askhistorians

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Was Joan of Arc's veneration in the Anglican church just a rubber stamp because the Catholics did it, or was she considered separately there?	88
Shortly after the Warren commission's report was released, almost 90% of the American public believed in its findings, but by the mid-1970s Gallup found over 80% of Americans believed the Kennedy assassination was the result of a conspiracy; what factors led to such a dramatic change in ten years?	88
The 1918 Spanish flu appears to have originated in an Army base in Kansas, where it spread to troops deploying overseas, perhaps killing as many as died in either world war. Have any other pandemics started in the w hemisphere? Germ theory was understood; why did it strike so hard?	88
Catholic tradition holds that St Thomas emigrated to India, where he preached the gospel before he died. How successful was he in gaining converts, and did any remnants of the early christian community in India survive into modern times?	85
At what point was sailing beyond the sight of land no longer considered crazy-dangerous? Was there a technological breakthrough that made it possible? Were the Vikings just dramatically ahead of the rest of Europe in terms of ability?	84
In HBO's Rome, a character quits his legion after Caesar marches on Rome. Would a Roman legionary really be able to quit without facing consequences? Would his time served affect this? If he did face consequences, what would they be?	84
In Henry IV part 2, Shakespeare portrays Henry's deathbed advice to Prince Hal as "If you want to unite the country, start a foreign war". Was there a national identity to appeal to in Henry's time (or even Shakespeare's)? Would this appeal be to unite the nobility, commoners or both?	83
As I understand it, Marcus Aurelius's Meditations were personal reflections intended to help himself rather than a work he intended to be made public; how is it they came to be compiled and published?	83
Moses was attributed as the author of the first five books of the Bible; at what point did scholars realize this probably wasn't true? Were any of the earliest five books written by the same author?	82
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?	82

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