askhistorians

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Who was Sun Tzu writing for? Given that Art of War gives strategic principles in what are necessarily adversarial circumstances, how did it become widely circulated? Would that not have been disadvantageous to those who inherited his advice?	8527
Jesus was raised Jewish; what was Mohammed raised? How did Islam acquire its traditional respect for 'people of the Book'?	6784
Switzerland had an impressive military history up until the early 16th century, at which point they adopted their famous neutrality. What caused them to adopt this stance, and how have they been able to maintain it through 500 years of European wars?	6171
The Mongol Empire was much more recent than Rome; why do we know so much less about it? Was there a difference in how literate the societies were, did the Mongols prize secrecy, am I betraying western biases, or is it something else?	5426
How long after the rise of Augustus did it take the average citizen of Rome to realize that they no longer lived in a Republic? Would it be clearer to patricians than it was to equestrians or plebs? Were there any expressions of dissent, and if so, what were the consequences for the dissenter?	4870
In Gangs of New York, there's a scene where Irish immigrants disembark the boat they traveled to America on, sign one paper giving them citizenship, and another enlisting them in the Union army. Were new immigrants enlisted this easily? Did this affect immigration?	4850
For centuries, the Malleus Maleficarum was second only to the Bible in sales. Who was buying it? Up to that time, the church appears to have been skeptical of claims of magic or witchcraft, and the author had been dismissed as senile and crazy; what led to its widespread acceptance and promulgation?	4584
Coca-cola largely removed the cocaine from its formula in 1903, more than a decade before it was made illegal- why did they do it? Were there negative associations with cocaine at the time? How did its removal affect the drink's popularity?	4574
As I understand it, the earliest Christians expected Jesus to return imminently, or at least within their lifetime. How was the Church able to handle it, and even grow exponentially, when this didn't happen? At what point was this no longer the predominant expectation of new converts?	4540
'Michael' was the most popular boys name in the US every year except one from 1954 to 1998; is it normal for one name to be so popular for so long? Are there any theories behind its popularity, or why it faded?	4372

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