Niall Ferguson, "The Second World War as an Economic Disaster", in: German occupation of France during World War II, Italian occupation of France during World War II, United States home front during World War II, History of the Philippines § World War II and Japanese occupation, United Kingdom home front during World War II, Timeline of the United Kingdom home front during World War II, Military history of the United Kingdom during World War II, Canada in the World Wars and Interwar Years § World War II, 21,000 Japanese Canadians were rounded up, Australian home front during World War II, Pacific Islands home front during World War II, brought in millions of slave workers from conquered countries, Forced labour under German rule during World War II, Military history of the British Commonwealth in the Second World War, http://www.bl.uk/learning/langlit/booksforcooks/1900s/1900sfood.html, "Making Britain: Second World War (1939–1945)", https://doi.org/10.1017/S0960777318000255, "Recycling and rationing in wartime Germany", Memories of the 1940s mailing list archive, "Ryukyu Shimpo, Ota Masahide, Mark Ealey and Alastair McLauchlan, Descent Into Hell: The Battle of Okinawa | The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus", History of the Second World War: United Kingdom Civil Series, The Wages of Destruction: The Making and Breaking of the Nazi Economy, Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany, Rape during the Soviet occupation of Poland, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Home_front_during_World_War_II&oldid=1010444101, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2018, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from November 2016, All articles with vague or ambiguous time, Vague or ambiguous time from February 2018, Articles with unsourced statements from June 2019, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. However, by the end of September 1939 only 1.5 million people had been evacuated and most of those returned to their homes when there were no bombing raids. Civilians in the occupied territories had to endure many large-scale massacres, including that in Nanjing, Jiangsu and Pingdingshan, Liaoning[citation needed]. [citation needed]. [112] The successful Japanese invasion of Manchuria in the early 1930s fueled the rise of aggressive foreign policy and radical nationalism. So he halted the Soviet offensive and gave the Germans free rein to suppress it. In Bengal, with an elected Muslim local government under British supervision, the cutoff of rice imports from Burma led to severe food shortages, made worse by maladministration. Government incentives helped to raise the marriage rate, but the number of births held steady at about 2.2 million per year, with a 10% decline in 1944–45, and another 15% decline in 1945–46. Although collaboration with the Nazis, especially among the Flemish, was evident in 1940, it soon faded in importance. [111], There was great civilian support for the war by July 1937. [9] Meanwhile, the Vichy regime promoted a highly traditional model of female roles. California – Do not sell my personal information. ", Anna Jackson, Review of "Wearing Propaganda: Textiles on the Home Front in Japan, Britain and the United States 1931-1945", Sugata Bose, "Starvation amidst Plenty: The Making of Famine in Bengal, Honan and Tonkin, 1942–45,", One third of the Soviet housing stock was damaged or destroyed according to. They became known as ‘Dad’s Army’. Later we'll probably see the outpouring of a new power."[119]. Everyone understood they would probably die in what the government called, the "Grand Suicide of the One Hundred Million. As more and more men were ‘called up’ to serve in the forces, women were called upon to take over the jobs traditionally done by men. Everyone was given a book of 66 coupons to use to buy new clothes for one year. During the conflict, the various elements of the British Left created the War Emergency Workers' National Committee, which played a crucial role in supporting the most vulnerable people on the Home Front during the war, and in ensuring the British Labour remained united in the years after the Armistice. Most Jews were rounded up by the Vichy police and handed over to the Germans, who sent them to death camps.[7][8]. Jobless farm workers flock to the cities, where there was minimal relief and few jobs. Japanese occupation of the Philippines was opposed by large-scale underground and guerrilla activity. [117] There were even reports of mass civilian suicides near the end of World War II, an attempt to avoid capture. [121] The Japanese food rationing system was effective throughout the war, and there were no serious incidences of malnutrition. In all 1.3 million children were moved—with their teachers but not their parents. During the invasion of the Soviet Union in the early months of the war, rapid German advances almost captured the cities of Moscow and Leningrad. From the beginning of the war, one of Hitler’s tactics against Britain was to use submarines to torpedo ships bringing supplies to Britain. The discovery of the poor health and hygiene of evacuees was a shock to many Britons, and helped prepare the way for the Beveridge Report. [81][82], During World War II, India was a colony of Britain known as British Raj. During WW2 thousands of different markings were displayed on ARP, Civil Defence and home front helmets. [88], The overlords became more brutal and corrupt, and the Chinese gentry became disenchanted. An Emergency Hospital Service was established at the beginning of the war, in the expectation that it would be required to deal with large numbers of casualties. [127] Forced prostitution for the benefit of Japanese soldiers created the "comfort women" program that proved highly embarrassing to Japan for decades after the war. The Home Front is the name given to the effect of the war on people’s everyday lives. ", Braybon, Gail, and Penny Summerfield. Direct buying from farmers in the countryside and barter against cigarettes became common. By 1943, 37% of the Australian GDP was directed at the war effort. During the Second World War, you couldn't just walk into a shop and buy as much sugar or butter or meat as you wanted, nor could you fill up your car with gasoline whenever you liked. Farmers diverted meat to the black market, so there was much less for the open market. They worked long hours and the work was hard. [40] Sociologist Alecea Standlee (2010) argues that during the war the traditional gender division of labor changed somewhat, as the "home" or domestic female sphere expanded to include the "home front"; meanwhile the public sphere—the male domain—was redefined as the international stage of military action. [17], The Nazi Hunger Plan was to kill the Jews of Poland quickly, and slowly to force the Poles to leave by threat of starvation, so that they could be replaced by German settlers. There was little antiwar sentiment during or after the war. (1987), Coble, Parks M. "China's 'New Remembering' of the Anti-Japanese War of Resistance, 1937–1945,". The government provided a modest allowance, but one in ten became prostitutes to support their families. Perishable items such as fruit were not rationed. The Germans seized about 20% of the French food production, which caused severe disruption to the household economy of the French people. Vegetables and local fruit were not rationed; imported citrus fruits and bananas were unavailable. During World War II, Americans at home played a huge role in the conflict. During the Second World War as British men and women signed up to serve in the Armed Forces the civilian population found they also had an important role to play in the protection of their homeland from the Nazi threat . [91] Germany's economy was simply too small for a longer all-out war. [76], Manufacturing grew rapidly, with the assembly of high performance guns and aircraft a specialty. The children to be evacuated assembled in the school playground. Bray, Bonita. Clothes were rationed from June 1941 due to a shortage of raw materials and also to allow the factories and workers to concentrate on producing weapons, aircraft and ammunition for the war. Geyer, Michael and Adam Tooze, eds. A powerful Resistance movement sprang up, as the Germans fortified the coast against an Allied invasion and occupied the northern half of the country. Click card to see definition The efforts by many that were home in the U.S. to support the war effort. Those that were not provided with weapons made makeshift weapons from pieces of pipe or knives. In Berlin, at the start of the Battle of Berlin, the authorities announced a special supplementary food ration on April 20, 1945. "The British Empire and the First World War". If malnutrition persisted for long enough, its effects were irreversible. "Food Situation" 2 Nov 1945. Non-Japanese women from colonies such as Korea and Formosa were especially vulnerable. The old-age pension system would be revised and expanded, and require that a person retired. According to a 1997 post by Walter Felscher to the "Memories of the 1940s" electronic mailing list: For every person, there were rationing cards for general foodstuffs, meats, fats (such as butter, margarine and oil) and tobacco products distributed every other month. [90] Not until 1943, under Albert Speer (the minister of armaments in the Reich), did Germany finally redirect its entire economy and manpower to war production. The popularization of combat soldiers as ideal men excluded civilian men on the Home Front who, in response, associated themselves with acceptable ideas of masculinity in other ways. When someone bought rationed food, the grocer stuck a sticker in his or her ration book to show that that week’s ration had been purchased. This made the rising costs of the First World War an impossibility and, while not everyone was pleased by controls, the public could see the fairness of the system. ", This page was last edited on 5 March 2021, at 14:12. Each country tried to suppress rumors, which typically were negative or defeatist. Canada joined the war effort on September 10, 1939; the government deliberately waited after Britain's decision to go to war, partly to demonstrate its independence from Britain and partly to give the country extra time to import arms from the United States as a non-belligerent. On the morning of December 7, 1941 Civilians are traditionally uninvolved in combat, except when the fighting happened to reach their dwelling places. Many people lost weight, and grew weaker and more vulnerable to disease. The people of the Soviet Union were probably better prepared than any other nation involved in World War II to endure the material hardships of the war – primarily because they were so used to shortages and economic crisis in the past, especially during wartime—World War I had brought similar restrictions on food. A home front is an informal term for the civilian population of a nation at war. [31], Despite harsh conditions, the war led to a spike in Soviet nationalism and unity. The result was a growing food shortage, especially in the cities. Start this lesson with a discuss of symbols, what are they and how are they used. "A New Estimate of Ukrainian Population Losses During the Crises of the 1930s and 1940s. After saying goodbye to their parents they travelled by train or by coach to their destination where they met the people who were to house them. It was under Japanese army control and performed poorly in combat. [51], Conscription was the main means for raising forces in Britain and the dominions. The Germans built high walls around the ghetto, and crowded 550,000 Polish Jews into it, many from the Polish provinces. [69], 20% of Canada's population were neither of British nor French origin, and their status was of special concern. ", Havens, Thomas R. "Women and War in Japan, 1937–1945. Biddiscombe, Perry "Into the Maelstrom: German Women in Combat, 1944–45,", Brodie, Thomas. [109] When the American bombing began in earnest in late 1944, 10 million people fled the cities to the safety of the countryside, including two-thirds of the residents of the largest cities and 87% of the children. Wrobel, Piotr. ATIS, G2, SCAP. Frontline medical services were provided by male doctors and medics. Evacuation was voluntary and the government expected more than 3 million people to take advantage of the scheme. For Germany to build its twelve synthetic oil plants with a capacity of 3.3 million tons a year required 2.3 million tons of structural steel and 7.5 million man-days of labor. The Everyday Life of Foreign Workers and Prisoners of War in the German Town of Osnabrück, 1939–49,". [132], Health and living conditions worsened after the surrender in September 1945. Total war expenditure came to £2,949 million between 1939 and 1945. Britain has always imported food and other goods from overseas. Factories also served as mutual support centers, and had clinics and other services like cleaning crews and teams of women who would sew and repair clothes. Transition sentence: Let's take a look at some … [18][19][20][21], By mid 1941, the German minority in Poland received 2,613 calories (11,000 kJ) per day, while Poles received 699 and Jews in the ghetto 184. [128], Beginning in the late 20th century cultural historians turned their attention to the role of women in wartime, especially the Second World War. [137], A great deal of housing was destroyed or largely damaged during the war, especially in the Soviet Union,[138] Germany, and Japan. [124], The American aerial bombing of a total of 65 Japanese cities took from 400,000 to 600,000 civilian lives, with 100,000+ in Tokyo alone, over 200,000 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined. There was only a small increase of 1.4 million women entering the labor force between 1940 and 1944. [92], Instead of expanding the economies of the occupied nations, the Nazis seized the portable machinery and rail cars, requisitioned most of their industrial output, took large quantities of food (15% of French output), and forced the victims to pay for their military occupation. [65] The CD audiobook Home Front 1939–45 also contains a selection of period interviews and actuality recordings.[66]. Although Germany had about double the population of Britain (80 million versus 46 million), it had to use far more labor to provide food and energy. [100], Military nursing was primarily handled by the DRK, which came under partial Nazi control. Douglas, William Alexander Binny, and Brereton Greenhous, eds. Strict rationing of milk led to smaller babies. Like most soldiers, he wrote home to tell his family of his European tour of duty. The government called this ‘Digging for Victory’ and produced posters to persuade people that they were helping to win the war by planting vegetables. Families also grew "victory gardens", and small home vegetable gardens. Bidlack, "Survival Strategies in Leningrad," p 89. Bidlack, "Survival Strategies in Leningrad," p 97. "[107], The weaknesses in the maximum utilization of womanpower was indicated by the presence of 600,000 domestic servants in wealthy families in 1944. [77] The arrival of tens of thousands of Americans was greeted with relief, as they could protect Australia where Britain could not. When the Blitz bombing began on September 6, 1940, they evacuated again. How much do you know about the home front during World War II? [123] Despite government rationing of food, some families were forced to spend more than their monthly income could offer on black market food purchases. The government greatly expanded its powers in order to better direct the war effort, and Australia's industrial and human resources were focused on supporting the Australian and American armed forces. They worked long hours and could earn as much as 40 shillings (£2.00) a week. The policy worked well for Japan and produced extensive collaboration from both the elite and the middle class, with far less terror than in other Chinese cities. The fears proved groundless. Food rationing also permitted the upgrading of the quality of the food available, and housewives approved—except for the absence of white bread and the government's imposition of an unpalatable wheat meal "national loaf". It was paid for by high taxes, by selling off assets, and by accepting large amounts of Lend Lease from the U.S. and Canada. The Commonwealth Government took control of all income taxation in 1942, which gave it extensive new powers and greatly reduced the states' financial autonomy. Many goods were conserved to turn into weapons later, such as fat for nitroglycerin production. Schoolchildren were also taught nationalistic songs such as the Umi Yukaba: "If I go away to the sea,I shall be a corpse washed up.If I go away to the mountain,I shall be a corpse in the grassBut if I die for the Emperor,It will not be a regret.". In 1942 it shipped to Britain 25 per cent of total meat production (including 75% of the bacon), 65% of the cheese and 13% of the eggs. Many Canadian men joined the war effort, so with them overseas and industries pushing to increase production, women took up positions to aid in the war effort. Planting vegetable gardens in the spring became popular, primarily because citizens could keep everything grown on their own plots. These aircraft received extraordinary priority, which covered the supply of materials and equipment and even made it possible to divert from other types the necessary parts, equipment, materials and manufacturing resources. The 'home front' covers the activities of the civilians in a nation at war. Sources often used include magazines published—by men—for female readers. In the long run the occupation strengthened the pre-war social and economic order among the Chinese business community by eliminating some conflicts of interests and reducing the prestige and power of the British.
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