EVERYBODY’S WAR
During both world wars the British Isles were under attack, which meant that the civilian population as a whole, as well as the soldiers fighting overseas, found themselves in some ways 'at the war front'.
"Zeppelin raids on London ... did have the effect of drawing everybody into the war."
World War I (the Great War) is usually remembered as mainly a soldiers' conflict - with six million men mobilised to fight overseas, and the number of military casualties very high compared to those of civilians - but nevertheless the Zeppelin raids on London in April 1915 did have the effect of drawing everybody into the war. And as it progressed, the entire nation’s population and resources were harnessed to the war effort in one way or another, so most people came to feel involved in the conflict.
ALCOHOL
The British government became concerned about the consumption of alcohol during the World War I. They feared that war production was being hampered by drunkenness. Other governments involved in the conflict were also worried about this problem. In August 1914 Tsar Nicholas II outlawed the production and sale of vodka. This involved the closing down of Russia's 400 state distilleries and 28,000 spirit shops. The measure was a complete failure, as people, unable to buy vodka, produced their own. The Russian government also suffered a 30% reduction in its tax revenue.
Attempts to reduce alcohol consumption were also made in Germany, Austria-Hungary, France and Italy. In Britain, David Lloyd George, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, led the campaign against alcohol. He had been told by shipbuilders and heads of war factories, that men's wages had gone up so much that they could earn in two or three days what would keep them in drink for a week. A Newcastle shipbuilder complained that double overtime on Sunday meant no attendance on Monday." In January 1915, Lloyd George told the Shipbuilding Employers Federation that Britain was "fighting German's, Austrians and Drink, and as far as I can see the greatest of these foes is Drink."
CURIOSITIES
During both world wars the British Isles were under attack, which meant that the civilian population as a whole, as well as the soldiers fighting overseas, found themselves in some ways 'at the war front'.
"Zeppelin raids on London ... did have the effect of drawing everybody into the war."
World War I (the Great War) is usually remembered as mainly a soldiers' conflict - with six million men mobilised to fight overseas, and the number of military casualties very high compared to those of civilians - but nevertheless the Zeppelin raids on London in April 1915 did have the effect of drawing everybody into the war. And as it progressed, the entire nation’s population and resources were harnessed to the war effort in one way or another, so most people came to feel involved in the conflict.
ALCOHOL
The British government became concerned about the consumption of alcohol during the World War I. They feared that war production was being hampered by drunkenness. Other governments involved in the conflict were also worried about this problem. In August 1914 Tsar Nicholas II outlawed the production and sale of vodka. This involved the closing down of Russia's 400 state distilleries and 28,000 spirit shops. The measure was a complete failure, as people, unable to buy vodka, produced their own. The Russian government also suffered a 30% reduction in its tax revenue.
Attempts to reduce alcohol consumption were also made in Germany, Austria-Hungary, France and Italy. In Britain, David Lloyd George, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, led the campaign against alcohol. He had been told by shipbuilders and heads of war factories, that men's wages had gone up so much that they could earn in two or three days what would keep them in drink for a week. A Newcastle shipbuilder complained that double overtime on Sunday meant no attendance on Monday." In January 1915, Lloyd George told the Shipbuilding Employers Federation that Britain was "fighting German's, Austrians and Drink, and as far as I can see the greatest of these foes is Drink."
CURIOSITIES
- When soldiers returned there was a baby boom in Britain. Births increased by 45% between 1918 and 1920
- By late 1916 the German meat ration was only 31% of peacetime, and it fell to 12% in late 1918
- In both Britain and France women accounted for around 36/7% of the industrial workforce by the end of the war
RATIONING DURING WORLD WAR I
In World War I some peasantry joined the army, leaving the country in shortage of workers of agricultural industry.
Adding to it, the wheat harvest of 1916 was lower than usual and the potato crop in Scotland and England failed. Food prices rapidly increased making some foodstuffs inacessible for many people.
The situation even worsened in 1917, Germany announced unrestricted submarine warfare. This meant that any British ship which imported food mainly from the United States could be sunk by German submarines at any time.
The English authorities established in 1917 the Women's Land Army, which provided voluntary work which added to the scheme of voluntary rationing was promoted on 1 February 1917, with the aim of reducing the consumption of food in short supplies, and to show how to avoid waste when cooking.
Shortages continued and although wealthier people could still afford food, malnutrition was seen in poor communities. To try to make things fairer and ensure that everyone received their fair share, the government introduced rationing in 1918.
Ration cards were issued and everyone had to register with a local butcher and grocer. The first item to be rationed was sugar in January 1918, but by the end of April meat, butter, cheese and margarine were added to the list. Some foods were still in short supply even after the war ended, for instance butter remained on ration until 1920.
IN ITALY
The inhabitants of the areas of the front,in the Venetian plain had to live for most of the war with the constant presence of the military. From May 1915 to October 1917, to the original two million civilians were added four million soldiers. This aspect of the World War I represented undoubtedly a problem for these civilians: the military machine was certainly cumbersome and soldiers, became stars of excesses and violence.
Many of them, when they came in the countries in the rear, had just passed quite a long time on the front line, in the middle of the trenches and in close contact with death. Stress, nervousness and desperation often pushed them to "blow off steam" , after returning to a life more or less normal.
In the middle of all this violence, however, there were also some cases of peaceful coexistence between civilians and military. Some families found themselves in their own homes to house the soldiers, to wash their uniforms and cook for them. Youngest guys found in some local women a mother figure, a safe haven from violence and horrors of war. Others, like doctors, nurses and auxiliary, settled a daily contact with the inhabitants of the country.
The soldiers found in the daily routine of the inhabitants a vision of peace.
In World War I some peasantry joined the army, leaving the country in shortage of workers of agricultural industry.
Adding to it, the wheat harvest of 1916 was lower than usual and the potato crop in Scotland and England failed. Food prices rapidly increased making some foodstuffs inacessible for many people.
The situation even worsened in 1917, Germany announced unrestricted submarine warfare. This meant that any British ship which imported food mainly from the United States could be sunk by German submarines at any time.
The English authorities established in 1917 the Women's Land Army, which provided voluntary work which added to the scheme of voluntary rationing was promoted on 1 February 1917, with the aim of reducing the consumption of food in short supplies, and to show how to avoid waste when cooking.
Shortages continued and although wealthier people could still afford food, malnutrition was seen in poor communities. To try to make things fairer and ensure that everyone received their fair share, the government introduced rationing in 1918.
Ration cards were issued and everyone had to register with a local butcher and grocer. The first item to be rationed was sugar in January 1918, but by the end of April meat, butter, cheese and margarine were added to the list. Some foods were still in short supply even after the war ended, for instance butter remained on ration until 1920.
IN ITALY
The inhabitants of the areas of the front,in the Venetian plain had to live for most of the war with the constant presence of the military. From May 1915 to October 1917, to the original two million civilians were added four million soldiers. This aspect of the World War I represented undoubtedly a problem for these civilians: the military machine was certainly cumbersome and soldiers, became stars of excesses and violence.
Many of them, when they came in the countries in the rear, had just passed quite a long time on the front line, in the middle of the trenches and in close contact with death. Stress, nervousness and desperation often pushed them to "blow off steam" , after returning to a life more or less normal.
In the middle of all this violence, however, there were also some cases of peaceful coexistence between civilians and military. Some families found themselves in their own homes to house the soldiers, to wash their uniforms and cook for them. Youngest guys found in some local women a mother figure, a safe haven from violence and horrors of war. Others, like doctors, nurses and auxiliary, settled a daily contact with the inhabitants of the country.
The soldiers found in the daily routine of the inhabitants a vision of peace.