The Blockade and the Making of Modern Food Aid in the Era of the Two World Wars

Abstract

Today, when we hear of besieged cities like Mariupol in Ukraine or Aleppo in Syria, we expect that ‘humanitarian corridors’ will be opened to bring food and medical supplies to civilians in need. But where does this expectation and practice come from? This article traces its origins to the blockades of the First and Second World War. In both wars, the Allied naval blockade was seen as depriving millions of civilians in enemy and enemy-controlled territory of vital supplies, thus provoking a profound humanitarian response. By examining the debate and practice of trans-blockade relief, the article demonstrates its impact in creating a new sense of humanitarian possibility and expectation. Although trans-blockade relief was the exception in both wars (in Belgium after 1914 and in Greece after 1941), it demonstrated that large-scale food aid was possible even in total war. Decades before the Geneva Conventions placed limits on the blockade-induced starvation of civilians, humanitarians had developed detailed operational procedures to deal with the problem. These are tangible, if often neglected, products of the blockade in the era of the world wars.