AskHistorians

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Why is it that in the HBO show, Rome, people begged for grain, but wouldnt they need to pay to have it milled or processed? Why wasn't flour for example asked for instead?	191
In the Medici TV show, Christian places of worship are frequently shown empty and offer the characters solitude. Would these places instead be empty in reality? Would people use the grand spaces for begging/kids run around/people meet together etc?	27
How realistic is the concept of sleeper agents as a whole to gain secrets, and separately the idea that a codeword can "awaken" sleeper agents. Grounded in reality or total fiction?	7
During the second triumvirate, what was the soldiers experience when they deserted from one roman general to the other such as from Antony to Octavius/Augustus? Was there any formal or brotherly connection between legions regardless of their leader?	6
in the 1800s how would provisions be packed or carried on a particularly well financed voyage? Do Meats stay whole and on hooks or cut up and put in a box with tons of salt? Fruits just in a crate or stored in paper bags?	5
Rulers in history have improved their economy thru varied initiatives but seem to always include something on curbing corruption. How have we verified such claims of success such as for Anastasius from the Byzantine empire in 500 CE?	5
Why was King Louis X of France so "progressive" in terms of abolishing slavery and readmitting Jews to France compared to other monarchs before and after him?	3
Vikings landing in britannia have a lot of myth, but what about vikings making it all the way to Italy? How did this route even come about and what happened to the lands between Italy and the north?	3
What was it like being sent to the Crusades as part of a levy? How did so many people across different European cultures become a coordinated fighting force in a totally different land?	3
The Game of Thrones TV series features a Lord correcting a lowborn who says, "My Lord," instead of saying, "Milord." "Milord" is for lowborn to Lord, whereas "My Lord" is Lord to Lord. Was there an actual distinction in real history? What other phrases are meant for only upperclass individuals?	3

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