/r/askhistorians

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When two populations that don't share a language meet, how did they typically learn to understand each other?

1295 upvotes • _pm_your_butthole_

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Being just under a hundred years after the end of the civil war, did any former slaves live to see or take part in the civil rights movement?

1294 upvotes • Mithcanal2

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Iran is almost three times the size of France. It's got mountains, deserts, and freezing winters. In WWII, the Allies took it in six days. What the hell happened?

1294 upvotes • KidCharlemagneII

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Before electricity, were people as sleep-deprived as we are now?

1293 upvotes • ladybirdbeetle

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Why did banning alcohol require a Constitutional Amendment, but banning other drugs just needed an Act of Congress?

1293 upvotes • BigMetalHoobajoob

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In a lot of Napoleonic era historical fiction, British sailors often say they spot a French or Spanish ship by the "cut of her jib" or "cut of her sails." Just how different were the French and Spanish sails cuts from British sail cuts and when did this difference become apparent on their warships?

1293 upvotes • NikKerk

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Why did 1993 Battle of Mogadishu with 18 US casualties elicit rather dramatic domestic political response, just two years after 1991 Desert Storm, which allegedly was expected to inflict thousands of casualties?

1293 upvotes • AyukaVB

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Was there any concern in the US government that the Enola Gay could have been shot down before bombing Hiroshima, and that the atomic bomb could fall into the hands of the Japanese?

1292 upvotes • leopold_s

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What sort of humour was popular in the late Middle Ages?

1292 upvotes • GrittyBeardy

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The Great Pyramids were ancient even to Cleopatra, what did the later Egyptians know about them and was it fairly accurate?

1291 upvotes • Natdaprat

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Title	Upvotes	Author	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
When two populations that don't share a language meet, how did they typically learn to understand each other?	1295	_pm_your_butthole_
Being just under a hundred years after the end of the civil war, did any former slaves live to see or take part in the civil rights movement?	1294	Mithcanal2
Iran is almost three times the size of France. It's got mountains, deserts, and freezing winters. In WWII, the Allies took it in six days. What the hell happened?	1294	KidCharlemagneII
Before electricity, were people as sleep-deprived as we are now?	1293	ladybirdbeetle
Why did banning alcohol require a Constitutional Amendment, but banning other drugs just needed an Act of Congress?	1293	BigMetalHoobajoob
In a lot of Napoleonic era historical fiction, British sailors often say they spot a French or Spanish ship by the "cut of her jib" or "cut of her sails." Just how different were the French and Spanish sails cuts from British sail cuts and when did this difference become apparent on their warships?	1293	NikKerk
Why did 1993 Battle of Mogadishu with 18 US casualties elicit rather dramatic domestic political response, just two years after 1991 Desert Storm, which allegedly was expected to inflict thousands of casualties?	1293	AyukaVB
Was there any concern in the US government that the Enola Gay could have been shot down before bombing Hiroshima, and that the atomic bomb could fall into the hands of the Japanese?	1292	leopold_s
What sort of humour was popular in the late Middle Ages?	1292	GrittyBeardy
The Great Pyramids were ancient even to Cleopatra, what did the later Egyptians know about them and was it fairly accurate?	1291	Natdaprat