New data reveals that the UK's biggest baby boom occurred not in the 1960s or after World War II, but in 1920, when over 1.1 million babies were born. This record remains unbroken despite a significant increase in the population of childbearing age since then.
The 1920 boom followed a dramatic collapse in births during World War I and the Spanish flu pandemic, which together caused about a quarter of a million fewer births per year than expected. Infant mortality was also about 15 times higher than today, making survival a challenge for many.
In 2010, there were about 807,000 live births in the UK, a rise of nearly 20% in a decade, but still far below the 1920 peak. Only Northern Ireland has ever exceeded its 1920 total.
The boom was short-lived, however, as the birth rate collapsed again the following year, creating a demographic rollercoaster that strained midwives, hospitals, and schools. Today, the remaining members of this generation are all in their 90s, with numbers dwindling rapidly.
