askhistorians

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Why was the loss of three legions at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest so devastating to the Roman military when the Romans had lost far more troops during previous wars, when the empire was smaller? Why did it bring Roman expansion into northern Europe to a halt?	9
After the Nationals lost the Chinese Civil War and retreated to Taiwan in 1949, did observers think they'd be able to hold off the Communists for 72 years? Why did it take mainland China so long to build the capacity to take the island?	9
When did the "siege engine revolution," that allowed catapults, ballistae, and other machines to evolve from man killer to fort and city taker get going? How did this change warfare?	9
Is "revolution" an accurate description of what the 13 colonies did? Wasn't it — compared to the French Revolution or the Chinese Communist Revolution — more of an incremental step-up?	9
The Alien and Seditions acts seem like obvious violations of the US constitution. Why didn't John Adams realize this, and why didn't the supreme court quickly strike them down?	9
How free were Warsaw Pact countries? Did they have a lot of freedom to set internal policy, or were they mostly taking orders from the Soviet Union?	9
Martin Luther King is seen as a hero by almost everyone, but how popular was he during his major campaigns and at the end of his life?	9
To get around food rationing during World War II, a black market for flour, sugar, meat, coffee, and other goods sprang up. Where were these black marketeers sourcing their goods from? Where did Americans shop for these otherwise-rationed foods? Did people think black market food was moral?	9
When my grandfather was a child it was expected that Catholics would eat one meal a day during the 40 days of lent. Today, there are only two days like that — Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. When and why did Catholics largely abandon their fasting tradition when Greek Orthodox Christians kept theirs?	9
Do we have records of premodern people describing seasonal affective disorder or rainy-day blues?	9

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