Food and Conflict in Europe in the Age of the Two World Wars

This volume examines conflicts over food and their implications for European societies in the first half of the Twentieth century. Food shortages and famines, fears of deprivation, and food regulations and controls were a shared European experience in this period. Conflicts over food, however, developed differently in different regions, under different regimes, and within different social groups. These developments had stark consequences for social solidarity and physical survival. Ranging across Europe, from Scandinavia and Britain to Germany, Italy and the Soviet Union, this volume explores the political, economic and cultural dynamics that shaped conflicts over food and their legacies. Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Introduction....Pages 1-12 Coping with Shortage: The Problem of Food Security and Global Visions of Coordination, c.1890s–1950....Pages 13-48 Consumption and Total Warfare in Paris (1914–1918)....Pages 49-64 Food Provision and Food Retailing in The Hague, 1914–1930....Pages 65-87 Dictating Food: Autarchy, Food Provision, and Consumer Politics in Fascist Italy, 1922–1943....Pages 88-108 Stalin, Soviet Agriculture, and Collectivisation....Pages 109-142 Brown Bread for Victory: German and British Wholemeal Politics in the Inter-War Period....Pages 143-171 Danish Food Production in the German War Economy....Pages 172-192 The Mystery of the Dying Dutch: Can Micronutrient Deficiencies Explain the Difference between Danish and Dutch Wartime Mortality?....Pages 193-222 A View From the Top: Social Elites and Food Consumption in Britain, 1930s–1940s....Pages 223-242 Popular Morality and the Black Market in Britain, 1939–1955....Pages 243-265 Food and the Food Crisis in Post-War Germany, 1945–1948: British Policy and the Role of British NGOs....Pages 266-288 Back Matter....Pages 289-296 Cover 1 Half Title 2 Series 3 Title 4 Copyright 5 Content 6 List of Illustrations 8 List of Figures and Tables 9 Acknowledgements 11 Notes on Contributors 12 1 Introduction 15 2 Coping with Shortage: The Problem of Food Security and Global Visions of Coordination, c.1890s–1950 27 3 Consumption and Total Warfare in Paris (1914–1918) 63 4 Food Provision and Food Retailing in The Hague, 1914–1930 79 5 Dictating Food: Autarchy, Food Provision, and Consumer Politics in Fascist Italy, 1922–1943 102 6 Stalin, Soviet Agriculture, and Collectivisation 123 7 Brown Bread for Victory: German and British Wholemeal Politics in the Inter-War Period 157 8 Danish Food Production in the German War Economy 186 9 The Mystery of the Dying Dutch: Can Micronutrient Deficiencies Explain the Difference between Danish and Dutch Wartime Mortality? 207 10 A View From the Top: Social Elites and Food Consumption in Britain, 1930s–1940s 237 11 Popular Morality and the Black Market in Britain, 1939–1955 257 12 Food and the Food Crisis in Post-War Germany, 1945–1948: British Policy and the Role of British NGOs 280 Index 303