What Food did Soldiers Eat?

What did soldiers eat throughout history, we explore army rations and logistics from the ancient era up until modern times.

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Credit:
Created by Daniel Turner

Narrator:

Christian H. Miles

Music Credit:

Sources:

Barber, R. 1978. Edward Prince of Wales and Aquitaine: A Biography of the Black Prince. Woodbridge: The Boydell Press

Cole, T. 2015. Henry V: The Life of the Warrior King and the Battle of Agincourt 1415. Stroud: Amberley Publishing

Coss, J. Edward. 2013. All for the King's Shilling: The British Soldier Under Wellington, 1808-1814. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press.

Dio, C. 1925. Roman History, Volume VIII: Books 61-70. Translated by Earnest Cary, Herbert B. Foster. Loeb Classical Library 176. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press

Gabriel, A. Richard. 2007. Soldier’s Lives Through History: The Ancient World. Wesport: Greenwood Press

Hardy, R. 1992. Longbow. Bois d'Arc Press

Morkot, Robert. 2003. The A to Z of Ancient Egyptian Warfare. Lanham: The Scarecrow Press Inc.

Phillips, Colonel Dwight E. 1995. Napoleon: Grandfather of the MRE. Army Logistician. U.S. Army Logistics Management Center

Roth, P. Jonathan. 1999. The Logistics of the Roman Army at War: 264 B.C. - A.D. 235. Leiden: Brill

Rupp, R. 2015. When Feeding the Troops, Flavor is Rarely on the Menu.

Sekunda, N. (2002). Greek Military Cuisine
Wellesley, A. 1868. Despatches, Correspondence, and Memoranda of Field Marshal Arthur Duke of Wellington (Vol. III), K.G. London: W. Clowes and Sons

Daly, G. (2013). The British Soldier in the Peninsular War: Encounters with Spain and Portugal, 1808-1814 (War, Culture and Society, 1750-1850)

The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon
By Gunther E. Rothenberg

[laserdiscisawesome]

How to survive in the military: Befriend and protect the cooks

[TheAntonicKnight]

"An army marches on its stomach"
- Napoleon "A little cold never killed a man" Bonaparte

[TheBigBadBeowulf]

A journal by a soldier I believe a Corporal in the Continental Army of the United States in the War of 1812 stated that he was given preserved salted meat a pound that was so salty that he had to boil it three times in order to make it even remotely edible and even then he had to boil it again in order to make a suitable soup

[yeetyeetus]

In soviet russia, they serve medium cooked air.

[Simplehistory]

"An army marches on its stomach" Napoleon may or may not have said that but it is an important observation. Canning was invented when Napoleon offered 12, 000 francs as a prize for whoever could preserve food for his army. Nicolas Appert would win the prize, creating a method involving heating, boiling and sealing food in airtight glass jars. Napoleon's soldiers would have these in a very limited amount as the technology was still in its infancy. In 1810 Frenchman Philippe de Girard invented tin canning and British merchant Peter Durand patented it. Canning was a big innovation seen in today's army rations.

[nikolanikolesic]

What did soldiers eat?

Short answer: Food
Long answer: *this video that I'll watch anyway*

[pewp]

*”Po-tay-toes! Boil em, mash em, stick em in a stew. Lovely big golden chips with a nice piece of fried fish.”*

[SupremeLeaderKimJong-un]

My soldiers don't eat anything because I eat all the food before it gets to them. Yet I have the fourth largest army, not sure how they survive

[OGBootleg]

If Skyrim has taught me anything, its that soldiers ate Sweetrolls...

[LUSJJ]

“Hey what food do your soldiers have”

USSR: **Laughs in Starvation**

[matthewkim]

What did German soilders eat?

*L u f t w a f f l e s*

[harryzhao]

What did soldiers eat?
Russian/soviets:wait you guys get food?

[Twigs]

"You guys are being fed?" -The Soviet Army

[thetruegungingingayearsa]

0:29 is it me or do i find it wholesome that soldiers, known to be the most tough and feared, are in raincoats eating warm food

[coledavis]

Everyone forgets about the Panzer cooked eggs.

[republikperangid]

*"Ration already exist back in acient empire"*
*Steve1989Mre with red glowing eyes* :

[trycoldman]

German soldier : Panzerplatten
Normal soldier : Tank plates?
German soldier : *Panzerplatten*

[murderousintent]

2:41 that little kitty in the bottom right corner
he stole a fish

[asianpersuasion]

Fun fact- During WW2, the United States government approached Chef Boyardee so that the troops could have something enjoyable to eat. Chef Boyardee was successful in creating a new recipe to could canned and stay preserved for a long time. The same recipe is sold from store shelves today.

[settkundesu]

Western armies: *died of hunger*
Eastern armies: