We are very lucky and thankful to be able to enjoy a wonderful Christmas. This is not the same for many, such as those in war-torn countries. In 2017 I digitized a number of 16 mm films my grandfather had made, and one was of their Christmas celebration from 1944. Given the work I am doing on my uncle’s letters and his cousin’s, Renate, memoirs from the same period I thought I would summarize each of their experiences, at approximately the same time, as best I can from what little information I have.
Toronto:
During the war rationing was in place in Canada for many items, including food and alcoholic beverages. Of the alcoholic beverages, spirits was the most constrained, and beer the least. I never knew my grandparents as heavy beer drinkers so to see them all drinking beer in the film suggests it might have been what was available under the constraints of rations.
Food rations, on a per person basis, included: sugar (about 200 g/week); tea (about 60 g/week); coffee (about 227 g/ 5 weeks); Butter (about 113 g/week). Meat was also rationed but by cost to 70 cents per week per person. Depending on the type of meat this could be between 680 to 900 g. Seeing what appears to be a reasonably well-stocked table, under the circumstances, suggests that the controls were not too bad or they had saved up for this event.
Philippines:
While Bill does not disclose his specific location, the clues in his letters and historical references suggest he was in either Tacloban or Catbalogan, on Leyte Island in the Philippines. Bill’s unit, part of the 1st Cavalry, was heavily involved in the Leyte campaign from October 20, 1944, as part of the initial landings. The 1st Cavalry’s mobility and involvement in the Philippines, including in and around Leyte and Samar, would place them in proximity to these locations on Christmas Day.
In this letter of December 25th, Bill wrote that they had received PX supplies, including: chocolate bars, gun drops, cookies, gum, and 6 bottles of beer. Christmas dinner included turkey and all the fixings. Following the dinner, they attended a celebration put on by the towns people for the US Troops. He writes the following day everyone was suffering a hangover from too much food, candy and beer.
He wrote how they could hear mortar fire in the background as he listened to the church sermon on the 24th. This had him reflect on the tragedy in Europe, and maybe he was thinking of his cousins, aunts and uncles. He ends on a note suggesting he is home sick.
Sonneberg:
The situation in Sonneberg is a little more dire. The winter of 1944-45 was particularly harsh, fuel for heating was scarce. Families scavenged for fuel, often collecting wood illegally from forests. It was at this time that Renate’s mother burnt some furniture to stay warm. Food shortages were severe and rationing was strictly enforced. By late 1944 the weekly meat ration for a family was 300g. A popular meal at this time was Himmel und Erde (heaven and earth) as the ingredients — potatoes and apples — were relatively accessible, often locally grown. Families supplemented their diets by growing food in their gardens, foraging, bartering, or relying on stored preserves. Renate recalls small miracles such as receiving a piece of meat, which was rare by then.
Sonneberg had become a refuge for evacuees from bombed cities and those fleeing the Soviet advance. Schools and homes were overcrowded, and displaced families lived in cramped conditions. They had displaced people living in their home at Bahnhofstr 4. Renate observed that morale had shifted, with residents more focused on survival than loyalty to the regime.
As Allied forces drew nearer — the Soviets were in Hungary and Poland, and the Canadians, British and Americans were approaching the Western boarders of Germany — Renate recalls the heightened anxiety about whether Sonneberg would be handed over without a fight, a topic of heated discussion during that winter, and whether they would be taken by the Soviets or the Americans (which they preferred).
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