askhistorians

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Why did “Jesus” become a popular given name in the Spanish-speaking world while remaining almost unheard-of in other historically Christian societies?	3654
How militarily important were Patriot militia forces the American Revolution? A popular narrative portrays the war as a victory of persistent and wily citizen-riflemen against a professional military, but how accurate is this?	950
There are two contrasting narratives about the Crusades: one is that they were naked aggression by proto-coloniast Christendom, and the other being that they were defensive campaigns provoked by Islamic military expansionism. What factual merit do each of these claims contain?	386
Game of Thrones has got me wondering about real medieval armies. What percentage of large European armies were conscripts, and what proportion were professional soldiers? And how long could a society maintain “full” mobilization?	242
Czar Nicholas II and his wife Empress Alexandra wrote letters to each other in English. Why did they use English rather than Russian, Alexandra’s native German, or French? And would it have been unusual for Continental nobility of that era to know English fluently?	241
I am a native English speaker with a hypothetical time machine. How far back in time in England can I go and still communicate intelligibly with the locals?	193
John Adams’ daughter was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy. How well understood was cancer in the early 19th century?	146
I’m a middle class homeowner in colonial-era Pennsylvania. A large nest of yellow jackets has formed within the walls of my house. Do any professional extermination services exist, or do I have to deal with this on my own?	79
Did German officers in WW2 “pull strings” or engage in any scheming to avoid serving on the Eastern Front?	74
How did the concept of officership, and the differentiation between officer and enlisted, evolve in Western militaries?	63

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