/u/BigBootyBear's posts in /r/askhistorians

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Why is old writing (pre 20th century) so tedious and hard to follow?

2809 upvotes

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Why did the aristocracy bother themselves with so much war when their life was already comfortable?

2343 upvotes

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In "The Red Queen" it is mentioned that many medieval men had trouble finding women to marry, sometimes marrying only in their late 30's, because many young females were hired as the "help" in castles. To what extent was polygamy practiced in medieval Europe?

2057 upvotes

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Most gamers know that spearmen beat cavalry, cavalry beats archers, and archers beat spearmen. Is there any truth to that "rock paper scissors" theme in medieval warfare?

667 upvotes

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How come the Netherlands managed to pull their weight versus Europe's superpowers with a population of a measly 1.5 million?

157 upvotes

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If raw milk is so dangerous, how come people drank it and ate dairy before pasteurization was invented in the 19th century?

120 upvotes

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Mental illness existed since the dawn of time, but not psychology. Why?

34 upvotes

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Why did John Green call inflation "History's most underrated force"?

34 upvotes

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How did prehistoric hunter gatherers survive long fasting periods without replenishing their electrolytes?

22 upvotes

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Why did Philip The Fair (or any king for that matter) debase the coinage to fund his wars?

16 upvotes

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Title	Upvotes	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
Why is old writing (pre 20th century) so tedious and hard to follow?	2809
Why did the aristocracy bother themselves with so much war when their life was already comfortable?	2343
In "The Red Queen" it is mentioned that many medieval men had trouble finding women to marry, sometimes marrying only in their late 30's, because many young females were hired as the "help" in castles. To what extent was polygamy practiced in medieval Europe?	2057
Most gamers know that spearmen beat cavalry, cavalry beats archers, and archers beat spearmen. Is there any truth to that "rock paper scissors" theme in medieval warfare?	667
How come the Netherlands managed to pull their weight versus Europe's superpowers with a population of a measly 1.5 million?	157
If raw milk is so dangerous, how come people drank it and ate dairy before pasteurization was invented in the 19th century?	120
Mental illness existed since the dawn of time, but not psychology. Why?	34
Why did John Green call inflation "History's most underrated force"?	34
How did prehistoric hunter gatherers survive long fasting periods without replenishing their electrolytes?	22
Why did Philip The Fair (or any king for that matter) debase the coinage to fund his wars?	16