askhistorians

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Are we really that much more promiscuous now than in the 1700s or 1800s? It just seems like I've heard a lot of stories about royalty and high profile people of then dabbling in a lot of affairs.	205
I learned recently that Alexander the Great led his army from the front line of the front line of the battle field. How uncommon was that at the time? Are there other generals in history who did that?	40
How, why, and when did apprenticeships get replaced by college degrees?	4
What percentage of soldiers in the American Civil War were drafted and what percent went by their free choice?	3
I've noticed there are a lot of stories in which someone sells their soul to Satan. Which one was the first? Tried to google the answer to no avail.	3
I've seen a lot of movies/ video games where a passage way of some sort has a riddle on it, the answer of which reveals how to get in. Is there anything like this in real life?	3
So how the heck did we figure out which mushrooms/vegetables/weren't poisonous? Are there records of curios people dying just to find out what something taste like? Is there any food we didn't know was edible until way later because no one tried it?	2
My dad tells me in the 1940s/1950s that many people considered the electric guitar "the devils instrument." What are some other instances throughout history in which people associated specific instruments and music genres with the devil/immorality?	2
So is the typical classical score we see today the only standard notation of music or were there other civilizations prior who had their own?	2
I've noticed in different cultures when a man impregnates a woman out of wedlock, it's considered the honorable thing to marry her and provide for her and the child. Has this always been a widespread belief? Where did it come from?	1

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