In the Tokyo Olympic stadium audience, British diver Tom Daley knitting sweaters to ease the tension of the game became a unique focus on the Olympic stadium. Daley is not alone in practicing this decompression method. Former British Prime Minister Churchill is also a fan of knitting sweaters.
In the audience at the Tokyo Olympics, British diver Tom Daley knitting sweaters became a unique focus on the Olympics. Daly said that knitting sweaters on the one hand is to raise funds for brain tumor charities, on the other hand, it can also help him ease the tension of the game.
Daley is not alone in practicing this decompression method. Former British Prime Minister Churchill is also a fan of knitting sweaters. Why did knitting become commonplace during World War II?
Terra knitting Churchill
in World War II began shortly after the leader of Nazi Germany Hitler’s eyes eyeing the British Isles. In order to conquer Britain as quickly as possible, Hitler personally drew up the “Sea Lion Project” after defeating France, and Britain was continuously bombarded.
At that time, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill could only rest for three or four hours a day in the face of such a tense war process. The fire from outside the window made everyone’s nerves tight. One day, the generals went to the basement where Churchill was to report on the battle, and saw the Prime Minister sitting there knitting a sweater solemnly. The generals asked Churchill very curiously, why are we knitting at such an urgent juncture? Churchill said: “It is at a critical juncture that my brain has to remain calm and clear at all times. Knitting can relax me, relieve tension and avoid issuing wrong instructions.”
At noon on September 15, 1940, the German 200 A bomber crossed the English Channel under the cover of 600 fighter jets, preparing to launch a final attack on Britain. More than 300 British fighters faced the situation of “the enemy is strong and we are weak”, and they were launched into the air in 6 batches to intercept them, and then suddenly launched attacks. Unprepared for this, the Germans were caught off guard, and the huge fleet quickly became a mess, losing 183 fighters after 20 minutes. Seeing that the fighter plane was gone, the German army had no chance of victory, so they had to retreat. Two days later, Hitler announced the postponement of the “Sea Lion Project.”
For Churchill, knitting is undoubtedly the best way to reduce stress. For the British people, the knitting prime minister led them to victory in the anti-fascist war. After World War II, Churchill has been working on writing a memoir about the world war. Later, when he was getting older, he would still pick up the sweater needles after writing, relax his nerves and plan the layout in the back and forth needle and thread.
The fate of the turning point sweater
current archaeological findings demonstrate, at least in the 14th century, knitting commodities began as daily necessities spread in parts of Europe. Knitted wool socks were very popular in Europe in the Middle Ages, and the hand-knitting industry was once a popular industry in Britain, Spain and other places. In the 17th and 18th centuries, people living in the islands of Scotland devoted themselves to making sweaters, because fishermen needed woolen clothes to withstand the bad weather when they were out fishing. Therefore, sweaters were once associated with specific occupations.
But sweaters truly became a must-have garment for everyone since the First World War. On the battlefield, the soldiers had a strong desire for warm clothing, so sweaters became excellent equipment. Soldiers wore sweaters knitted by the people of their hometown one by one.
In September 1914, in the face of insufficient supply in the rear, Queen Mary, the wife of King George V of England, called on the whole people to knit sweaters for frontline soldiers, planning to knit 300,000 pairs of woolen socks and 300,000 woolen belts in two months. The British government also took advantage of the trend to carry out the “knitting for victory” activities, which aroused enthusiastic response, and even the school class activities are holding competitions such as “who knits the fastest” and “who knits the knitting needle the loudest”.
Therefore, the British men, women and children at the time were knitting sweaters. The kind-hearted people wanted to contribute to the victory of the war in this way, so knitting was given a patriotic meaning. At that time, people were sitting at home knitting sweaters, sitting in steam trains and buses knitting sweaters; people knitting sweaters in meetings, the sound of knitting sweaters all over the room, the voice of the speaker was drowned out. The symphony orchestra preparing to perform even posted notices prohibiting citizens from knitting at the concert.
Knitting sweaters takes time and effort after all. After the Industrial Revolution, machine knitting gradually replaced manual labor. However, the reality of the shortage of supplies during the war and the patriotic enthusiasm of the masses have once again set off the upsurge of hand-knitting sweaters in many countries.
During World War II, the “repair for a lifetime” movement evolved into a nationwide knitting activity. People perform secondary processing on old sweaters, some weave new yarns to make the sweater more durable, and some use skilled embroidery techniques to cover the sweater wormholes. In addition, the old sweaters that could not be worn were transformed into anti-scalding cloths for pot handles, creative carpets, and rags.
During the First World War, it was rumored that when people knit sweaters, they used the distance between the knots in the sweater to compare with the alphabet to generate a password, thereby knitting information in the sweater. During World War II, rumors reappeared. It is said that those girls who lived near the railway would code the train schedules and operating conditions, knit them in stockings, and then pass them on to the intelligence unit.
Knitting magical effect
after two world wars, knitting has become trend. It is in this trend that people have discovered the many functions of knitting sweaters.
During World War I, hundreds of European travelers traveling to the United States were trapped on Alice Island near New York. To help them pass the time, the American Red Cross organized some interesting and creative activities, including knitting sweaters. Those who were originally depressed and wandering with nothing to do find happiness in knitting activities.
For captives, knitting provides a good way for effective management. In a report published in the British “Daily Mail”, a British soldier who was captured by the Germans said: “The idle hands can only be done by picking up the needles… Many people feel that they are skilled in knitting sweaters. It is a feminine expression, but if the captured person sees that his clothes are torn, he immediately happily picks up the needle and thread to mend it. “Knitting sweaters really allows the soldiers to stay honestly in the prison camp.
In the same way, prison management can also take advantage of the benefits of knitting. Thomas Mott Osborne, a well-known American prison reformer, conducted a pilot weaving class in two prisons in the United States during World War I. Prisoners who had nothing to do on weekdays were organized to sit at the table and learn to knit while listening to music.
In addition to soothing emotions and stimulating fun, knitting seems to also stimulate the potential of the brain. At the suggestion of a surgeon at Camp Dix in New Jersey, the U.S. Army began training soldiers to knit sweaters. In the post-war rehabilitation treatment, the injured soldiers also lay knitting sweaters on the hospital bed during the healing period. Experts believe that knitting can not only soothe the soul with the warm finished product, but also make the attention highly concentrated during the knitting process. It helps to relieve pain and is a good rehabilitation treatment method.
In addition, knitting has become a tool for expressing ideas. In the 1970s, young people who pursued fashion liked to wear their own knitted sweaters to flaunt their resistance to tradition and homogeneity. They would leave holes, rips and unclosed broken threads in their sweaters to convey their own. Attitudes and thoughts.
