Dutch courage, also known aspot-valiance orliquid courage, refers tocourage gained fromintoxication withalcohol.[1]
Alcohol is occasionally used by criminals as a tool to commit alcohol-related offenses. These may includealcohol-facilitated sexual assaults,drunk driving, thefts (for example motor vehicle thefts), or alcohol-fueled robberies andviolent crimes. However, Dutch courage defense is not a validintoxication defense.
Consuming alcohol prior to visiting female sex workers is a common practice among some men.[2] Also, sex workers often resort to using drugs and alcohol to cope with stress. However, femalesex workers in low- and middle-income countries have high rates of harmful alcohol use, which is associated with increased risk of unprotected sex andsexually transmitted infections.[3]
Alcohol use among college students is often used as "liquid courage" in thehookup culture, for them to make a sexual advance in the first place.[4]: 200 However, a recent trend called "dry dating" is gaining popularity to replace "liquid courage", which involves going on dates without consuming alcohol.[5][6][7]
Alcohol has a long association of military use, and has been called "liquid courage" for its role in preparing troops for battle. It has also been used to anaesthetize injured soldiers, celebrate military victories, and cope with the emotions of defeat.
Military and veteran populations face significant challenges in addressing the co-occurrence ofPTSD andalcohol use disorder. While existing interventions show promise, more research is needed to evaluate their effectiveness for this specific population, and new tailored interventions should be developed and evaluated to better meet their unique needs.[8]
The popular story dates the etymology of the term Dutch courage to English soldiers fighting in theAnglo-Dutch Wars[9] (1652–1674) and perhaps as early as theThirty Years' War (1618–1648). One version states thatjenever (or Dutch gin) was used by English soldiers for its calming effects before battle, and for its purported warming properties on the body in cold weather. Another version has it that English soldiers noted the bravery-inducing effects of jenever on Dutch soldiers.[10][11]
Gin is a Dutch invention, and was first distilled in Holland in the 16th century. The flavouring in gin comes fromjuniper berries. The Dutch word for 'juniper' is 'jenever', which was thenAnglicised to 'ginever' and then finally to 'gin'.[11] Gin would go on to become popular in England thanks to KingWilliam III of England (William of Orange,r. 1689–1702), who was alsoStadtholder of the Netherlands.
There is a strong association of military service andalcohol use disorder. In 1862, British soldiers inIndia responded to the threat of problematic alcohol use by establishing the Soldiers' Total Abstinence Association, which became the Army Temperance Association in 1888. Similar organizations formed in other branches of military and for British troops stationed in othercolonies. Members of these abstinence associations were encouraged to sign pledges to avoid alcohol entirely. Medals were awarded to individuals who remained abstinent.[12] Studies show thatAustralian Defence Force veterans of theGulf War had a prevalence of alcohol use disorder higher than any other psychological disorder;British Armed Forces veterans of modern conflicts inIraq andAfghanistan had higher rates of alcohol use disorder than servicemembers who were not deployed.[12]
Alcohol has a long association of military use, and has been called "liquid courage" for its role in preparing troops for battle. It has also been used to anaesthetize injured soldiers, celebrate military victories, and cope with the emotions of defeat. In theRusso-Japanese War, alcohol has been implicated as a factor contributing to theRussian Empire's loss. Russian commanders, sailors, and soldiers were said to be drunk more than sober. Countries often enabled alcohol use by their troops through providing alcohol in their rations. The BritishRoyal Navy and otherCommonwealth navies once maintained arum ration for sailors untilBritain retired it in 1970.[13] TheRoyal Canadian Navy followed suit in 1972 as did theRoyal New Zealand Navy in 1990.[14][15] TheUnited States Navy similarly provided a distilled spirits ration between 1794 and 1862 when Secretary of the NavyGideon Welles removed most non-medicinal alcohol from U.S. naval vessels, with all alcohol consumption aboard ship banned in 1914.[16]
At the start ofWorld War II, alcohol consumption was widespread among members of theWehrmacht ofNazi Germany. At first, high-ranking officials encouraged its use as a means of relaxation and a crude method of mitigating the psychological effects of combat, in the latter case through what later scientific developments would describe as blocking the consolidation of traumatic memories. After theFall of France, however, Wehrmacht commanders observed that their soldiers' behavior was deteriorating, with "fights, accidents, mistreatment of subordinates, violence against superior officers and "crimes involving unnatural sexual acts" becoming more frequent.[17] The Commander-in-Chief of the German military, GeneralWalther von Brauchitsch, concluded that his troops were committing "most serious infractions" of morality and discipline, and that the culprit was alcohol abuse. In response,Hitler attempted to curb the reckless use of alcohol in the military, promising severe punishment for soldiers who exhibited public drunkenness or otherwise "allow[ed] themselves to be tempted to engage in criminal acts as a result of alcohol abuse." Serious offenders could expect "a humiliating death."[17] This revised policy accompanied an increase in Nazi Party disapproval of alcohol use in the civilian sector, reflecting an extension to alcohol of thelongstanding Nazi condemnation of tobacco consumption as diminishing the strength and purity of the "Aryan race."[18][17][19][20]
