askhistorians

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What did people in ancient and medieval times use to learn foreign languages?	13
In 1841, a Russian Orthodox mission in Beijing translated a letter by Lord Palmerston, the British Foreign Secretary, into written Chinese for the Daoguang Emperor. Where and how would these missionaries have gained a working knowledge of English?	13
How far were elephants actually effective in ancient battles as opposed to just a bit of an expensive gimmick with a tendency to backfire more often than not?	13
In 1997, Egon Krenz, the last leader of East Germany, was jailed for six and a half years on manslaughter charges. Why did Krenz's prosecution come so late after reunification, and was it at all typical for former senior members of the Socialist Unity Party to be charged in post-unification Germany?	13
What was the political status of the Isle of Man in the 11th century?	13
The last Vietnamese dynasty, the Nguyễns, apparently came to power after an event known as the Tây Sơn Rebellion. What was this rebellion, and how did the Nguyễn dynasty come to emerge from it?	13
The Safavid empire in Iran was unusual in having Shi'a Islam as its state religion, while surrounded by Sunni states (the Ottomans, the Mughals and Bukhara). Why was Shi'a Islam so prominent in Iran, and how did the Savafid state manage to avoid being overrun by its Sunni neighbours?	13
AskHistorians Podcast Episode 222: 'The Sudbury Devil' with Atun-Shei Films	13
Finland famously did disproportionately well against the USSR in the Winter War of 1939-40, but why exactly did the USSR invade Finland?	13
One of the major consequences of the Sino-Soviet Split that began in the 1960s was that Vietnam aligned with the USSR rather than its neigbour, the PRC, leading to significant Sino-Vietnamese rivalry. But did any of the Soviet satellite states in Europe attempt to align with China during the split?	13

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