Portrait of Joseph and his sister Elly Schoenbeck; Cologne, Germany. Portraits family

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Alfred Lichtenstein with his first wife Gerda and their daughter Sylvia seated on a park bench; Buenos Aires.

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Portrait of unidentified man Portraits Men

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AHC interview with Gloria Gray Katz.

June 7, 2010

Rintamamiesten muonitus Suomessa sotavuosina 1939-1945

This study analyzes the war-time rations the Finnish soldiers received on the front from 1939 until 1945. The main objective was to determine the contents of the rations and how they affected the soldiers' nutrition and morale. The information concerning food and feeding is mainly based on the official documents found in the Military Archives. Some additional material was from the historical literature, some from memoirs, or from the veterans who personally experienced the front. The documents in the Archives of Military Medicine provided information on the soldiers' deficiencies. During the Winter War, which took place from 30 November 1939 until 13 March 1940, ample food was available. The cold climate caused problems and the fresh food got frozen. However, no severe deficiency cases were reported and the morale was high. By contrast, during the Continuation War, which began in June, 1941 and ended in September, 1944, difficulties were experienced. At the time farming in the country faced serious problems due to the shortage of labour, fuel, etc. Furthermore, importing food was generally not possible. However, importing food mainly from Germany saved the Finns from hunger. In addition, the self activity of the soldiers on the front added somewhat to the food production. But the rations had to be reduced. Their energy values were consequently low, especially for the young men. Food was monotonous and occasionally caused complaints. The main sources of protein, vitamins and minerals were the whole cereal foods. Butter was fortified with vitamin A and vitamin C tablets were also distributed, to compensate for the scant food sources. Only approximately 300 serious deficiency cases required hospital care during the three years time, out of a total of 400 000 soldiers. Feeding the young soldiers during the war (1944 - 1945) in Lapland, which had been destroyed, was problematic but the increased rations also saved them from deficiencies. In spite of the severe difficulties experienced occasionally in feeding the soldiers during the wars, the system worked all the time. The soldiers were fed, the cases of nutritional deficiency and epidemics caused by food were kept very limited and the morale of soldiers remained high.

Bianca Gerstmann in traditional Malaysian costume ? Portraits Women

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Bianca Gerstmann and unidentified friend in traditional Malaysian costume ? Portraits Women

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Bianca and Felix Gerstmann in traditional Malaysian costume ? Portraits Couples

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Bianca and Felix Gerstmann with monkey in Malaysia ? Portraits Couples

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Bianca and Felix Gerstmann boarding a Royal Air Mail airplane; Singapore Portraits Couples

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Bianca and Felix Gerstmann boarding a Royal Air Mail airplane; Singapore Portraits Couples

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Royal Air Mail plane in Singapore Transportation

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Royal Air Mail plane in Singapore Transportation

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Albert Einstein playing violin with small orchestra; Princeton, New Jersey Portraits; Groups

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