[w0m]

It's moreso for when you spend time crafting the perfect command, and dont' want to repeat yourlself. Example..

find . -type d -print0 | sort -z | xargs --null -I '{}' du -sh '{}' | sort -h

Simple and clear; but history gives you the convenience to do find<C-R><CR> and having the command run with out parameter/typo verification.

[falcolas]

To be fair, if you've built the "perfect" command, it would serve you better to put it in a alias or shell script. That way it will move with you.