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WW2, Rotterdam, The Netherlands - Scramble to get cigarettes
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WW2, Rotterdam, The Netherlands - Scramble to get cigarettes
WW2, Rotterdam, The Netherlands - Scramble to pick up cigarettes thrown from a moving train carriage by returning British RAF personnel. The heart of Rotterdam was almost completely destroyed by the Luftwaffe and some 80, 000 civilians were made homeless. Date: circa 1944
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Media ID 14344938
© Mary Evans / Grenville Collins Postcard Collection
Cigarettes Desperate Desperation Gather Gathering Gathers Moving Netherlands Pick Picked Picking Returning Rotterdam Scramble Thrown
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EDITORS COMMENTS
Amidst the ruins of Rotterdam, The Netherlands, during World War II, a scene of frantic desperation unfolds as civilians scramble to pick up discarded cigarettes thrown from a moving British RAF train carriage. The heart of this once vibrant city had been almost completely obliterated by the relentless bombing campaigns of the Luftwaffe. In the chaos and destruction, the simple pleasure of a cigarette became an elusive yet cherished commodity. Circa 1944, the date of this poignant photograph, the city was left in ruins, with an estimated 80,000 civilians left homeless. The image captures the raw emotion and urgency of the moment, as people reach out, desperate to grasp the precious cigarettes, a small token of comfort and normalcy amidst the unimaginable devastation. The returning British RAF personnel, having braved the skies to defend the Allied forces, unknowingly brought a glimmer of hope and relief to the war-torn city, one cigarette at a time.
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