AskHistorians

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When the romans were importing grain from Egypt (circa 75 BCE) who were they actually buying it from? What was the supply chain between a farm on the banks of the Nile, and a port in Italy?	292
250 years ago did the British royal family ever get a lack of respect from the other crowned heads of Europe for their willingness to let parliament run things rather than ruling themselves like the Russian or French monarchies did?	289
Why do we say that "china" broke up and reformed several times in the last 2000 years? why don't we say several totally different countries successively emerged and collapsed in north east Asia over the last 2000 years?	286
In HBO Rome there's a bit where a character cracks his skull in a fight and a doctor puts a metal plate in his head to fix it. Did the Romans really do surgery that sophisticated? If "yes" what were the survival rates like?	282
how historically accurate is Argo's opening narration about why the Iranian revolution happened?	281
Wikipedia says that Roman Republic wiped out the Samnites in 88BC. Does that mean they just killed all their leaders, or does it mean they actually killed everyone (IE Ethnic Cleansing as we understand it today)?	279
In Pompeii there are poltical slogans written on the walls. Does that mean democracy continued outside the capital even after the fall of the republic? If "yes" how long did it last?	278
You know that famous story about the WW1 trench soldiers spontaneously calling a truce around Christmas 1914. Why didn't either the English or German high comand court-martial any of the men involved?	270
In The Wind Rises (Hayao Miyazaki movie set in 1920s & 1930s japan) an aeronautical engineer constantly complains about how Japan is behind the west technologically. 90 years ago did Japanese people really believe that about their country? Is “yes” was the sentiment at all justified?	270
Do any of the Viking Sagas describe the weapons, tools & dress of the natives they encountered in North America? If “yes” are these descriptions consistent with what later (post-Columbian) European explorers would find in (what is now) Eastern Canada?	266

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