askhistorians

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Eight of the first nine colleges in America were founded in the North, and it took nearly 100 years after the first Southern college (William & Mary) was founded before another was founded in the South. What factors led to this large disparity between the regions?	37
Was the "angry mob with pitchforks and torches" an actual phenomenon in Europe, or was it purely an invention of popular culture?	36
How did the Romans react to the fall of the Parthian Empire to the Sasanians? Did they particularly care that their historically greatest enemy had been destroyed, or were the Sasanians simply viewed as "Persia under new management"?	35
Did a Byzantine Emperor really have a heart attack upon being referred to as a "King" rather than an "Emperor"?	34
Portugal captured the African city of Ceuta in 1415, over 75 years before the end of the Iberian Reconquista. Why did Portugal choose to expand into Africa rather than focus their military efforts on the significant remaining Muslim Iberian holdings?	33
The Kingdom of Judah had been under Assyrian vassalage for years, and even entered an alliance with Egypt. Why then was the story of the Exodus written to have the Israelites as slaves to Egypt, rather than Assyrian rulers?	32
How "independent" were the Crusader States in the Levant? Were they fully autonomous entities, or more akin to a proto-colony ruled by European kingdoms?	30
How did Bohemia, a Slavic nation of Czech speakers, become so heavily integrated into the Germanic Holy Roman Empire?	30
Why did no European country attempt to colonize Liberia during the Scramble for Africa?	29
The construction of the Interstate Highway System is said to have revolutionized car travel in the United States. To what degree is this accurate? If someone in 1950 wanted to drive from New York to Los Angeles, or Miami to Seattle, would that have been particularly difficult to do?	29

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