Kobbett
Kobbett t1_j9yxzpw wrote
Reply to comment by claudecardinal in Weekly History Questions Thread. by AutoModerator
You might get cheques or letters of credit trading between European ports, banking had advanced that much by then. But ships trading with distant countries took gold or silver (depending on what was most valued) to pay for cargo, if they couldn't pay from sales of the goods they sold on the outbound journey. Crew would be payed when the ship docked, sometimes they'd only get their full pay when the ship reached its home port.
Kobbett t1_j9vm66b wrote
Reply to comment by raviolijr in Weekly History Questions Thread. by AutoModerator
Opium was unregulated in Britain until about 1862, when sales were restricted to pharmacies only. Serious regulation didn't happen until 1920 when sales of opiates required approval by a doctor.
Kobbett t1_j7cznx9 wrote
Reply to comment by InfluenceSafe9077 in Weekly History Questions Thread. by AutoModerator
They picked an Irishman to play Cromwell (Richard Harris) which I thought was a bit of a bad decision, all things considered. Not a movie I remember well enough to answer in detail though.
Kobbett t1_j1j6zvs wrote
Reply to comment by getBusyChild in Simple/Short/Silly History Questions Saturday! by AutoModerator
I believe he claimed later that he intentionally delayed the German project, but from the transcripts recorded while a held as a prisoner after the war he didn't believe an atomic bomb was practical anyway, and was surprised when he heard the news of the bombs dropped on Japan.
Kobbett t1_j0n704w wrote
Reply to comment by Gerasans in Simple/Short/Silly History Questions Saturday! by AutoModerator
Decimal currencies make things much easier for accounting reasons - so much simpler to total the columns. Earlier currencies might vary the coin values depending on the value of the different metals used.
Until 1971 Britain's coinage (in pennies) would have been 1,3,6,12,24,30,60,240 and 252 for the Guinea, which was no longer a minted coin by then, but was - and still is - used for certain transactions.
Kobbett t1_ivv9ob3 wrote
Reply to comment by PoorMeImInMarketing in Simple/Short/Silly History Questions Saturday! by AutoModerator
Mortain might be suitable. Part of German occupied France until 3rd august 1944, recaptured during the 7th-13th during Operation Lüttich, then finally in Allied control.
Kobbett t1_irhzq2e wrote
Reply to comment by Bayley78 in Simple/Short/Silly History Questions Saturday! by AutoModerator
>The word "corvée" itself has its origins in Rome, and reached the English language via France. In the Late Roman Empire the citizens performed opera publica in lieu of paying taxes; often it consisted of road and bridge work. Roman landlords could also demand a number of days' labour from their tenants, and also from the freedmen; in the latter case the work was called opera officialis. In Medieval Europe, the tasks that serfs or villeins were required to perform on a yearly basis for their lords were called opera riga. Plowing and harvesting were principal activities to which this work was applied. In times of need, the lord could demand additional work called opera corrogata (Latin corrogare, "to requisition"). This term evolved into coroatae, then corveiae, and finally corvée, and the meaning broadened to encompass both the regular and exceptional tasks.
Kobbett t1_iqy3zcd wrote
Reply to comment by lego_office_worker in TIL a German scientist named Alfred Wegener was ridiculed in 1912 for advancing the idea that the continents were adrift. Ridiculed as having “wandering pole plague.” or “Germanic pseudo-science” and accused Wegener of toying with the evidence to spin himself into “a state of auto-intoxication." by Hot----------Dog
Often quoted as "Science progresses one funeral at a time".
Kobbett t1_ja2nsjt wrote
Reply to comment by MabsAMabbin in Weekly History Questions Thread. by AutoModerator
There's a 1390 English cook book that's survived, The Forme of Cury.