Officially a British soldier had to be nineteen years old to serve overseas but many lied about their age. About two hundred fifty-thousand under-age boys served. The youngest was discovered to be just twelve.
There were sixteen thousand British conscientious objectors who refused to fight. Many received white feathers as a sign of cowardice. Some were given non--combatant roles, others were imprisoned.
France and Britain began the war without rationing and, while it was modestly introduced in Britain in January 1940, France had still resisted by the time they were defeated in June 1940. Germany, on the other hand, introduced rationing before the war and struggled to feed its armed forces and the wider population from start to finish.
The country’s demand for food from occupied territories led to a lot of hunger for a lot of people, including the urban French. British people never had to go hungry and, although a number of foods were rationed, there were lots that were not. Certainly, by 1945, Britain had it very easy compared with the rest of Europe.