TOMMY'S DIET AND OFF-RATION EXTRAS ON THE WESTERN FRONT

[bierast]

On 22/02/2021 at 23:45, RegHannay said:

"This wholesale waste of food is one of the most stupendous things to dismay me. I have seen portions of trench parapets built out of unused corned beef tins.

I have seen heaps of biscuits rotting in many an old billet; while the amount of good wholesome food which daily finds its way to the incinerator is enough to satisfy any thinking person that we are a very amateurish army in more than one direction"

This would have horrified and astonished the Germans. Even before the food shortages brought on by the British blockade, captured corned beef was considered a delicacy. By 1918, when 'meatless days' were routine and the civilians on the home front were positively malnourished, the average Landser would have been quite prepared to kill or risk his life to get his hands on just one of these tins!

[RegHannay]

2 hours ago, bierast said:

This would have horrified and astonished the Germans. Even before the food shortages brought on by the British blockade, captured corned beef was considered a delicacy. By 1918, when 'meatless days' were routine and the civilians on the home front were positively malnourished, the average Landser would have been quite prepared to kill or risk his life to get his hands on just one of these tins!

Dangerous as well I would have thought. Anything  landing on that would have turned it into a huge shrapnel shell.

 

They would have been more horrified if they had known that one of their shells had a direct hit on the 'bully beef store' at the HQ of the West Kent's on 8th Jan 16!!

[Keith_history_buff]

   I am opening a thread on this topic in order to continue  a growing interest on the subject that is overflowing the bounds of the  "Postcards" thread.

Enthusiasts of marmalade  will find that topic well covered there.   I will kick it off  with a couple of general observations and examples-but hope anecdote, references, quotes from memoirs etc may gravitate here.

 

1)  The British Tommy  had access to  SOME variety of diet by use of his pay on other  items...

 

2)  Food from home....

 

3)  Food sourced locally .....

 

4)  Quartermasters Stores, company, regimental funds.

I don't have access to my copy at present, but Ilana R. Bet-El's "Conscripts" (ISBN 978-0-7509-2108-4) does make mention of the diet of the conscript being supplemented.

[Guest]

18 minutes ago, Keith_history_buff said:

I don't have access to my copy at present, but Ilana R. Bet-El's "Conscripts" (ISBN 978-0-7509-2108-4) does make mention of the diet of the conscript being supplemented.

 

    I am not sure what this reference is- I am aware that recruits of puny build could receive extra food- this would seem to most applicable to conscripts. In a volunteer system the army could refuse- hence all the stuff about poor quality of recruits in the aftermath of the Boer War. But conscription was a two-way Hobson's Choice- the conscript had no choice but to serve-the army no choice,effectively, but to accept him-Hence,the enormous manpower merry-go-rounds of 1917-1918 to move the marginally better and replace them with the marginally worse- of the latter, the army was not lacking.

 

     I think there is a good economic model in all of this.  Availabilty of foodtsuffs, titbits and treats was, effectively, controlled- as it took up shipping and rail freight capacity, it was allowed.  Hence, the price list, say, of army canteens reflects what could not be got on ration ( I note that plum and apple jam was not available to buy in the canteens-quel surprise). But stuff such as marmalade would have been available-at a price- and the prices seem to me to be geared a) To recover costs and b) To provide some element of choice within even the limited means of Tommy.  Let's use marmalade as an example - suppose it was on ration-then that would mean that everybody got it-and to provide for all troops even the smallest official ration was a huge and expensive task. Thus, there seems to me to be a clear flip side to what was available on a fairly regular basis through canteens and non-army organisations- it provided stuff which would overburden the official ration system if the army provided it yet maintained some illusion of freedom of choice.

[A Lancashire Fusilier by Proxy]

This is an interesting – and very broad – topic.

My grandfather has a very great deal to say about food in his diary, and food also seems to be a common theme in the accounts of others who are interested more in the “human” side of war (if you can call it that) than in military tactics etc., giving resonance to the saying that “an army marches on its stomach”. The entry for “Food” in the index to the published version of my grandfather’s diary is one of the longest entries in the entire index, if not the longest, especially when taken together with the two following entries, “food parcels” and “food, shortage of”. He has examples of virtually everything that Guest mentions in the OP, though marmalade is mentioned only once, I am afraid, and not very interestingly, nor does he throw any light on whether he felt that men were fed better by the army than they had been at home before the war, and/or whether that depended on whether they had been recruited from town or rural locations,

Regarding what he does say, I have chosen two examples, both relevant to the supplementing of the Tommy’s diet while in the trenches.

The first relates to a period when the 2/5^th LF were based near Aveluy for several months from the end of July 1915. A diary entry during October records: “I erected a small wooden shed at Crucifix Corner, just at the entrance to the Communication Trench leading up the La Boiselle road. In this hut we sold hot coffee, soup, chocolate, cigarettes, notepaper, matches, boot laces, buttons, and other odd useful accessories. This proved a great asset to the men, and incidentally quite a profitable concern. All our own men derived direct benefit from the profits as they were divided amongst the Companies each month for extra messing”, and, in another slightly later entry, which must relate to the same arrangement, he says: “One of our schemes in the Line was to collect orders and money from the men for cigarettes which the Company Quartermaster Sergeant purchased for them at the Canteens behind the Line, and brought them up with the rations. We felt that we officers got our extras up each day, and there wasn’t any reason why the men shouldn’t have something done for them in the same way”, which scheme, he says, they eventually developed into running a small Company Canteen in the Line.

The second example comes from when they had moved to trenches at Rivière in March 1916, when he says: “Hot food was a difficulty as the trenches were so bad for traffic. I managed to get up a Soyer Stove (a big boiler), and we made an emplacement for this in the Second Line. I also got a cook up, so that we were able to make hot soup or coffee, cocoa, or tea during the night. This was very much appreciated.”

I am particularly fond of this entry, as, in his sketch plan of the trenches in this area, he has carefully marked the position of the Soyer Stove, in its own special little dugout.

[Wexflyer]

Was Tommy really so picky and pampered?

 

Jack was content with rum, bum and the lash!

Edited 28 February , 2021 by Wexflyer

[RegHannay]

37 minutes ago, Wexflyer said:

Was Tommy really so picky and pampered?

 

Jack was happy with rum, bum and the lash!

I was always told Rum,Bum and Baccy! And on the Lash

Edited 28 February , 2021 by RegHannay
added info

[A Lancashire Fusilier by Proxy]

On 28/02/2021 at 21:31, Wexflyer said:

Was Tommy really so picky and pampered?

You are right - I'm not sure whether "pampering" is quite the word, but my grandad does say quite a lot about trying to make the men as comfortable as it was possible to do in the circumstances - often, not very. I wonder whether this might have been more of a feature of a TF unit than the regular army or navy?

And, on the subject of rum, he was definitely a staunch supporter of the rum ration as a comforter and morale booster (just for the men, of course!), and very anti when there was a suggestion of its being withdrawn.

As for the rest, I'm afraid - or glad - that he doesn't comment (apart from cigarettes) so neither can I.

[Guest]

  Chanced upon this letter in the war diary of 6th Londons for May 1915- rather unusual to find such things in a war diary:

 

6^th Bn. London Regiment

War Diary

May 1915

Sugar:-  The supply of sugar in this unit appears to be very limited, barely sufficient for breakfast and teas. The men in this Battalion, and Londoners generally, are fond of sweets but owing to the scarcity of sugar the ingenuity of the company cooks is hampered  and the energy and time wasted  when devoted to cooking puddings or stewing fruit  as the men will not eat them in the absence of sugar.

    The issue of lime juice for the same reason is unnecessary , the lime juice being much too sour.

Meat: In spite of the reduction in the meat ration, I am of opinion that the supply even at present is more than is actually necessary  and I would suggest that a supply of flour, sugar and currents be made in lieu of this surplus to enable the men to have a frequent change of diet.

Bread :-  Ration bread and biscuits are not in favour with the men and whenever possible French bread is purchased and eaten. As bread can be purchased everywhere except when actually in the trenches, the wastage of ration bread and biscuits is always apparent.

Flour :-   I am of opinion that a frequent issue of flour in lieu of the part of the ration bread and biscuits would be welcomed by the troops and would in every way  be more amenable  in particular economically.

 J.D.Simpson

Lt Col. Commanding 6^th Bn London Regiment

[brianmorris547]

In the May 1916 WD of 36 CCS (WO 95/344/8) there is a menu for patients on a light diet and also a daily menu. 

Brian

[battle of loos]

good morning,

 

here are some bottles with leftover labels found in British cantonment bins.

 

 

a shelf in my window evoking the soldier's food.
the small black balls at the bottom left are candied cherries found in a bottle that was broken when plowing the field.

 

 

and a trench fire:

 

 

Kind regards

 

Michel

[Muerrisch]

Thank you ................MARMALADE AGAIN.

[squirrel]

1 hour ago, Muerrisch said:

Thank you ................MARMALADE AGAIN.

That with which the troops were entirely unfamiliar...

Interestingly perhaps, marmalade is mentioned not infrequently in John Hartley's book, Bully Beef and Biscuits, a number of them in soldier's letters home thanking relatives for parcels. Mentioned more often than cigarettes and tobacco....

Edited 17 March , 2021 by squirrel

[Muerrisch]

And on another thread just now the exceedingly rare wrist watch has appeared yet again.

 

In retrospect, the Tommy was vastly overpaid, and lived above his station in life.

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Muerrisch said:

And on another thread just now the exceedingly rare wrist watch has appeared yet again.

 

In retrospect, the Tommy was vastly overpaid, and lived above his station in life.

 

    And of course, we are nearing a revisionist view of the Western Front......  that the B.E.F. simply spent the entire war eating marmalade

[Muerrisch]

"Evidence-based" as the word goes these days.

 

However, there is evidence that officers used Marmalade as adhesive for attaching notices to dugout walls.

 

Marmalade was for their privates.

[squirrel]

All we need to find is photograph of an "Other Rank" opening a jar of marmalade while wearing a wristwatch...

[Muerrisch]

20 hours ago, squirrel said:

All we need to find is photograph of an "Other Rank" opening a jar of marmalade while wearing a wristwatch...

 

Of course if he were a private or a JNCO certain Forumites might postulate that he was a batman/ servant/ orderly, and the marmalade was for his officer or the Mess. As for the watch, his officer lent him a spare,  to ensure timely meal service.

[squirrel]

I might be tempted to hazard a guess at who was doing the postulating but I shall refrain...  

[Neil Mackenzie]

An earlier post mentions the lack of sugar which affected the UK generally, not just in the armed forces. This company website has some info as the company founder was in charge of sugar rationing in WW1.

 

https://www.ragus.co.uk/rationing-sugar-first-world-war/

 

The shocking state of teeth in those days was partly due to the lack of dentists but also due to the high amounts of sugar that was consumed - about 1lb per person per week apparently.

 

Neil

 

 

[brianmorris547]

The WD of 251 Tunnelling Co RE (WO 95/551/6) for April 1917 has four pages of menus, a different one for each section. Forum rules prevent me from attaching them.

Breakfast was tea, bread and fried or boiled bacon.

Dinner was roast mutton or cold bully with veg and a boiled pudding.

Tea was tea, bread with, on alternate days, dripping, jam, cheese or marmalade.

Shift supper was stew, tea and bread.

I don't know if Tunnellers got extra rations.

Brian

[Muerrisch]

Thank you. 

 

Marmalade again.

 

That with which the troops were entirely unfamiliar...

[A Lancashire Fusilier by Proxy]

In George Coppard's book "With a Machine Gun to Cambrai", Chapter 14, he gives an account of how, one wet dark night at Cuinchy, it fell to him to do the unpopular job of going to get the rations for his gun team. He got lost, but was delighted to stumble across a "sort of soup kitchen" where "the Tommy in charge was stirring a copperful of "Shackels" (soup made from the very dregs of army cooking) with a big stick". Coppard had two helpings of the stuff, relishing "the warmth and zest of that washy liquid", but also comparing it wryly to a dinner enjoyed by Robert Graves near Cuinchy, as described in Goodbye to All That - "fish, new potatoes, green peas, asparagus, mutton chops and strawberries and cream, washed down with three bottles of Pommard". Quite a contrast, but Coppard doubted whether Graves had enjoyed his meal any more than he relished his Shackels that cold wet night, and, as a result of his reporting back to his comrades about it, they all became very much keener to volunteer to go for the rations on the next occasion.

I presume that the "soup kitchen" would be something like the canteen set up by my grandfather at Crucifix Corner near Aveluy, and that soldiers participating in the extra rations would have to pay for the privilege?

Also, I have searched "Shackels" on this Forum, and drawn a blank. It sounds disgusting, but obviously fulfilled a need. What would the origin of the name be?

[PhilC]

On 14/05/2021 at 18:28, A Lancashire Fusilier by Proxy said:

In George Coppard's book "With a Machine Gun to Cambrai", Chapter 14, he gives an account of how, one wet dark night at Cuinchy, it fell to him to do the unpopular job of going to get the rations for his gun team. He got lost, but was delighted to stumble across a "sort of soup kitchen" where "the Tommy in charge was stirring a copperful of "Shackels" (soup made from the very dregs of army cooking) with a big stick". Coppard had two helpings of the stuff, relishing "the warmth and zest of that washy liquid", but also comparing it wryly to a dinner enjoyed by Robert Graves near Cuinchy, as described in Goodbye to All That - "fish, new potatoes, green peas, asparagus, mutton chops and strawberries and cream, washed down with three bottles of Pommard". Quite a contrast, but Coppard doubted whether Graves had enjoyed his meal any more than he relished his Shackels that cold wet night, and, as a result of his reporting back to his comrades about it, they all became very much keener to volunteer to go for the rations on the next occasion.

I presume that the "soup kitchen" would be something like the canteen set up by my grandfather at Crucifix Corner near Aveluy, and that soldiers participating in the extra rations would have to pay for the privilege?

Also, I have searched "Shackels" on this Forum, and drawn a blank. It sounds disgusting, but obviously fulfilled a need. What would the origin of the name be?

According to the OED the usual spelling is 'shackles', the same as in the word for fetters. It was slang for a broth or stew with the first cite being given in 1888 in 'The West Somerset word-book' by Frederic Thomas Elworthy:

 

"Shackles.., broth. Every mornin' my old 'ummun makth me a basin o' shackles, and her knowth how to make 'em too, mind, way a plenty o' liks (leeks) in 'em."

 

 

[keithfazzani]

The Queen’s Own Gazette (Royal West Kent’s) has a monthly list of comforts sent to the front. Amongst matches, cigarettes etc several pounds of curry powder is usually included, presumably to improve a bland diet. Never a mention of marmalade.