[guide.chat] rationing world war two
- From: vanessa <qwerty1234567a@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: "GUIDE CHAT" <guide.chat@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 18 Jan 2012 12:29:07 -0000
World War Two Rationing in Britain
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During the Second World War, (1939-45), there were a lot of shortages of
essential foodstuffs, not just luxuries. Supplies started to become short and
some items impossible to obtain, especially imported goods such as tea,
bananas, oranges and grapes. It was to be six or seven years before any of
those fruits were seen again. Then butter, lard, sweets, cakes, flour and sugar
became hard to get too, followed by meat and fish.
Ration Books
Ration books were issued to each person containing tokens which could be saved
up or used at the owner's discretion. The shopkeeper would remove the tokens
before he issued the goods.
There were different kinds of ration books. The most common was the
buff-coloured one. These were issued to adults and school-age children. Green
books were issued to expectant mothers as they had extra tokens. The possession
of this book would 'give away' the woman's secret. People were much more
private about their personal circumstances in those days, and a pregnancy
outside of wedlock was considered scandalous.
The tokens had no monetary value, they were merely a means of ensuring that
everybody got a fair share of what was available, and to try to prevent
stockpiling.
The tokens were for food, and later, also for clothing.
It was on 8 January, 1940 (four months after the war started), that food
rationing came into force.
To start with, the rations were (per person per week):
Butter or lard: 4 ounces (113.4 grammes)
Sugar: 12 ounces (340.2 grammes)
Raw bacon or Ham: 4 ounces (113.4 grammes)
Eggs x2
Cooked bacon or Ham: 3.5 ounces (99.3 grammes)
Meat rationing started 11 March, 1940.
Shortages
As the war went on, bread became in short supply. Queues would form outside
shops very early in the morning because even if people had coupons, there was
no guarantee that shops would have sufficient bread for everyone. Rumours would
circulate that a certain shop was expecting a supply of butter or meat and
immediately women would form a queue outside that shop. Many shops opened for
only two or three days a week because of food shortages.
Clothing
Eventually coupons became necessary for clothes. This affected women more than
men because they couldn't get silk stockings (there was no nylon nor any tights
back then). The ingenious women did all sorts of things to make it look as if
they were wearing silk stockings - like staining their legs with tea, a mixture
of sand and water, or even a thin mixture of gravy colouring; and then making a
line down the back of their legs with eye liner - to look like a stocking seam!
Patches were sewn on the elbows to make jumpers1, cardigans and jackets last
longer. These became quite fashionable and popular. Special clothing, such as a
bridal gown and bridesmaids' dresses, would be passed around a family to be
worn again, rather than using up the precious clothes coupons.
Bartering became a way of life, and there was an illegal black market.
Exceptions
Pregnant women were allowed more food tokens.
Nursing mothers were allowed more milk.
Infants up to one year were included in their mother's green book.
Children aged one year to five years - mothers of these children sometimes had
'extras', a few extra vegetables or a cracked egg, slipped into their shopping
baskets by kindly shopkeepers.
Children aged over 5 years had their own books of tokens.
End of Rationing
Rationing did not end with the war. It was years before the country was rebuilt
and life got back to normal. Some things like sweets were still on ration in
1953.
Quote from a schoolgirl during the war:
I remember my uncle fetching back some bananas when he came home on leave. He
gave me one and I took it to school. Everyone crowded around me and my teacher
showed it to the whole class. It seemed like a priceless treasure. I was a very
popular girl that day. Everyone wanted me to open it and eat it, but I
wouldn't. I took it back home with me and left it till it went black, but it
still smelled so good. Even now I can't smell ripe bananas without evoking that
memory.
from
Vanessa The Google Girl.
my skype name is rainbowstar123
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