Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma

What people wore

Head covering requirements for women in Mass

After 1939, women were officially required to cover their heads with a veil or mantilla when attending Mass.

Getting around

Continuous London-Paris rail ferry service

Launched in 1936, the Night Ferry allowed passengers to travel between London and Paris by train without changing, as the rail cars were loaded onto a ferry boat to cross the English Channel.

At the table

Creative substitutions for scarce food

Ordinary families survived by using culinary imagination to simulate scarce items, such as making omelets without eggs using bread and onions.

Music

Traditional and modern dances

Traditional dances like the bourrée and rigadoon were passed down through generations, while new international styles like the tango, fox trot, and Charleston became widespread favorites during the interwar period. At family gatherings, elders often performed traditional dances while young people watched.

Daily life

School children's labor and chores

School children performed manual labor for the war effort, such as going to potato fields every Thursday to remove Colorado beetles from the plants. Students also helped clean the local school swimming pool by scrubbing the walls and floor barefoot with brushes.

What it cost

Cooking oil prices in 1938

In 1938, a liter of cooking oil with an official price of 3 pesetas could reach 100 pesetas on the black market.