Book contents
- Streetscapes of War and Revolution
- Studies in the Social and Cultural History of Modern Warfare
- Streetscapes of War and Revolution
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures and Maps
- Acknowledgments
- Note on Language Use
- Introduction
- 1 All Gray
- 2 Black–Yellow Surfaces
- 3 Shades of War
- 4 Black Markets, Green Expeditions
- 5 Not Only Red
- 6 The End of Darkness? Uncertainty and Revolution
- Conclusion
- Select Bibliography
- Index
4 - Black Markets, Green Expeditions
Food Shortages and Growing Divisions
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 30 May 2024
- Streetscapes of War and Revolution
- Studies in the Social and Cultural History of Modern Warfare
- Streetscapes of War and Revolution
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures and Maps
- Acknowledgments
- Note on Language Use
- Introduction
- 1 All Gray
- 2 Black–Yellow Surfaces
- 3 Shades of War
- 4 Black Markets, Green Expeditions
- 5 Not Only Red
- 6 The End of Darkness? Uncertainty and Revolution
- Conclusion
- Select Bibliography
- Index
Summary
“As food increasingly disappeared from shops, market stalls, and restaurants, wartime shortages badly affected city life. By 1917, most Prague residents struggled to obtain basic food items; the city and its inhabitants were cold, due to coal shortages, and dirty, through lack of soap. The state’s rationing system proved insufficient to cover the needs of the population, leading to the blossoming of a black market. Discrepancies in access to food shaped new divisions. Prague was ‘ruralized’ as people grew vegetables in allotments and on balconies. Hungry city-dwellers went on trips to the countryside to purchase food. This new reliance on farmers subverted social hierarchies. An antagonism grew between Prague and the countryside, undermining the unity of the Czech nation. The association ‘The Czech Heart’ attempted to heal the rift by sending hungry Prague children to better-fed villages. Food provision shifted legitimacy away from the Austrian state to national organizations.”
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- Streetscapes of War and RevolutionPrague, 1914–1920, pp. 156 - 206Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2024