AskHistorians

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I've heard that in medieval warfare, the nobility of enemy nations would intentionally fight in a way so as to not seriously hurt each other, but that common soldiers were 'fair game.' Is there any truth to this? How much protection did nobles have under the medieval rules of engagement?	653
A swinging pendulum with a bladed head (typically slowly descending toward someone strapped to a table) is a cliché of dungeons and death traps. How was the pendulum popularised as a means of fantastical execution, and is there an explanation for its commonality in modern gothic/fantasy fiction?	195
What was the origin of a moustache-twirling villain leaving a woman tied up on train tracks?	128
Why did the Democratic Party seemingly have so much support on the West Coast before the American Civil War?	9
How did life change for the Greek upper class once they were conquered by the Romans in 146 BCE?	8
In the early to mid-Twentieth Century, how did American Presidential candidates receive results on election night?	7
Why was the Social Credit Party of New Zealand generally left wing, when the other Social Credit parties in the British Commonwealth were generally right wing?	7
What was the relationship like between Robert Kennedy and Ted Kennedy when they were both serving in the Senate (1965-1968)?	6
Why did the French surrealist art movement support the Communist Party in the 1930s when socialist realism was mandated as the only acceptable art form of the Soviet Union?	5
Delaware voted for the Federalist presidential candidate in every election there was one, and a Federalist was elected governor even after the party had officially dissolved. Why was the Federalist Party so strong and long-lasting in Delaware?	3

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