--- title: "The military origin of the classic gin and tonic cocktail" date: "2020-04-29" modified: "2020-10-30" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-culture/gin-tonic-military-origins/" categories: - "History" --- # The military origin of the classic gin and tonic cocktail ![]() Some days, you just feel like you need a drink. Other days, you can't live without one. For hundreds — maybe thousands — of English troops, there's one drink that literally saved their lives: the gin and tonic. --- It all started when the Spanish learned that [Quechua tribesmen]() in the 1700s (in what is now Peru) would strip the bark from cinchona trees and grind it to help stop fever-related shivering. The active ingredient in the cinchona power was a little chemical known as quinine. It didn't take long before Spain began to use the remedy to fight malaria. Eventually, the treatment made its way around the world, helping the British colonial government in India maintain order. ![]() Any gin is a better complement to wood shavings than wine. Whilethe French mixed the cinchona with wine, the British mixed theirs with gin,sugar, and,often, a bit of lemon. Later on, this mixture became even more pleasantwhen a Swiss jeweler of German descent, Johann Jakob Schweppe, created amixture of bubbly soda water, citrus, and quinine—and calledit "Schweppes Indian Tonic Water." By 1869, Indian companies were manufacturing their own soda water and lemon tonics. With easy access to the soda and one of Britain's favorite spirits, the redcoats were free to continue colonizing the subcontinent unabated by pesky mosquitoes. ![]() Too bad there wasn't a cocktail that helped the British conquer Afghanistan. Today's tonic water has much less quinine in it. To prevent malaria, you'd need between 500-1,000 milligrams of quinine, but consuming an entire liter of tonic water today would only get you about 83-87 milligrams. Quinine alone isn't even an effective treatment for the disease anymore, as malarial parasites have grown resistant to the drug. These days, a drug cocktail is more effective at malaria prevention than quinine alone. So, bring along your Hendrick's and Tonic, but don't forget to bring your malaria pills, too. ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()