AskHistorians

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How did the United States of America arrive at their valuation of Greenland in 1946? Could the area have been worth the cost of purchase in terms of economic output, or was the value purely strategic?	113
What were the logistical realities of being in West Berlin during the Cold War? Were those successful in crossing the Berlin wall from the East really safe, considering they were still surrounded on every side by East Germany? How could you access West Berlin from West Germany?	111
Why did Cyrus the Great suddenly decide to release the Jews from Babylon, install them back in Jerusalem and build them a new temple to a God he didn't even believe in? It seems bizarrely altruistic, what was his real agenda?	109
In which practical and specific ways did the House of Saud promote the Wahhabist school of Sunni Islam as orthodoxy around the world during the 20th century?	106
The missionary strategy of the 16th Century Portuguese Archbishopric of Goa in India is described as 'some of the most confrontational and destructive in Christian history'. What exactly were Catholic agents doing in the region?	79
Albania appear to have joined the US-led Olympic boycott of 1980, the USSR-led boycott of 1984, and then AGAIN boycotted the games in 1988. What were they up to?	77
Mussolini thought many societal ills in Italy were caused by pasta and so championed rice instead, even pushing a National Risotto Day. Is this a well liked Italian legend, or is it based in reality?	76
The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco claims that Pope John and his allies endorsed art depicting Jesus with purses and coins to challenge the Franciscan assertions of apostolic poverty, even giving the crucified Christ a money pouch. Does this have a basis in reality?	74
Why does Matthew call Jesus 'Emmanuel' if his name was 'Yeshua'? We're all sorts of names being used interchangeably?	74
Today the leaders of the Eastern and Western churches have met for the first time in nearly 1000 years. Why did the attempts at healing the schism, at Lyon in 1274 and Florence in 1439, previously fail? A similar proposed meeting between John Paul II and Alexy II likewise collapsed?	72

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