Please refer to the article on British Army Rations when planning food or menus. Mess Group Leaders should also refer to the Mess Group Leader's Guide for meal planning. These lists are intended only as a reminder when planning and packing.
	Items marked with a red arrow are exclusively Crown Issued Provisions. No member of the Company of Select Marksmen or Indian Department should take it upon themselves to supply these items at events. The reason for this is there is a designated quartermaster either through Quartermaster Cubbison or Mistress McAnulty who go to a lot of effort in organizing mess groups and crown issued provisions.
	Items marked with a green arrow are provisions individual members may provide for themselves as supplements to the Crown food. These items represent the Foraged Provisions a soldier might be expected to have either by legal appropriation, donation, or purchase. These items are often treats and should be treated as supplements only to the established diet issued at events. A soldier SHOULD NOT expect to live off this food exclusively. In fact, one of the primary reasons this food is permitted at all is to insure health and variety in people who normally are not expected or accustomed to a strict 18th century diet. Please choose only a select few of the items per event and keep the quanities to a minimum.
	Items marked with a blue arrow have a special categorization as Native Provisions. Like green arrow foods, they are considered foraged food provided to Indian Department Officers by Native villages. Those members on the Indian Department payroll (by the way, that's all of us!) are permitted to bring limited amounts of these foods. However, like foraged food, they should be considered a supplement to the quartermaster's diet. In addition, as our Native brothers provide for us, it is highly encouraged that the favour is returned and those Natives who frequent the Marksmen camp be allowed to partake of anything they wish.

* All food should be in period containers. No plastic bags.

• Crown Issue Provisions
  (These items should not be provided by individuals unless requested by the event quartermaster. Please see notes below.)
  • Beef - 1 pound per man per day of fresh beef, or salt beef (modern corned beef)
  • Pork - 1/2 pound per man per day of salt pork, or slab bacon during field service or Ranger duties
  • Bread, 1 1/2 pounds per man per day
  • Biscuit (hardtack), during field service or Ranger duties
  • Flour (unbaked, would have been considered to be a hardship not to be issued with baked bread)
  • Meale (steel cut oat meal) - one meal only
  • Rice - one meal only
  • Pease (dried split peas) - one meal only
  • Sauerkraut - one meal only
  • Butter
  • Cheese
  • Spruce Beer
  • Rum

• Foraged Provisions
  (Members are permitted to bring limited supplies of the following items. On occasion quantities of these items are provided by the Crown. Please see notes below.)
  • Bohea Tea (no teabags)
  • Hunan Tea (no teabags)
  • Green Coffee
  • Sea Salt
  • Sugar (Maple / Cone)
  • Sauerkraut
  • Cheese
  • Fresh Bread
  • Sausage
  • Fresh Chicken or other fowl
  • Fresh Fish
  • Dried Beef / Pork / Venison
  • Raisins / Dried Currants
  • Ginger
  • Onions
  • Turnips (seasonal only)
  • Brown Rice
  • White Corn meal
  • Fresh Corn (seasonal only) - should be white, if possible; not yellow or butter-and-sugar
  • Carrots (seasonal only)
  • Cabbage (seasonal only)
  • Lettuce (seasonal only)
  • Apples (seasonal only)
  • Other fresh produce when season permits
  • Rum flask (only ONE small flask per man!)
  • Chocolate

• Native Provisions
  (Members are permitted to bring limited supplies of the following items on occasions when they are serving with the Indian Department)
  • Parched Corn
  • Fresh Native Corn Varieties (seasonal only)
  • Dried Berries
  • Squash fresh / dried
  • Cranberry Beans
  • Purple Kidney Beans
  • Maple Sugar
  • Musk Melon (seasonal only)
  • Water Melon (seasonal only)
  • Burdock Root
  • Iroquois Potato (Jeruselum Artichoke)
  • Ginseng
  • Asparagus
  • Spring Onions
  • Leek
  • Acorns
  • Hazelnuts
  • Sunflower seeds

Crown Issue Provision Notes

Crown Issue Provisions are food ordinance provided by the government and distributed by military authorities to feed the troops. Often these provisions were very simple and inexpensive. However, it was an unwritten understanding that the soldier should be provided with a staple such as dried pease or flour, a meat such as pork or beef (fresh if at all possible), and an issue of grog, most often in the form of spruce beer.

Campaign conditions made the diet vary and sway (sometimes to the merest proportions). However, when in garrison or peacetime, by no means was the soldier expected to live off of this drab diet. For one such food was conducive to the disease scurvy which was a spontaneous problem with soldiers and sailors of the period. So as with all armies throughout history a soldier could expect a small amount of fresh provision either via foraging whether it be legally taken, illegally taken, self produced or purchased.

When at all possible the government or army staff made an effort to supplement the regiment provision issue with such things as cabbage, fresh bread, apples, lettuce, roots, etc purchased from local suppliers. There are also references to orders being given to establish garrison gardens making soldiers somewhat self sufficient for some of their seasonal fresh produce.

No member of the Company of Select Marksmen or Indian Department should take it upon themselves to supply Crown issue provisions unless expressly requested to by the event quartermaster. Doing so only makes the effort and money of the quartermaster redundant and ultimately frustrates the simulated dietary environment of the 18th century soldier.

Foraged Provision Notes

The foraged food list represents a limited scope of 18th century foods that a soldier might expect to receive through extraordinary sources. Members are expected to provide themselves with these supplements and on rare occasion can expect the Crown to offer such victuals on top of the regular Crown provision. The word forage when it applies to our unit refers to provision supplements that a soldier can get any way possible. Whether it is Bohea Tea purchased from a soldier's own wages from a sutler or lettuce stolen from a civilian garden, foraging is one of the ancient arts of a soldier in the field. Often locals who supported the cause would donate provision and sometimes locals (friend or foe) would be forced to donate whether they liked it or not. More often than not civilians were compensated but in extreme cases a soldier was authorized to take in the name of the King's cause. Even when he was not authorized a soldier would sometimes risk the severity of martial punishment by thieving and looting.

All members must be aware that foraging is only a supplement and should not be abused. In practice a member should elect only two or three items from the list in limited quantities to supplement an event or trek. A member should not bring pounds of chocolate or every item on the list, as this would be a misrepresentation of what was available to the 18th century soldier through foraging. Please consider these items as treats and luxuries.

Naturally the CSM / Indian Department do not condone actual stealing of food. :-)

Native Provision Notes

Due to the nature of the war in the North the CSM and Indian Department where more exposed to Britain's Native allies than regular troops. Without a doubt the Indian Department element also admitted Native influences. Often Indian Department Officers and Marksmen who served under arms with the warriors in the field would reap the benefits of the Native culture. One of these benefits was assuredly the American Natives benign sense of hospitality. Men would draw the boon of full access to Native food stores while in residence near Native communities. There is much reference to Natives sharing everything they owned, especially food to strangers, even if they themselves where on the verge of starvation. Therefore this list which is essentially an addition to the forage list, represents food of Iroquian / Eastern Woodland cultures. That would certainly touch the mouths of Indian Department Officers.

This list also represents a deep interest the recreated Indian Department has for Native culture. All these foods are traditional Native crops and / or wild crafted goods. Period records often marvel and the abundant wealth and choice of food available to the 18th century Native people. One of our missions is to keep this record alive and experiment with seed preservation and the fun part of preparing and tasting the food.

It should be noted that the Native warrior of the 18th century eastern woodland region lived off very little during the warpath. There are records referring to the warrior living off as little as a handful of parched corn meal a day. Other references mention warriors returning home half starved and living off of the scrapings of tree bark. This self imposed restraint was due to the fact a Native Warrior traveled very light. They were the most efficient at movement and survival compared to a European army that depended heavily on supply lines. Therefore the recreated CSM and Indian Department for obvious health reasons allow men to supplement the issued foods with minimal Native food forage from the list.

Back to FOOD & PROVISION