askhistorians

Title	Upvotes	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
How did the lion, native to Africa, come to be the symbol on English heraldry?	168
If early European Americans were largely at war with Native American Indians, why go through all the trouble of importing slaves all the way from Africa? Why not just raid a nearby Indian tribe and enslave them?	102
The last I can find about the Peacock Throne is that it was looted in 1739. It puzzles me that this unbelievably expensive item would have outright vanished with nobody looking for it since. Have there been expeditions or other attempts to rediscover it?	71
When and why did the standard outfit for Catholic priests take form (black shirt, small white clerical collar, black pants)?	69
The Goonies got me to wondering -- was there ever any actual piracy along America's Pacific coast? If so, what was it like?	66
Why did Americans set up their government to so strongly avoid the word "Ministry," which is a norm in European government agencies?	61
What was life like for American Indians that had had coup counted on them? Was it a disgrace? A "meh" event? Did it reflect on their bravery or prowess as warriors?	37
It's Medieval Europe and my son has just been married off, but the bride's family (for whatever reason) doesn't pay the dowry. Now what? Can the marriage be annulled? Do the courts intervene? How is justice enforced?	20
If a Pueblo kiva was a pit dug into the ground, often flush with the surrounding earth, with sticks layered to form a roof, how was it not flooded all the time?	15
If Romans relied upon local forces as auxiliaries, what language would be used on the battlefield? Were front-line soldiers required to learn Latin or were orders relayed through translators (and at what point in the chain)?	15

« < > »