askhistorians

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Was the transcontinental railroad in the US mostly single track? Why do I always see pics of laborers digging tunnels for just one track?	48
Why and when did the three-part naming convention of the Latin Roman Republic and Empire fade to the two-part naming convention of the later Greek-oriented Byzantine Roman Empire?	48
To what extent did average union soldiers realize and appreciate that they were fighting to free people from slavery in the civil war? Was it a goal they were fervent about, or a conflict thrust upon them that they didn't care about?	48
Catholics and Protestants slaughtered each other by the thousand in 16th century France. Were there factions promoting full-throated religious pluralism at the time to avoid the ruinous civil wars? Were these ideas totally alien at the time, or well known but ignored?	47
Swan Lake is considered a quintessential ballet, but its original performance and several revival attempts were critically panned and only modestly profitable. Tchaikovsky died without realizing he'd crafted an enduring classic. How did subsequent revivals catapult it to fame?	47
The rediscovery of Lucretius's, "De Rerum Natura" helped shape the Renaissance. In a single poem, Lucretius deduces the existence of atoms, pulls the rug out from under the idea of gods, and explains a philosophy built around beauty, pleasure & reason. Was it considered as seminal during antiquity?	47
Why did the Mediterranean switch from shipping and storing food, liquids, and trade goods in amphorae during antiquity to barrels in the medieval period. Why did barrels suddenly become so attractive?	46
Why did Poland become so powerful in the 1400s, and what caused its decline into a third-rate power fought over by expansionist neighbors?	46
Were chopsticks traditionally used by poor Asian peasants in the countryside, or only those living in cities?	46
In ancient Rome, freed slaves were of very low status. But the Byzantine emperor Alexius employed a freed Turkish slave named Tatikios as a general, and trusted him with important military operations. Had the stigma of being a slave vanished by this time?	46

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