In the winter of 1944 - 1945, 3.5 million Dutch civilians in German-occupied Holland were facing starvation after the Nazis had cut food and power, creating the ‘Hunger Winter’ of 1944-45. Today we "experienced" what it was like to eat what the Dutch civilians ate during the Hunger Winter. I use quotes around the word experienced, because the food that we ate was within no comparison to what the starving population ate to survive. Each of the group members was given half of a raw potato, about 4" of a baguette, a slice of spam meat, as well as a carrot. This small amount of food totalled up to be just 600 calories, which was similar to what a Dutch civilian would consume over the course of a day. Because German forces had made blockades to stop the movement of food and fuel, people became desperate and started burning their furniture as a source of heat, and trading valuables for food on the black market. After much negotiating between the Germans and the Allies, an agreement was made, and operations Chowhound, Manna, and Faust were a go. The agreement made allowed the Allies to drop food and supplies in the Netherlands to save the population who were just barely hanging on, as long as they did not bomb German positions. Operation Faust utilized over 200 trucks to move food and supplies into the areas as well. The drops occurred in the first weeks of May, and a total of 11,000 tonnes of food were dropped. These supplies came just in time, as more than 20,000 people had already succumbed to starvation.
While I biting into my raw potato at lunch, I was struck by the amount of people complaining about the food we were eating. As I said above, the food we were eating wasn't even in the same league as what was eaten during the Hunger Winter. We had real bread, not sawdust stretched loaves. We ate clean, fresh potatoes, not dirty, moldy ones. And for the spam, it may be questionable, but it was protein. As I was listening to people talking about the food, I wondered what the people who had no other choice say about the little food that they had? Were they thankful for what they had? Or were they just bitter and ate what they could find? I tried to put myself in the mindset, but I couldn't wrap my head around the minuscule amount of food that a full grown human was expected to survive on. As a 16 year old boy, I should be eating 2200 - 3200 calories per day, just to support normal growth. Throw in the winter conditions, and the work that I would have to do.... I just can't imagine what the Dutch civilians endured. I think that this experience was extremely beneficial to our understanding, even in the most acute way, to try and feel just a fraction of the discomfort that the Dutch civilians endured in the winter of 1944 - 1945. Connor Halpenny Student, Smiths Falls District Collegiate Institute Smiths Falls, Ontario
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AuthorsParticipating educators and high school students share reflections on their professional and personal experiences during and after the program. Some posts link to the Gregg Centre for the Study of War and Society's blog, Studeamus bellum causa pacis. Archives
August 2015
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