by the government/military."
] | [
"When the media decided to leverage the negative connotations associated with 'drone' to sensationalise things."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
I've always been interested in European History. Is Dan Carlin's podcast series "Hardcore History" reliable? | [
"You may be interested in [this recent thread on the topic](_URL_0_): the top post has a bunch of links to still older threads."
] | [
"Chronological: - Ray Harris Jr.- The History of World War 2 - Mike Dunkan - The History of Rome - Robin Pierson - The History of Byzantium (follow up podcast) - Khodadad Rezakhani - Iranologie (History of Iran) - The British History Podcast Other: - The AskHistorians Podcast (Intervies with AskHistorians contributers) - New Books in History (Interview with Authers) - Dan Carlin - Hardcore History - Russ Roberts - Econtalk (mostly about Economics but includes quite a bit of History) There are more, but others I have either not jet listen too, or I don't think they are quite as good as the ones I have named. Edit: Maybe not really a podcast but you might still like it. The youtube channel \"TheGreatWar\" goes threw the First World War week by week tracking the original war 100 years later."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the comment:",
"neg": "Represent the comment:"
} |
Why didn't wind and water power lead to industrialisation? | [
"The industrial revolution in America ran on water power. In 1790, there were 7,500 small mills across the USA, by 1850, there were 60,000, and the average power per mill had gone up 300% to 15 horsepower (the very largest water mills could generate 250 horsepower). _URL_1_ So, in 1850, American water mills were generating about 900,000 horsepower. Many of the water mills were small sawmills or grain mills, of the types that had been known since Roman or Medieval times, but some were giant mill complexes powering large factories such as the many textile mills in Lowell Massachusetts, which are now a National Historical park. _URL_0_ The old technology of the water mill was the main power source for the industrial revolution in America and in Britain as well. Steam engines came later. It was not a new power source that led to the industrial revolution, as much as new machinery to hook up to existing power sources, such as the spinning jenny and the power loom."
] | [
"the use of steam power in the early industrial revolution is overrated. Much early progress was done with water power. Look up Richard Arkwright and the textile mills he setup, all water power. In the US, the Lowell textile mills, the largest manufacturing center in the US, was water powered well into the 19th century. One area i'm interested in reading about is the use of bellows in iron production. It appears in the 16-17th century England water powered bellows were critical in helping establish England's lead in iron production. I think a more productive line of thought is how much did other countries before or during the early industrial revolution use water power that way or in other interesting ways? Also, check out what the Dutch were doing with wind power in the Zaan district in the 14-16th centuries. EDIT : don't knock water power, its the source of 16% of global electrical production, although its not my favorite energy source, there are environmental impacts."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
When America entered WW2, what was Henry Ford's response, considering he was an ardent supporter of the Third Reich? | [
"More of course can be said here, but do check out [this old thread](_URL_0_) courtesy of /u/henry_fords_ghost."
] | [
"Start of WWII. He was trying to get support for increasing the build up of war materiel, training, weapons, manpower, etc. Chamberlain's government was playing the part of the appeaser at this time and Churchill did not like it."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the passage:",
"neg": "Represent the passage:"
} |
How did huge armies, like that of Santa Anna's or Alexander the Great's, manage to feed themselves over those long distances? | [
"Alexander used wagons when he first landed in modern day Turkey. As he progressed further into Persia, he would either raid for food or buy it from friendly cities. Additionally, the major Persian roads had various stops along the way that stocked food. It was used by Persian nobles who had to take lengthy trips. In general, armies of the time either raided enemy lands for food or were forced to defend a supply train."
] | [
"The thing that made the Mongols fearsome was their mobility. You gather a big army against them, they just ride off and attack somewhere else. But if you needed to protect just one place, like where the wall was currently being built, parking a big army there would do the trick."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about History:"
} |
In Colonial America: How did the Townshend Act compare to the earlier Sugar and Stamp Acts? | [
"The reaction was just as bad. The reasons however were more complex. For one the tax was only revenue for the English government because it taxed British goods. It did not fit with mercantilism and actually worked against it. This angered many colonists because they saw it as just money for Parliament, not for the improvement of the empire as a whole ([Letter number 2](_URL_1_)). The biggest objection though came from a small attachment to the act. It specified that some of the revenue from the tax would pay the colonial governors salary. This hurt the balance of power. Previously elected assemblies would control the pay of the governor (appointed by the king). If the elected official disagreed with the governors actions, they could cut his pay. However this act circumvented this check on the governors power and therefor took power from the elected assemblies. It was seen as taking some of the already small representation colonists had. [_URL_0_](_URL_0_)"
] | [
"The Wiki entry on the Intolerable Acts is good. Two of the acts, the Port of Boston Act and the Massachusetts Government Act applied only to Massachusetts. Two other acts, the Quartering Act and the Administration of Justice Act applied to all the Colonies but were directed at problems that had been particularly troublesome in Massachusetts during the Seven Years War and before. Nick Bunker's \"An Empire on the Edge\" is a good read on this point."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
What did other countries think of America during the Revolutionary War and the following years? | [
"France effectively crippled themselves (economically) funding the Americans, which in turn them lead to the the French revolution due to the ideas of liberty spreading like wildfire. That is why napoleon sold off French American land so cheaply (that and the war with Britain, Austria and Prussia) because the French felt they had so much in common with the Americans."
] | [
"Maybe it's just because of where I grew up, but we learned a lot about Reconstruction, industrialization, the Spanish-American War and the various political movements that happened between 1870 and 1910. That being said, relative to the Civil War and WWI, there are more important periods in US history."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
What's the oldest text we have? | [
"I'm not sure about the oldest inscription, but I do know about the oldest literature. The earliest literature that we know of is from the Sumerians, a Bronze Age Mesopotamian civilization. There was a city in Sumer called Abu Salabikh (not the name used at the time) that was excavated in the 1960's by an American team of archaeologists. Here they found a cache of 500 cuneiform tablets which contained, amongst other later documents, the *Instructions of Shuruppak* and the Kesh Temple Hymn. These have both been dated back to c.2600BCE, making them the oldest known pieces of literature."
] | [
"What if you want a printed version of what was said?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question about language:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph about language:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
How much of Anne Boleyn's reputation as a woman that 'slept around' is deserved? | [
"None at all. The only person who confessed was Smeaton and he was tortured. Everyone else denied the charges and contemporaries at the time also thought the charges couldn't be true. We have no trial documents or transcripts so we unfortunately can't be more precise than that."
] | [
"The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn by Eric Ives is a fantastic read. It's one of the most in depth accounts of her life (seeing as so many other accounts tend to look at Anne as just one in the succession of Henry VIII's wives), and he poses very convincing arguments that paint Anne's execution as a result of political maneuvering and changing alliances beyond her control, rather than the far too simplistic reasoning that it was only because of her failure to produce an heir (or the even worse argument that it was because of her character). It also keeps a very balanced picture of the queen. When dealing with such a controversial figure as Anne, it's all too easy for authors to slip into the traps of either demonizing her or overly defending her. Ives strikes a neat balance between the two."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
suppose I went to an english person and asked them if dragons exist, what's the earliest point in time I would be likely to get a "no" from them (apart from times before the superstition existed)? | [
"I think it would end up depending on who the English person was, whether they were learned, . I know that as [early as Plato](_URL_2_), the great thinkers were arguing against the idea of dragons. Doing some research into reference books, the [1771 edition](_URL_1_) of the Encyclopedia Britannica references real creatures under the draco entry but says no more. In the [1823 edition](_URL_0_) on page 289, the entry has been expanded to explicitly shut down the mythological interpretation. Obviously the date could be much earlier than 1771, but these are the references I was able to find."
] | [
"most people don't live a hundred years. also, most people can't see farther than right in front of their face. just as a side note: any question that begins with \"why do people...\" is almost certainly futile and pointless."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post about English iconography and heraldry:",
"pos": "Represent the document about English iconography and heraldry:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why is the Marine Corp the only branch of the U.S. military without a dedicated four-year college? | [
"The Marine Corps falls under the Department of the Navy. The US Naval Academy trains midshipmen to be Marine Corps officers as well."
] | [
"Point of Clarification: + Soldier = Army + Sailor = Navy + Marine = Marine + Airman = Air Force The various services get quite upset if you refer to them incorrectly. Sailors are sailors, not Soldiers. Marines are Marines, etc. To your question: Navy Seals are the highly specialized, highly trained, combat/special-operations force of the United States Navy. They are similar to the Army's \"Delta Force,\" in terms of their strict training requirements and skill-set. If you were to use the analogy of comparing the Army or the Navy to a sledge hammer, then the SEALS are an exact-o-knife."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post:"
} |
Why are people like Alexander the Great praised, while people like Pizarro are looked down upon when they did the same thing. Kill. | [
"You might be interested in some previous posts on moral judgement passed on Alexander the Great: * [*How did Alexander the Great become known as an exemplary person, but other conquerors are viewed in a more dubious or negative light?*](_URL_0_) ^([2014 Dec. 13 | 123 comments]) ^(/u/XenophonTheAthenian dissects changes in historiography on Alexander from Antiquity to the 20^th century.) * [*When I was younger I liked to think of Alexander the Great as a noble figure who wanted to unite the world and erase the differences between peoples. The more I think about it though, the more he seems to resemble a mere Hitler-like dictator. Is there any nobility in the historical Alexander?*](_URL_1_) ^([2013 Jan. 16 | 146 comments]) ^(/u/Daeres analyzes Alexander's actions and accomplishments in context with the morality and actions of his contemporaries and other ancient rulers.)"
] | [
"The willingness to take big risks, regardless of the consequences to themselves and others. For every Hitler or Alexander, there was a Lucius Sejanus or Guy Fawkes, who took those same risks. Their luck didn't hold up, and they were labeled as criminals. Those two were successful enough to be remembered, there are probably hundreds, if not thousands of others who were completely forgotten by history."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
In the Statute in Restraint of Appeals (1532), it is declared that "this realm of England is an Empire". What does the "empire" mean in this context? | [
"To be very brief, it was not a reference to an empire as we moderns would interpret it. The statute was referring to an empire in the ancient Roman sense; a distinct kingdom of its own, ruled solely by its head, without influence from other kingdoms. This was an important legal distinction to make because the king could claim the right of total sovereignty over his people. As the king of an independent empire, Henry VIII would have no duty to respect the wishes of the Catholic church, the laws of which he was attempting to legally bypass."
] | [
"From the Care of King during his illness etc. Act, 1811 (51 Geo 3 c 1): > XII. Provided also, and be it enacted, That if His said Royal Highness George Augustus Frederick Prince of Wales shall not continue to be resident in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, or shall at any time marry a Papist, then and in either of such cases, all the Powers and Authorities vested in His said Royal Highness by this Act, shall cease and determine. Other monarchs, previous and subsequent, who left GB to visit territories abroad appointed regency councils to manage things of immediate urgency at home, but George was already acting as regent, so no - he wasn't allowed to leave."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post:"
} |
When was the last time the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives voted? | [
"The last time a Speaker voted was a lot more recently than 20 years ago. Unfortunately that means this question can not be answered without violating the rules of the sub, something I am loath to do on a political question less than 4 days before an election. Therefore I suggest anyone who might be interested in this question, check out the voting records of recent Speakers. Anyone who wants more discussion on the issue, should post in another sub like Ask_Politics where discussion of recent events is permitted. I hope this answer is sufficiently within the rules."
] | [
"There would be a tie and the House of Representatives would decide who the president is, according to the constitution."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
Dwarfs / short people. Have there been any significant historical figure of short stature? | [
"In ancient Egypt, [dwarves commanded respect](_URL_0_), and their depiction in art was mostly very positive. For example, [Seneb](_URL_1_) was a landowner and a high-ranking court official with twenty palace and religious titles, and married to a high priestess."
] | [
"Only 0.1 percent of the world's population have down syndrome. White is the most common demographic (in most western countries). The reason why you never see a black or Asian with down syndrome is because there are simply less people total to get the condition."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the post:",
"neg": "Represent the post:"
} |
What were some merciful moments during world war 2? | [
"The book The Retreat: Hitler's first defeat by Michael Jones, mentions an incident on that happened on the eastern front on Christmas eve (December 24) 1941 . A group of German soldiers found an abandoned church and decided to clean it up and have a small Christmas eve service. A number of locals came and attended it, and about halfway through, a group of soviet Cossack soldiers entered the church, took off their hats and stood at the back for the remainder of the service, after it was over they simply left and disappeared back into the woods."
] | [
"Was any Asian country capable of helping the United States during the revolutionary war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
When and why did English orthography stop using Þ (thorn) and ð (eth)? | [
"As far as thorn goes, early English printing presses used imported type that didn't include thorn. Printers would either use \"th\" or use a y as a thorn, which wasn't too much of a stretch (a handwritten thorn looked like a y). Sort of like how typewriters would use the same character for lowercase \"L\" and \"1\". That's how we got \"ye\" for \"the\" in old books (I've never seen it after the seventeenth century) and modern pretentious signage (\"ye olde coffee shoppe\"); the y is really a thorn, and it was pronounced \"the\", not \"yee\". So really, we still use thorn, but only on pretentious signs, and we mispronounce it as a \"y.\""
] | [
"In the year 1011, a writer named Byrhtferð ordered the Old English alphabet for numerological purposes. He listed the 24 letters of the Latin alphabet (including ampersand) first, then 5 additional English letters, starting with the Tironian note ond (⁊) an insular symbol for and: A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T V X Y Z & ⁊ Ƿ Þ Ð Æ The letters u and j, as distinct from v and i, were introduced in the 16th century, and w assumed the status of an independent letter, so that the English alphabet is now considered to consist of the following 26 letters: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z [Source](_URL_0_)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Which books should I read to gain an overall view on a certain period of history? | [
"If you specify which periods, I am sure the many able experts on this board can help you with general histories of their specialties. Unfortunately, there is no general history of the world that I can recommend. You could also check the [List of Flaired Users](_URL_0_) and contact directly those with expertise in the fields that interest you."
] | [
"This is a very broad question about an enormous international event. Can you narrow it down at all? Is there a particular kind of thing that you're hoping to hear about?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query about Education:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about Education:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Why was the Domino Theory accurate? | [
"I would jump in (I did my college final on this subject) but I don't want to do your homework either. To give us some help to see where you are in your research... what do you have, both pro and con as to why the DominoTheory was valid? What do you think?"
] | [
"Only if the federal government let it. See: American Civil War"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
German WW2 (?) Badges/Medals i found in the basement. Any insight on them? | [
"I've edited your pics here: [First image](_URL_2_) In red is a Silver Wound Badge. In yellow are two Eastern Front Medals. In green is a Naval Artillery War Badge. Can't identify the others; I think they are civil or political, not military decorations. [Second image](_URL_1_) Red is an Infantry Assault Badge. Yellow is another Naval Artillery War Badge. Green is another Silver Wound Badge. Blue is a pair of 2nd Class Iron Crosses. *Are they that rare? Is there a market for them?* Yes, **if they're real**. There's an awful lot of fakes out there - because, yes, there's a hell of a market. Enough copies of Paul Hausser's dagger have been sold the man probably had enough for a whole SS division! I'd advise asking [here.](_URL_0_) They'll ferret out a fake in no time, and can also spot any mistakes I've made."
] | [
"That is a WWI era Yugoslavian/Serbian officers cockade cap badge. I believe they are pretty rare. Usually those pins had blue in the center and red on the outside. It is from the Yugoslavian \"Kingdom era\" 1918-1939 Hope that answered some questions. Edit to add example: _URL_0_ Just a little way down the page youll see the same badge and description."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
I found several copies of Der Adler and other German publishings from the 1930's - 1940's era. Is there much value in them? | [
"[According to the German wiki](_URL_1_), Der Adler was an air-force propaganda magazine published between 1939 and 1944 with a total of 146 numbers. They are not overly common and apparently, according to the [German Central Magazine Database](_URL_0_), there was a reprint in 1977. So don't be surprised if you find them at ridiculously low prices, for those seem to be said reprints."
] | [
"Are there any books on Berlin during 1920s?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence about Literature:"
} |
Where can I find pictures or documentations of clothing of eastgoing vikings? | [
"Are you after male or female, well off or poor? I can provide you some sources and a lot of images and links. The subject is well researched in Sweden, but most sources are in Swedish. Generally, if you are well off you would wear linen undergarments, woollen overgarments and cape, decorated and coloured according to your wealth. Leather shoes and woollen puttees were also common. Trousers were simple and big, knee- och footlength. Blue, black and red were the most expensive colours. Fine fur, silk, silver and amber were common materials for decorations."
] | [
"Follow up: Is there any connection to figureheads on ships, sometimes also depicting semi nude females?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
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} |
Timbuktu Mosque: What Are Those Spike On the Outside of it? | [
"That mosque is not in Timbuktu. It is the [Great Mosque of Djenne](_URL_0_), in the city of Djenne which is about 500 km south-west of Timbuktu in Mali. Anyhow, those are wooden timbers called *toron*. They are used to [support scaffolding]( _URL_2_) when adobe is reapplied to the exterior of the mosque, or when repairs are needed. These *toron* are ubiquitous in many large mosques in West Africa, including the [Sankore mosque](_URL_5_) and [Djinguereber mosque](_URL_4_), both in Timbuktu, and the [Great Mosque of Mopti](_URL_3_) and even smaller mosques have begun to [use them as a stylistic element](_URL_1_)."
] | [
"Being Black Does Actually Have (Relatively Minor) Health Consequences, It's Just That They're Obviated By Modern Life. There's An Energy Cost To Have Extra Melanin, Even A Small One, So If You Don't Need It It Won't Be Selected For. Melanin Reduces Vitamin-D Uptake From The Sun If Sunlight Is Lower Than You're Adapted For. Vitamin-D Deficiency Was Very Common In Black Children In The Northern US And Europe Before Modern Technology Made Nutrients More Easily Accessible. Being Black Or Brown Outside Of The Tropics Would Have Been Maladaptive For Most Of Human History Because There Would Not Have Been Enough Sunlight For Proper Nutrient Uptake. Capital Letters."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Did map makers in Europe during the American civil war include the confederacy? | [
"Here is [a German map from 1864 showing no Confederates](_URL_2_) as well as [a second from 1863](_URL_2_)"
] | [
"In actual fact nobody really is sure as to which side is north and which side is south. In Australia for example, globes can be purchased that are flipped with the southern hemisphere appearing above the northern one. I believe the reason most globes are the way they are today is largely down to the British empire and the richness of explorers and adventures from the northern hemisphere earlier in human history."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Red Scare during 50's question. What was considered "Communist" behavior, or suspicious behavior? | [
"Having joined or attended Communist party meetings. Having a spouse as a member. Being gay, especially in the military or espionage agencies. Strangely enough, the movie Clue delves into this. Professing certain sentiments. Having ties to certain labor organizations (some had ties to the Soviet Union, but this was also used to undermine organized labor as a whole). I am not being specific at all, but it was a real crapshoot back then with so much of it turning into political witch hunts and political assassinations. It was a very strange time."
] | [
"Hi! you might be interested in some of these earlier posts * [Did the Soviet union ever take advantage of the racial tensions in cold war america? particularly with blacks in the south?](_URL_7_) * [How did (or did) the USSR use the US's Civil Rights movement and issues like Jim Crow as propaganda?](_URL_8_) * [How did the Soviet Union seem to feel about Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement?](_URL_7_) * [Did the Soviet Union have a \"bite-sized\" refutation of Capitalism?](_URL_8_) * [Did fear of Communism play a significant role in the granting of civil rights to American blacks?](_URL_8_) * [Is there any evidence of Soviet/Communist involvement in the black civil rights movement?](_URL_8_) * [We've all heard about how the CIA meddles in foreign countries' politics, but let's flip that around. How have foreign intelligence agencies influenced US politics?](_URL_7_)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
What happened to the Roanoke Colony? | [
"There have been many theories. The principle theory was that they went South to Hatteras Island (then called Croatoan) because that word was found carved on a tree in the abandoned colony. Recently, a new theory had been developed, based on new evidence. This is not yet conclusive. In 2012, the British Museum used technology to try to look beneath a \"patch\" on a map made by the governor of the colony. Under the patch they found a red and blue symbol which the patch had covered, which might have indicated a fort. It was West of Roanoke, up Albemarle Sound, near the mouth of the Chowan River. In 2013, this site was explored using magnetometers and ground penetrating radar. The investigators think they have found indications of buried structures and possibly a palisade. What these indications really represent, and whether this site has anything to do with the lost colony of Roanoke, remains to be seen. Archaeological digging on the site is planned, but has not yet begun. Source: _URL_0_"
] | [
"...Tell us more about the New England vampire scare. Where and when?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Fictional historical people | [
"Prester John. 500 years of European stories about a Christian monarch in India, or Central Asia, or Ethiopia. The Wikipedia entry is pretty good: _URL_0_ (I've been fascinated by that guy since I first heard of him, but can't claim any expertise about him.)"
] | [
"For that matter, what were the basic personality archetypes for children?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
Where does the image of a pimp wearing extravagant clothing come from, and did any modern pimps do so? | [
"hi! you may be interested in a couple of posts; they're slim on answers, but have some book recommendations * [How accurate are depictions of 1970s American 'pimp fashion' in movies like Dolomite, and how/why did the styles develop?](_URL_0_) * [Where does the stereotypical \"pimp\" image come from?](_URL_1_)"
] | [
"they were called liripipes. Most people believe it was just a fashion trend at the time, one that was capitalized by modern artists/video games/what have you whenever they want to make something look \"medieval.\" There are a few manuscripts from around the fourteenth century in which people complain about how ridiculous the liripipes look, and speculating that soon people will be wearing hoods that hang down to their feet in back. It's kind of like old people complaining about saggy pants."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
What was sex education like in the Soviet Union? | [
"While you wait, you can read an old answer by /u/kieslowskifan to a related question: _URL_0_"
] | [
"What drugs were popular in 19th century Britain?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
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"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Why did they make dresses and capes with such long trains? Wouldn't they get dirty and torn very easily? | [
"In Renaissance Europe, large platform shoes called [chopines](_URL_4_) were used to elevate the wearer's feet and clothing from the filthy streets. It became a fashion trend in and of itself, with the increasing height of the shoes corresponding to wealth and status"
] | [
"Let's say you're 6 foot, 300lbs of raw muscle. You aren't going anywhere you don't want to. Now let's give you a nose ring with a string on it. You now go wherever you're pulled. Why don't you see them anymore? Well would you want to wear one for that purpose? Seems cruel doesn't it?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
When did the multi-generational family household go away? | [
"Where do you mean? Europe? The US? Middle East? Africa? Eastern Asia?"
] | [
"Side question, but definitely related: Were whipping boys used outside of the English court? Also, when did the idea of using a whipping boy fall out of favor?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
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} |
I'm interested in learning about people who would submit themselves to slavery in order to gain honor and fame. | [
"I think its Mamluks (Egypt) and Janissaries (Ottomans) you're thinking of, they were the elite slave bodyguards that took power when the ruling dynastiess became weak"
] | [
"Because it was important, especially in the beginning, for them to take on as many trappings of a religion as possible, in order to be able to claim religious tax exemptions."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
In the Roman Republic, who would do long term planning (considering that the leaders would rule for only a short time) ? | [
"I wouldn't say the short terms of consuls really was too big of a deal until the Second Punic War. After being defeated at Lake Trasemine by Hannibal, the Senate of Rome appointed a dictator named Quintus Fabius. He pursued a surprisingly \"un-Roman\" plan for defeating Hannibal-- Fabius avoided a pitched battle at all costs and only skirmished with small parts of Hannibal's army. He became unpopular and the next consuls to be elected (Varro and Paullus, specifically Varro-- Paullus was more in favor of the Fabian tactics) wanted to fight a pitched battle with Hannibal and were much more aggressive. So, you can see, plans changed with the changing of the consuls. In the Roman Republic, a lot of the longer term planning (specifically military) was done by the senate and executed by the consuls."
] | [
"I suggest you write at least the approximate date you are looking at. Rome lasted for many hundreds of years and the culture and military changed over that time."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about History:"
} |
So, I want to learn more about history. What are some good books? | [
"We have lots of recommendations on our [book list](/r/AskHistorians/wiki/books) and, since you're also interested in anthropology, so does [/r/AskAnthropology](/r/AskAnthropology/wiki/readinglist)."
] | [
"What are some of the primary sources that you have found? This sounds interesting. Would you recommend any books for a fun read?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about Education:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence about Education:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
After the Russian Revolution, and the treaty of Brest-Litovsk, many small nations formed, such as Armenia, Ukraine and Finland. How exactly did these short lived countries operate and did any of them have any real authority? | [
"I am not sure what you mean by \"short lived\" as Finland and the Ukraine still exist as nations."
] | [
"Czechoslovakia was a collection of regions historically grouped together by various empires for logistical purposes and was never truly a unified culture that could function well as a stand alone nation. After the fall of the USSR they attempted to operate as a single nation but it simply did not work due to cultural differences of the various ethnicities in the region so they decided to separate peacefully (for the most part)."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text:"
} |
Why was tar so important, and what was it used for? | [
"Well, at least in my area of specialty, tar is a major component of shipbuilding. Tar is often used as a shorthand for the whole industry of \"naval stores,\" which are basically products derived from plant resin that are used in shipbuilding and maintenance. Tar in particular is used for sealing, caulking and waterproofing as ships. Tar in this context, derived from plants, shouldn't be confused from tar derived from petroleum or peat. I can't definitively say that this is the tar industry in your region without knowing the region, but tar and other stores were a major export of the Baltic and the Americas during the age of sail."
] | [
"A lot of inhabited land is not near the sea, and to extract salt you need to evaporate it, which requires a warm, dry environment near the coast or near a salt mine. These aren't that common, so Salt is harder to get than seems obvious. Demand also used to be larger, as it was the only real preservation method prior to refrigeration, so was used in everything. These two factors pushed supply down and demand up, making it a valuable resource."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
Why, following the Carnation Revolution in 1974, did Portugal decolonize Cabo Verde, but not the other islands of Macaronesia? | [
"Those two archipelagos were not inhabited when the portuguese landed: they were colonized by portuguese (and other europeans, but to a lesser extent), and as such, the only thing they differed from the continental people is that they were surrounded by water on all sides. This was the same with Cabo Verde, however, contrary to Azores or Madeira, they were mainly inhabited by slaves brought from other parts of Africa. With this in mind, there was no reason for Azores and Madeira to become independent (they didn't want anyway), since they were portuguese. Still, if it interests you, there *were* protest in the government regarding CV's independence (some suggested they should've become an autonomous region, like Madeira and Azores are now)."
] | [
"France has exerted a lot of effort to maintain loose and informal control over its former colonial empire in Africa. If you're looking for formal attempts to regain a colonial empire, the best example might be Spain. After the loss of most of Spain's American colonies, it kept up a series of raids and invasions for a generation until it finally abandoned the idea of regaining its empire in 1833. Spain did reassume control over the Dominican Republic in 1861 at the invitation of the state's elites, but lost it again in 1865."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
What developments had the greatest influence on Western individualism v. Eastern collectivism? | [
"Can you give some specific examples of what you mean? Without them, this question is impossibly vague, and rests on a highly suspect assumption of fundamental difference between \"West\" and \"East.\""
] | [
"Can anyone suggest respected works that deal, on a theoretical level, with the concept of elites? Specifically from the standpoint of history."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the comment:",
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} |
[Painting] Is this King Charles III? | [
"I'm afraid I don't know the painter, but that's George I of Great Britain."
] | [
"I read this as \"What is an erection?\""
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
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What is the historically accurate version of the three wise men story? | [
"Since the story doesn't exist anywhere outside of the Gospel of Matthew, you probably aren't going to learn anything more. However, one thing most people don't realize is the popular depiction of the Magi showing up in the manger shortly after Jesus is born is not even biblical accurate. They show up much later when Jesus is a toddler aged 2 or 3, and only Mary is there, Joseph is not around. There is also no number given, so while they are typically depicted as being three, there is no biblical reference to that number."
] | [
"What period and country are you asking about? There’s no context in your question."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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} |
What kinds of things do we think Marco Polo may have seen but refused to tell? | [
"His account was actually considerably more tame than other travel narratives. Look at, for example, [Mandeville's Travels](_URL_0_) (this is my customary plug for Mandeville's Travels, one of my all time favorite medieval texts). Most likely, the \"I did not tell half...\" was a rhetorical device (I don't know enough about the rhetoric of travelogues or Polo specifically to say this for sure. Medieval writing was highly rhetorical, and often included flourishes of this sort: something like \"and the saint performed many more miracles, which the locals tell about\" Think also of the end of the Gospel of John, the Bible was the basis of basically all medieval education and literature: \"But there are also many other things which Jesus did; which, if they were written every one, the world itself, I think, would not be able to contain the books that should be written\""
] | [
"While we're sometimes willing to help with homework, this is beyond the pale. How on earth could we say what historical figures *you* relate to?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text:"
} |
Is there historical context for the recent pushback to globalism? | [
"Not sure if you are violating the 20 year rule with that question, also are you asking about if history has seen a push back to globalism prior to what we have seen? I am not quite sure what you mean by context."
] | [
"There is no such thing as guilt by association in the USA."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph about Law and Entertainment:"
} |
Was Arm and Hammer ever considered Communist or Socialist due to its name and logo? | [
"Not going to answer the question directly since I don't know the answer to that exactly, but I will provide some chronology to give you some sort of idea of an answer. The hammer and sickle was adopted as the symbol for communism by Lenin in 1923. The Arm and Hammer was adopted as the logo for the socialist party of America in 1904. The Arm and Hammer logo you know from baking soda was adopted by Church and Co. ever since 1867. It's a really old idea, it represented Vulcan (God of fire and subsequently the God of smithing) in some points in time, and of course, a very iconic example of a hammer representing and entity is by way of Thor's hammer. What can definitely be said is that the idea of a arm holding a hammer being a symbol is an idea much older than Lenin. Sources: \"The Hammer and Sickle: The Role of Symbolism and Rituals in the Russian Revolution\" _URL_1_ \"Evolution on an Emblem The Arm and Hammer\" _URL_0_"
] | [
"They were founded in San Fransisco in 1966 in response to police brutality in black communities. They expanded into social programs by the end of the 60s including serving free breakfasts to children. They were brought down by a combination of leadership screwups and the FBI's COINTEL program. They were not a hate group, contrary to popular belief, and were not affiliated with the Nation of Islam. They were, however, inspired by the Communist revolution in China and Mao's Little Red Book was required reading, which, between them being openly armed (which was not a crime in California at the time) and being so inspired by the Little Red Book, made them terrifying to the FBI. Edit: And The Black Panther Party should not be mistaken for The New Black Panther Party. They are not actually affiliated and the New Black Panthers are considered a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Did Isabella of Valois kneel before Richard II to beg mercy for merchants from Calais? | [
"Are you sure you aren't thinking of Philippa of Hainault? She begged Edward III to spare the Burghers of Calais. Edward wanted to kill them because they had held out for longer than he would have liked when he was sieging the city. And he wanted to set an example. They story goes that after they finally surrendered the city Edward had the burghers walk out in nooses ready to be hung. But then Philippa, who was pregnant, intervened. Or that was the claim. It may have all been political theater. There is a relatively famous series of sculptures depicting the event in Calais."
] | [
"Ludlow belonged to the de Lacy family in the 11th century. When the last male heir of the family died, it passed down to two daughters of his until it came to the possession of Geoffrey de Geneville. He, in turn, passed it to his son Peter in 1283. Roger Mortimer, who married a daughter of Peter de Geneville, made use of the castle as a base since he was the leader of a group of barons who dethroned the unpopular Edward II in 1326. The last male Mortimer died in 1425 but Ludlow castle passed to his sister's (Anne de Mortimer) son Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York, who was the leader of the Yorkists in the War of the Roses. It only became part of the Crown estates when Edward IV became king. Edward of Westminster fled with his mother, Margaret of Anjou when his father Henry VI was captured by the Yorks when he was around 7 years old. Historical and descriptive sketch of Ludlow Castle by Thomas Wright"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Best history books on certain topics? | [
"Hi, if you don't get specific recommendations for all of your topics, take a look through this subreddit's [*Book List*](_URL_0_). As mentioned at the top of the linked page, the list is also available on Good Reads, which has a searchable interface"
] | [
"Chronological: - Ray Harris Jr.- The History of World War 2 - Mike Dunkan - The History of Rome - Robin Pierson - The History of Byzantium (follow up podcast) - Khodadad Rezakhani - Iranologie (History of Iran) - The British History Podcast Other: - The AskHistorians Podcast (Intervies with AskHistorians contributers) - New Books in History (Interview with Authers) - Dan Carlin - Hardcore History - Russ Roberts - Econtalk (mostly about Economics but includes quite a bit of History) There are more, but others I have either not jet listen too, or I don't think they are quite as good as the ones I have named. Edit: Maybe not really a podcast but you might still like it. The youtube channel \"TheGreatWar\" goes threw the First World War week by week tracking the original war 100 years later."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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In Wild West movies there is often a character that has moved west to help alleviate their tuberculosis (Doc Holliday being a real life example). Was this a common practice of the time and, if so, did this influx of sick people affect how The West developed? | [
"Follow up question, and apologies if this is better suited for AskScience, but is there solid science behind this? Cursory searches are turning up evidence of this being a common practice (e.g. the prevalence of sanatoriums in western states or former ASG John W. Trask [advocating more time outdoors](_URL_1_) to combat TB), but having trouble finding any medical journals that validate it as it relates to arid climates. Closest I could find is [this study posted on NIH](_URL_0_) that seems to corroborate Trask's assertions on fresh air, but doesn't address other climate factors."
] | [
"It's not particularly recommended to get it as a kid anymore, because an effective vaccine was released in 1995 that can prevent the possible dangerous effects of contracting the disease. Chickenpox can even be fatal. The effects of the disease can tend to be more severe in adults than children, which (especially before a vaccine existed) led some people to have their children infected to reduce the likeliness that they'd first be exposed to it in adulthood, as it is highly contagious. I would suggest any continued preference for chickenpox parties is largely a holdover from pre-vaccine times, rather than a good idea."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
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} |
How did the ballet "The Nutcracker" become "for kids?" | [
"As a follow up question: My quick google search (based on a hunch) tells me it wasn't a huge, successful piece until George Balanchine produced it in 1954. How much of its success could be attributed to Disney's Fantasia, released in 1940?"
] | [
"It's like \"It's A Wonderful Life,\" but the opposite."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Would Vikings ever have open fires on their longships, for warmth, cooking or visibility? | [
"We have not found evidence of hearths, fire-bricks, hearthstones or the like on \"Viking\"-style ships that have been excavated, but that doesn't necessarily mean that there was never any provision for a fire (we have remarkably few longships to do archaeology on). If they had had a fire, the ships (being made of wood) would have needed something to contain the fire on; ships of the period I'm more familiar with had brick hearths for cooking purposes. But we don't seem to see that in Norse or Norse-style ships, or in contemporary depictions of ships (such as the Bayeux tapestry) that we have. Best guess is that because most voyages in that era were from point to point near shore, it would have been fairly easy to pull ashore and light fires if cooking needed to be done; longships usually didn't venture out in the fall/winter or in inclement weather in any case."
] | [
"Don't know how older eras did it, but during the Viking Age (Iron Age) in Scandinavia, they huddled with animals and all for warmth inside their longhouses for the duration of the winter. They lived off supplies gathered during the spring, summer and autumn."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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} |
Was Northern England (Britannia Inferior) more of a buffer zone between Britannia Superior (Southern England) and Caledonia (Scotland) during Roman Britain? | [
"As Martin Millet pointed out in *The Romanization of Britain* the extent to which Roman lifestyle took hold in a region is highly dependent, or at least highly correlated, with its political organization before the conquest. Southern England was divided between numerous kingdoms with distinct identifies and loci of political power. These loci were appropriated by the Roman conquerors as they asserted control over the countryside. In northern England there were not strongly defined political entities before the conquest and so the Romans did not have anything to work with. And as there was no defined policy of romanization there was no incentive to create this organization ex nihilo. This doesn't mean that Yorkshire was covered in wild, unnamed tribes, the region was under Roman control. It is just that the Roman style of social and political organization doesn't seem to have taken hold."
] | [
"If you mean the ancient Gauls, then it works like this: *all Gauls were Celts, but not all Celts were Gauls. Celtic peoples lived all over Europe back then, from what is now Spain all the way east into Turkey. They were not in any sense a unified political entity, and went by different names depending on where they lived. Those tribes living in what is today France and northern Italy (lands the Romans called cis- and transalpine Gaul) were known as Gauls. So it's sort of like Hispanic vs Cuban: Cubans are Hispanic, but most Hispanic people aren't Cubans. note: it's entirely possible that the Romans included non Celtic peoples living in the same area under the label \"Gaul\" as well. But when I say they they were Celts, bear that in mind :)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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The SKS rifle and the AK47. Why did they coexist in the Soviet and Chinese armies? | [
"So the SKS was made to replace the old Mosin Nagant as the main weapon for the Soviet foot soldier. It was finally developed and deployed by the end of the 40s. However the AK was already being made and basically outdated the SKS before really being deployed. So now the Soviets have a bunch of these rifles and factories ordered to make them. So now the question is what to do with them? Well they sold them or gave them to their satellite states and allies. This would now arm them with guns that were somewhat modern and they wouldn’t have to use old bolt action rifles or other outdated small arms. They could also give out licenses or let them make their variant of the SKS until given permission to make the AK. This was also used in second line soldiers, guards, and other soldiers away from fronts. It was used to just give these guys a weapon while frontline troops got AKs. It frees up more AKs to troops who would be fighting, but wouldn’t leave the other troops unarmed who wouldn’t usually see action."
] | [
"I feel like this is a question that should be answered by a panel like this. a popular question on this subreddit is why, on the on-set of WWII, America was the only country with a semi-automatic rifle while everyone else were using bolt-action rifles. Is this an accurate depiction of the arsenals of the different sides during the time and if so, why was the bolt-action more popular than the semi-automatic?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Is there is any specific (geographical, climate-based, etc.) reason/s that the world's superpowers are located in the Northern Hemisphere? | [
"Northern hemisphere has more landforms. The Southern Hemisphere only has sub-Saharan Africa, Australia, sub-Amazon South America and a handful of archipelagos. The northern hemisphere has all of Europe, North America, Asia and sizable chunks of Africa and South America."
] | [
"I am not a native English speaker and as far as I know, continent means two things in English, while my language has different words for the two things. Continent means a land mass as well as large area of world. There's 7 of both, but America is composed of North and South American land masses/plates (plus more), while Eurasia is a land mass (the Eurasian plate) composed of Europe And Asia divided at the Ural mountains for maps and politics, most likely due to historically Europeans not venturing too far too often."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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What are some great reads on life in the British navy between 1750-1850? | [
"I've just bought *The Command of the Ocean* and *The Safeguard of the Sea: A Naval History of Britain* by N.A.M Rodger on a recommendation from this sub. Not sure if they will contain exactly what you're looking for as they appear to be quite politics/land heavy but they may change as I get through them. It's been a while since I read it but Autobiography of a Seaman by Thomas Cochrane is written by a naval officer in the time you're interested in. As a fictional aside have you read the Aubrey Maturin series by Patrick O'Brien? I've always believed that they were accurate to an extent (especially for an author who didn't like the sea and got seasick)."
] | [
"Yes. Slavery in Rome was not tied to race/skin color like it was in the United States during the 1700-1800s"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Are there any historical examples of people "Fabricating Claims" on land? | [
"The most famous fabrication that I can think of would be the Donation of Constantine, which basically gave the Papacy a fraudulent claim to being the rightful successor of the whole Western Roman Empire. This is a bit more controversial, but George Garnett claims in *The Norman Conquest: A Very Short Introduction* that the Norman claim to England (i.e., that Edward the Confessor promised the kingdom of William) was entirely fraudulent."
] | [
"I'm going to ask this as a question: Are there not still legacy treaties in place between USA and Holy Roman Empire? Stemming from Revolutionary War mercenaries that performed well?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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How did the British Empire handle the dissemination of information across the empire? How did they manage centralised rule over the globe? | [
"The centre actually had surprisingly little control over the colonies, with the notable exception of India. Disraeli complained that (I am paraphrasing) \"we have all these colonies that we do not govern but we do pay for\". He was referring to the UK paying for the defence of Canada and South Africa without actually deriving any taxes from them. The situation was different in India, where the state had complete control via the Colonial office and the Viceroy of India was the British ruler of India in the name of the crown."
] | [
"The UK is arguably the most dominant nation of the past 1000 years, the US over the past 100. On top of that, the US has been a leader in media, technology, and commerce during the first time in history it has been easy to for the general public to communicate with people around the globe. That has gone a long way towards making English the preferred international language."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
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suppose I'm a typical (18 year old male) Egyptian farmer in the 1390s. Am I likely to make a pilgrimage to Mecca Before I die? if "yes" how Will I get there? | [
"Related question: if I'm a typical Egyptian farmer in the 1390s, would I even be Muslim or identify as Arab?"
] | [
"They were. Syphilis was unknown to the rest if the world until it was brought back from the New World. Im sure there were more, but I cant think of any off the top of my head."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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"neg": "Represent the Reddit argument about History:"
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How much did Band Aid/USA for Africa/Live Aid really help starving people in Africa in the long run? | [
"There have been a couple of threads with answers on the impact of Live Aid, Band Aid, and USA for Africa, so I'll link them: u/wilbarp provides a thorough account with plenty of further discussion in [Did celebrity efforts like Band Aid's \"Do they know it's Christmas?\" and USA for Africa's \"We Are The World\" actually help alleviate famine in the 1980s?](_URL_0_) u/ReaperReader answers in [What was the real impact of the Live Aid concert of 1985?](_URL_1_) Hope this helps!"
] | [
"If it says Africa in the charity...it is a scam. Charity in Africa has become counterproductive, as corrupt African governments have come to rely on donations to feather their own beds. The amount of aid that actually goes to those that need it, is minimal at best. & #x200B; In terms that a Five year old can understand. Charity in Africa is bad, because all the corrupt people steal the money before the poor people get it."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
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What nation stood to gain the most by ensuring that the 13 colonies broke away from England? | [
"France, hence their support of the colonial cause even to the point of sending troops and warships. France was not only Britain's existential rival, but had been in direct confrontation with Britain on the North American continent for years. The chance to help dislodge a massive slice of North American territory from the British Empire was simply to tantalizing to pass up."
] | [
"Why would they want or need to? Their trade and indeed their whole economy was dependent upon Britain. There also wasn't the emerging economic and political elite in Bermuda, such as existed in the 13 Colonies, who saw personal advantage in separation from Britain. Without the political self-interest of the \"Founding Fathers\" guiding the politically and economically active American people towards independence, would most Americans have participated in the American revolution? It took a considerable effort in propaganda to create an atmosphere in the 13 Colonies that was favourable to the idea of Independence. Even then there was a considerable minority of Tories who still opposed separation from the UK. As far as Bermuda was concerned, of what advantage would it be to them to rebel? Even if they had, they would have far too vulnerable to Naval blockade, and, of course, vulnerable to being snapped up by Spain or France."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Hitler's Order on 15.4.1945. What does hitler mean with the old fate of asia? (Link inside) | [
"In context he is implying that the \"ancient fate of Asia\" is to fail at invading Europe. To my mind this brings a reference to the stopping of the Mongol expansion in the 13th century, which halted right before reaching German lands (for a variety of reasons unrelated to the Germans being good at fighting them, which they were not). But this is just speculation — it isn't clear to me whether he is referring to any specific event in particular."
] | [
"Nobody. after 2000 years it becomes public domain."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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How do historians view experimental archaeologists, reenactors, SCA, ARMA/HEMA, etc.? | [
"> How do historians view experimental archaeologists, reenactors, SCA, ARMA/HEMA, etc.? With caution. Like all hobbyists some are better, some are worse. The good ones are great sources of knowledge. > Is experimental archaeology a respected discipline? Can be. Especially with replicas. Problem is with replicas they are just that. It is very hard to reconstruct exact construction techniques or fill in gaps in knowledge. So anything you learn from them has to be tempered with the knowledge that they are never 100% authentic. Those built using period materials and techniques, or built to help learn what those techniques must have been can be very informative."
] | [
"here's some info on naval battle reenactments in Rome [Were naval battles staged in the Coliseum?](_URL_0_) and, just FYI in case you're interested in how widely-spread reenactments are: [When did civil war reenactments become popular in the US? Are war reenactments ubiquitous in other modern day cultures, or is this a uniquely American phenomenon?](_URL_1_)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Can anybody tell me what era this ring is from? | [
"Closeup of the stones please. The concept of an angled pavillion on the back of the stone to reflect light didn't arise until the renaissance, the modern form of faceted gems didn't emerge until just before the French Revolution. I do a bit of hobby faceting, I will be able to make guesses about the back of hte stone from a well lit photo of the front."
] | [
"Could you post where that quote came from? Thanks"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Where can I find primary sources on mortars/artillery in world war one? | [
"Not sure if you're an American, but have you contacted the [National World War I Museum](_URL_0_) in Kansas City, Missouri? Their collections include manuals and technical specifications from the war. Alternatively, if you're from Britain the Imperial War Museum is where I would start."
] | [
"Just asked this in the other sticky, but maybe this is the better place for it: Does anyone have any good book recommendations about the Nigerian Civil War or about Biafra as a country?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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[Meta] Is there a list of top experts in their respective subject floating around anywhere? | [
"Our [flaired user list](_URL_0_) can be found linked on the sidebar and in the sub's wiki."
] | [
"Just asked this in the other sticky, but maybe this is the better place for it: Does anyone have any good book recommendations about the Nigerian Civil War or about Biafra as a country?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
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Where in the US did Belgian gratitude school photo's from the World War 1 era end up? | [
"This is completely and utterly fascinating! Which Lafayettes in America have you contacted people in? Were these photographs primarily being sent to larger cities, like the Indianapolis example? My first thought it that this was Lafayette, IN, because that's home of a big public US university, and a larger city. Next guess would be Lafayette, LA because that is also a big city. The rest you should probably not focus on because they are pretty small places. (Also you can safely ignore any La Fayette/Lafayette differences, Americans are not great at French.)"
] | [
"Thanks! Where these armies where most of the Soviet casualties occurred?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Did NASA Use Mayan Math in Preparation for the Moon Landing? | [
"What are you considering \"Mayan Math\"? The majority of Maya math was based on astronomy, so there very well may have been some calculations NASA performed that had also been preformed centuries earlier in the Yucatan. But that doesn't make it particularly Maya in any way. Math and astronomy are the same no matter where you go. One plus one equals *keb* and *jun* plus *jun* equals two."
] | [
"1. The First Salute by Barbara Tuchman 2. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown 3. The Civil War by Shelby Foote 4. Reconstruction by Eric Foner 5. The Proud Tower by Barbara Tuchman 6. Parting the Waters by Taylor Branch 7. Brute Force: Allied Strategy and Tactics in the Second World War by John Ellis 8. The Years of Lyndon Johnson by Robert A Caro 9. A Bright Shining Lie by Neil Sheehan 10. A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn 11. 1491/1493 Charles C Mann Sorry, couldn't keep it to 6."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Can you explain the use of the word "plastic" vessels when speaking about the 4th millennium Mycenaean art? | [
"\"Plastic\" art means three-dimensional art. It has nothing to do with synthetic materials, if that is what is confusing you. It refers to any material that can be molded or formed into different shapes. The plastic arts commonly refer to sculpture and ceramics, though the use of plastic can be extended to mean all visual arts."
] | [
"In ancient Greece very fine olive oil was a common prize. Olive oil is transported in vases and ... cups. The image of the two-handled cup is very similar to the olive oil urn. Everything else is just derived from that idea."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Why did the US intervene in Cold War era conflicts, like Korea and Vietnam, but the Soviet Union only supported their interests? | [
"I'm confused by your question. Are you saying that the USA was not supporting its own interest in Vietnam and Korea?"
] | [
"North Vietnam by itself, no. The reason the US took such an interest in it, and fought a war costing thousands of lives, was because we were trying to limit the growing influence of communism via the USSR. The Vietnam War was part of the (not so) Cold War, one of many individual proxy wars influenced by the US and the USSR on one side or the other. The Soviets supplied the North Vietnamese and the North Koreans, while the US encouraged coups to put pro-capitalist dictators into power in various South American countries, and we supplied the Taliban with arms and equipment during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in the 1980s. So in short, Vietnam itself didn't pose a threat to the US, but the growing influence of communism potentially did, which was why we tried to limit its spreading influence as best we could, while we ourselves spread the influence of capitalism (for better or worse)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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I'm looking for a text on the life of Napoleon Bonaparte, would anyone with experience in this particular historiography be able to offer insight into any specific texts? | [
"A more modern publication would be Alan Schom's biography; it is a true biography, and gives equal focus to his campaigns and personal life. It can get tedious at times during the early and formative years, and the author is heavily opinionated (alternating from viscous attacks on Napoleon's character to praise of his genius). This of course isn't a problem in and of itself, but if one of your goals is to have your students form and reach their own conclusions on the man, it may become problematic. I provide a bit more detail viz. Alan Schom [here](_URL_0_), in an earlier post. I list some more issues I have with him; but ultimately, he's accessible, has good prose and is more often than not on the mark. A good publication all 'round."
] | [
"Hi there -- rather than asking a historian here to watch all (counts ...) 201 episodes of a web series and comment on its accuracy, would you perhaps be interested in providing a summary of the main points of the series and its sourcing? Or alternatively, individual themes or episodes you'd like to have fact checked?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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What were the greatest pranks/pranksters of history? | [
"[Horace De Vere Cole](_URL_0_) always seems to be mentioned as one of the greats."
] | [
"To be a little less specific, what did people think the future in general would be like before the Industrial Revolution?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Who was the greatest prankster of all time? | [
"Odysseus? \"Surprise! The horse is full of dudes!\" \"Surprise! We're not actually sheep!\" \"Surprise! I'm not a beggar but actually me, Odysseus, greatest prankster of them all!\""
] | [
"Being a king. That applies to most parts of history."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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What are the current historiographical debates? | [
"There is a whole lot of history to debate and a whole lot of sub-fields all with their own relevant debates and discussions. Do you have any fields you are particularly interested in? You might check out *Debating the Middle Ages* by Rosenwein and Little for a 'best of' for Medieval History, though note that it is now over 10 years old so things have certainly progressed."
] | [
"What are some of the most important contributions to the study of U.S. history by non-U.S. scholars? Are there any good analyses of trends in specifically non-U.S. scholarly views of American history?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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The Voting Rights Act of 1965 | [
"[There's a meta-thread for all questions concerning the Voting Rights Act on AskHistorians.](_URL_2_)"
] | [
"They do. The law requires schools receiving federal funds to provide educational programming on the constitution. Google H.R. 4818."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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My Grandfather is a US WWII veteran and came across this while helping clean out his house. Could You provide any insight onto what this is? (Picture linked in comments). | [
"The sword itself looks like a reproduction of the [Tizona del Cid](_URL_0_) (scroll down just a touch to see the hilt), which belonged to the 11th century Castilian knight Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar (El Cid Compeador). You can read more about his details at that page, but the repro swords have been popular for a long time and widely available from many makers. Because of his connection to the *reconquista*, El Cid tends to be seen as a champion of pious Christian militancy, so if you can get any information about the context in which it was given (a veterans' society or religious organization? Was he active in the church?) it might help you to understand why he has it. I've never seen one with a dedicational nameplate installed [on the blade -edit], so it looks like a special kind of award."
] | [
"The first photo is a is a Grand Army of the Republic Pin (issued post-Civil War to Union Veterans) and indicates service in the 3rd Division of the 5th Corps. The owner was a staff Colonel based on the full Eagle rank insignia. I can't read the inscription on the back, unfortunately. Wiki Link: _URL_0_ Second Item: I'm stumped. Third Item: A Blue Lodge Freemason Pin. (My husband is a mason and says that the trowel might be a freemason pin as well, but without knowing more he doesn't want to assume it is.) Fourth Item: A pin for the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. Link to the organization: _URL_1_ As for the other items, I can be of no assistance."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about history:",
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Are there specific examples from history of older generations disapproving of young people's values or actions? | [
"Here is a great answer by /u/Celebreth to a different question but it should answer yours as well. _URL_0_"
] | [
"Same sex relationships are opposed by Christianity (and likely western religions in general, but I say that with some hesitation because I'm not an expert so you should fact-check me if you want to know for sure), so while the world was influenced heavily by those religious beliefs, practices like homosexuality were seen as sinful. But people's collective sense of right and wrong changes over time and the LGBT community has been proactive in convincing the general public that their lifestyle should be accepted. As a result, we've entered a period where society is far more inclusive when it comes to the LGBT community, although they still do face challenges."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
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How did the handedess of a warrior affect their fighting ability? | [
"[This has come up before,](_URL_0_) but unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be much info on it. As is pointed out there, we have reason to believe that in a military based on shield formation, lefties would be forces to fight right handed, but that's about it. As I said in that thread, for single combat - or at least as you'll see in fencing - though, there is a real advantage to left-handed fencers, but (as far as I'm aware) it isn't because they are intrinsically better or have more of a killer instinct. The main advantage is because a left-handed fencer is very used to fencing against right handed-fencers on a daily basis. On the other hand right-handed fencers practice against lefties very rarely. A right-handed fencer who practices against lefties on a regular basis would essentially eliminate that advantage. Likewise, if a club was all lefties, so never fenced right-handed people, that advantage would mostly disappear."
] | [
"Interested on how you thinking Chinese being first to use gunpowder and fireworks means high quality.."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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When did we first realize that cetaceans were mammals? | [
"The first publication to mention whales as mammals was the 10th edition of Linnaeus *Systema naturae*, in 1758. One of his students, Pehr Löfling, got the same idea but perished before beeing published. Source: [Aldemaro Romero, 2012, \"*When Whales Became Mammals: The Scientific Journey of Cetaceans From Fish to Mammals in the History of Science*\"](_URL_0_)"
] | [
"I have no idea, but elephants, magpies and great apes have been observed grieving deceased relatives, so they most likely feel complex emotions."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Were Kamikazee attacks good strategy? | [
"Hello, I have answers [here](_URL_0_) and [here](_URL_1_) that you might want to look at."
] | [
"a) Post WWII Nuremberg trials were very German centric. We also ignored Japan's war crime against China (Unit 731, Nanjing massacre, etc) & Korea, Russia's war crime against Germany (a lot of rapes), England's fire bombing of German cities, and many more. b) Nuclear bombs weren't a war crime at that time. No one got prosecuted for mass bombing cities in WWII. Not the Germans, not Japan, not England and not the US. It was accepted military tactic to bomb a whole city to reduce industrial infrastructure."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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My High School history teacher gave me a very different account of Franz Ferdinand's assassination than what I've heard from other sources. Is there legitimate confusion around this event? | [
"Professor in college told the following story about the assassination. The Archduke was extremely vain and his uniform was tailored to his body. The bullet had hit his jugular but the severity of the wound was not clear until they cut the shirt out around his neck. The tightness had served somewhat as a tourniquet. When it was cut, the blood gushed and the Archduke died. Any truth to that?"
] | [
"As a Brit, I've certainly not come across the idea that it was accidental. Quite the opposite. Where is that interpretation taught?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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What should I read about American revolution? | [
"I've enjoyed Edmund Sears Morgan's _The Birth of the Republic, 1763-89_. It's a classic book on the revolution and the development of the Constitution (not the same thing!), and is very short and to the point. Morgan's approach is one that I enjoy in part because it doesn't involve getting caught up in the \"drama\" of the thing, doesn't focus exclusively on the situation in the USA (I learned a lot about the situation in Britain at the time, which is obviously relevant but often lacking serious treatment in typical America-centric accounts), and parses out good questions like to what degree economics versus ideology drove the revolution. Separately, if you are looking for something very different, check out Maya Jasanoff's _Liberty's Exiles: American Loyalists in the Revolutionary World_, which focuses on a group who more or less has gotten written out of history by most American accounts: those Americans who thought that the USA should stay a British colony. It's a refreshingly new take on the revolution."
] | [
"Just asked this in the other sticky, but maybe this is the better place for it: Does anyone have any good book recommendations about the Nigerian Civil War or about Biafra as a country?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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A new video game is coming out that takes place from 303 BC to the rise of Augustus. The game is NOT focused solely on Rome but also Europe, Northern Africa, and Western Asia. I know next to nothing about the events of this time period, what are some good books to inspire my gameplay? | [
"Question for OP. Since I didn't see it in the post, is the game Imperator: Rome?"
] | [
"Are you asking about the Empire (16th century to later 20th) or just about the relations of wars and the Empire. I am a bit confused to exactly what you are asking."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question about Education:",
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