AskHistorians

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Caesar plunged the Republic into civil war to prevent facing prosecution. Was this because he was unquestionably guilty of potential charges, because the system was so corrupt that he couldn't hope to get a fair trial, because he couldn't leave his fate in others' hands, or for another reason?	1
Most Confederate monuments were erected in the 1890s or later; was this reflective of changing attitudes towards the Civil War? As of 2017 per the Washington Post, almost 10% of them were in former Union states, are there theories why this is?	1
Were the scientists and politicians involved with the Manhattan Project aware that it'd be as devastating as it proved to be? Were they aware that it'd permanently alter the geopolitical landscape? Did any of them express reservations about giving any nation that much power?	1
Was Socrates the earliest conscientious objector we're familiar with?	1
I've heard that 'Jaws' was the first modern blockbuster, changing how movies were marketed and whose dollars the studios were chasing (from adults as the primary audience to teenagers); was this really the case? Was it immediately apparent that something had changed? Is this overstating its impact?	1
What sort of training/education did Cicero require in order to practice law in Rome?	1
How was Gandhi affected by his time spent in civil service in South Africa? Did it influence his political philosophy?	1
How did Augustus's Cohortes urbanae operate? Were their loyalties to the city, or the man? Did their duties extend beyond 'crowd control'? How were they recruited?	1
Had any politicians used 'friendly journalists' to undermine their political opposition before Jefferson did with Callender?	1
The Roman pantheon seems to roughly correspond with the Greek one (Jupiter is comparable to Zeus, Neptune is comparable to Poseidon, etc); were they in fact related? Did the Roman pantheon derive from the Greek one, or was the relationship somehow different? How is Apollo is present in both?	1

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