askhistorians

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Historian Pekka Hämäläinen claims that it was the decentralized nature of North American native societies that brought Spanish expansion to a halt, and that the Natives won as often as they lost when confronting Europeans. Is this accurate?	117
When put on trial, Socrates refused to fake-weep and performatively bemoan that his children and wife would be left destitute without him. But they were after he was forced to drink Hemlock. Did Socrates's rich friends, like Plato, step in to support them?	115
Aristotle, Plato, and Marcus Aurelius mention the ideas of the philosopher Heraclitus with great respect. Today, only a few fragments of his work survive. Did the ancient Greeks and Romans who appreciated him have access to a greater body of his work than we do today?	114
After Rome had already gone crazy for all things Greek, it got obsessed again with the Second Sophistic in the 1st century, and then again with the Third Sophistic in the 5th. What explains this renewal of obsession with Greek culture? What new was there to be exposed to/interested in?	113
In the Odyssey, Helen of Troy recounts her passionate love affair with Paris while her husband Menelaus looks on without anger or a sense of betrayal. He admires her. "The gods made me do it," seemed a sufficient excuse. Would such an excuse have ever really flown in antiquity, historically?	112
The US president is commander-in-chief and can issue orders to the military. But traditionally, a vote of Congress was required to declare war. Where did control of the military lay at the beginning of the republic, and how has it changed in the modern era?	111
The Verona Arena is in shockingly good condition, and is still used for plays and operas 1,991 years after its completion. How was it so well preserved when most contemporary Roman amphitheaters are in ruins?	110
Greeks and Romans lionized Achilles for choosing a short life and eternal fame over a long forgettable one. but in the Odyssey, Achilles's ghost says he made a huge mistake. Did the Greeks and Romans just ignore this admission?	110
Texas's Lt. Governor has as much or more power as it's Governor. How did the state end up with this situation?	109
When Hadrian's young lover Antinous died, the emperor, mad with grief, had him deified. Temples and cities were erected in his honor, and he was worshiped through the Roman empire. To what degree was Antinous embranced, and how long did worship and commemoration last after the emperor died?	107

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