Figure 1.--We at first thought this unidentified image was German, we bow think it Austrian taken in Vienna which after World War I faced a horendous food shortage, Vienna was separated from the eastern graon producing regions of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. And food shortages there meant that food was not available to ship to Vienna. A surprising rescurer appeared, Austria's former enemy--the United States. The Amerikanisch Kinder Hilfs Aktion (American Children's Charity Effort) began distributing food in Vienna and other Austrian cities. Here the nurses or welfare workers are weiging bread to distribute to needy Vienna children. The photograph was probanly taken in 1919 or 20..

Austria was a new republic formed out of the German-speaking western area of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, one of the World War I Central Powers. The Austro-Hungarian Empire had been a major European power for centuries, but it was a laregly agricultural power and failed to industrialize like Germany to the north. Most of the indutry was in the Czech lands of Bohemia. Austria itself was primarily agricultural with craft manufacturing. While agricultural, Austrian farms were not particulaly efficent. Thus Vienna and other cities imported food from the grain producing eastern ares of the Empire. Unlike Germany, the Empire as a whole was self sufficent in food production and exported food to Germany. The Empire was one of the Central Powers and Germany supported it's desire to punish the Serbs for the assasination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (June 1914). The result was World War I. Like Germny, Austria mobilized expecting a short war. And like Germany, Austria- Hungary failed to adopt polices to maintain its agricultural production. Harvests fell dramatically due to the War or better stated Austrian mimanagement of the war effort. The shrinking food supply combined with the unequal distribution at the Imperial, provincial, regional and local levels generated inreasing discontent. The population faced daily struggles for food resulting in the fragmentation of the Imperial structure. The food distribution system broke down in Russia and the Ottoman Empires first, but the same eventually occured in Austria-Hungary as well. By the end of the War, people throughout the Empire were hungary, some starving. And the sitution was the worst in Austria. It was no longer the center of a great Empire. Vienna was a great European city in the middle of a now tiny, isolated republic. Before the War, Vienna relied on the grain producing areas in the eastern part of the Empire. The war upset this relationship. One author reports that the quota alloctions in Austria was about 30 percent below that of the Hungarian quotas. [Schulze, pp. 94–96.] Food shortages in addition to the terrible War casualties were the major reason for the collapse of the Empire. The Austro-Hungarian armies were battered by the Russians, but with with German support were not defeated in the field. Instead the Empire desintegrted with the major ethnic groups forming or joining national states (Czechoslovkia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia). Austria was the smallest of these national states with ethnic cores and sufferd economic dislocations. Austria was now cut off economically from the larger part of its former empire. And in the aftermath of the War there were serious food shortages in the cities. People on farms had food, if not much money. But people in the cities, especially Vienna, began to starve. A surprising rescurer appeared, Austria's former enemy--the United States. The Amerikanisch Kinder Hilfs Aktion began distributing food in Vienna and other cities. [Reischl]

Austro-Hungarian Empire

Austria was a new republic formed out of the German-speaking western area of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, one of the World War I Central Powers. The Austro-Hungarian Empire had been a major European power for centuries, but it was a laregly agricultural power and failed to industrialize like Germany to the north. This was why Austria lost the Austro-Prussian War and Germany united around Prussia and not Austria (1866). The Austro-Hungarian Empire was formed out of the old Hapsburg Austrian Empire after this defeat. The Hapsburg monarhy made constitutionl concesions to hold Hungary within their realm. At Bismarck's urging, Prussia settled the War with a soft peace. Most of the Austro-Hungarian Empire's indutry was in the Czech lands of Bohemia. Austria itself was primarily agricultural with craft manufacturing. While agricultural, Austrian farms were not particulaly efficent. Thus Vienna and other cities imported food from the grain producing eastern ares of the Empire. Unlike Germany, the Empire as a whole was self sufficent in food production and exported food to Germany.

World War I Food Situation

The Austro-Hungarian Empire was one of the Central Powers and Germany supported it's desire to punish the Serbs for the assasination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (June 1914). The result was World War I. Like Germany, Austria mobilized expecting a short war. And like Germany, Austria- Hungary failed to adopt polices to maintain its agricultural production. Harvests fell dramatically due to the War or better stated Austrian mimanagement of the war effort. The shrinking food supply combined with the unequal distribution at the Imperial, provincial, regional and local levels generated inreasing discontent. The population faced daily struggles for food resulting in the fragmentation of the Imperial structure. The food distribution system broke down in Russia and the Ottoman Empires first, but the same eventually occured in Austria-Hungary as well. By the end of the War, people throughout the Empire were hungary, some starving. And the sitution was the worst in Austria. It was no longer the center of a great Empire. Vienna was a great European city in the middle of a now tiny, isolated republic. Before the War, Vienna relied on the grain producing areas in the eastern part of the Empire. The war upset this relationship. One author reports that the quota alloctions in Austria was about 30 percent below that of the Hungarian quotas. [Schulze, pp. 94–96.] Food shortages in addition to the terrible War casualties were the major reason for the collapse of the Empire. The Austro-Hungarian armies were battered by the Russians, but with with German support were not defeated in the field. Instead they desintegrted with the major ethnic groups forming or joining national states (Czechoslovkia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia) with ethnic cores.

Rationing

The Austro-Hungarian Empire like Russia had a largely agicultural economy. What heavy industry that existed was mostly in the Czech Lands (Bohemia). The rest of the Empire had an economy based on craft workshops and agiculture. They were self suffcent in food production at the time that the war broke out. Austriaas unprepared foer war and what preparation had occurred did not include any thought to food and polciies needed to maintain food prouction during a major war. After the outbreak of war, the imperial government mobilized resources pursued war policies with little regard as to the impact on food production. Agricultural production sharply deteriorated. Imports of foodwere not possible because of the allied naval blockade. The mass conscription of agricultural workers impacted food production and food shortage soon developed. It was not just a production problem. The distribution of available food supplies was also a major probem. This included problems at the national, provincial, regional and local levels. Unlike the Allies who ould turn to America,Austria-Hungary could not turn to Germany which had seious food sgortages of its own. For the population of the Empire it became a daily struggleto obtain food and all too frequently there was not food to be had. This would be a factor in the fragmetatin of the Empire at the end of the War.

Post War Food Crisis

Austria was the smllest of the states formed out of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and sufferd economic dislocations. It was now cut off economically from the larger part of its former empire. Vienna was an imperial capital without an empire. This affected commerce, finance, politics and much more. In the aftermath of the War there were serious food shortages in the cities. People on farms had food, if not much money. But people in the cities experienced a food disaster, especially Vienna. People began to starve and the children were the most vulnerable. A surprising rescuer appeared, Austria's World War I enemy--the United States. The Amerikanisch Kinder Hilfs Aktion (American Children's Charity Effort) -- sometimes called American Kitchens began a relief effort. The Americans began distributing food to children and other cities. [Reischl] There were serious consequences of the post-War famine, War diseases developed from malnutrition which lowed the body's defenses. There were also Amerikanisch Kinder Hilfs Aktion operations in Lower Austria.

American Clinic in Vienna

American aid to Austria was not limited to food. The Unitted States provided oher relieft supplies. We also notice medical assistance. We have not been able to find much information about this effort. We do notice the American Clinic in Vienna which treated children with rickits. Children during and after World War I were the most vulnerable to food shortages and malnutrition. One of the many possible health problems is rickits. This is the softening and weakening of bones in children commonly caused by an extreme and prolonged vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D is needed to absorb calcium and phosphorus from the gastrointestinal tract. A vitamin D deficiency meanms that it is difficult to maintain proper calcium and phosphorus levels in bones, which pf course is disaterpos for growing young children. An even bigger problem was tuberculosis (TB). Thousands of children were being sent to other countries where food was more available, but TB is an infectous disease and they could not be sent abroad. An American clinic was set up in Vienna after the War to treat children with rickets. The climic was part of an effort founded by Austruan immigrants in America.

Sources

Reischl, Friedrich. Wiens Kinder Und Amerika Die Amerikanische Kinder Hilfsaktion 1919 (1920).

Schulze, Max Stephan. "Austria-Hungary’s economy in World War I," in Stephen N. Broadberry and Mark Harrison, eds. The Economics of World War I (Cambridge University Press: Cambridge/New York, 2005).

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Created: 12:41 AM 2/11/2016
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