Yesterday marks the 48th anniversary of Black Tot Day. On July 31, 1970, the Royal British Navy removed the rum from their ships. Black Tot Day is the name given to the last day on which the Royal Navy issued sailors with a daily rum ration, the daily tot if you will. In the 17th century, the daily drink ration for English sailors was a gallon of beer, but because the beer would spoil at sea, they switched to rum. This was the end of a tradition that lasted more than 300 years. There are so many stories about the rum and the sailors that could be told, but in fact it was just a sad day in British Naval history.Lets just raise our Glasses to the end of a very special tradition. This tradition began in 1655 just after the invasion of Jamaica. By 1740 Admiral Vernon mandated that the rum be mixed with water to cut it town from its 109 proof. This mixture became known ass grog. Around 1823 the ration was cut in half, and cut by half again in 1850. Finally on July 31, 1970 the rations were eliminated completely. Like I said, a Black Tot Day in British Naval History.
