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There were attempts to curb this disruptive behaviour. On August 21 1740, Admiral Edward Vernon ordered the daily ration to be diluted to three parts water, one part rum, which would be issued to his fleet only twice a day. The mixture became known as 'Grog' and, despite the addition of other ingredients such as lemon, lime, sugar and cinnamon, it was met with much disdain by its drinkers. Yet the intoxicated behaviour continued, leading to the rum being diluted even further. By 1950 sailors were allowed just an eighth of a pint.

In early 1970, the Admiralty Board issued concerns over the safety of its sailors concluding that, in the face of technologically advanced machinery and weaponry, "the rum issue is no longer compatible with the high standards of efficiency required now that the individual's tasks in ships are concerned with complex, and often delicate, machinery and systems on the correct functioning of which people's lives may depend."

On January 28, 1970 the House of Commons sat to discuss these concerns in a meeting now known as the 'Great Rum Debate'. Mr James Wellbeloved, Labour MP for Erith and Crayford at the time and an ex-wartime sailor in the Royal Navy, argued that there was "no evidence readily available" to suggest that the rum 'tot' affected the operational efficiency of the Royal Navy, and that in fact the rum enabled the sailors "to face the coming action with greater strength and greater determination".

However, evidence such as that provided by Dr David Owen, the Under-Secretary of State of Defence for the Royal Navy, opposed this view. He stated that if "to an individual's naval tot, is added a proportion of another man's tot, which happens all too frequently" then the individual has the same blood alcohol levels in which it is declared illegal to drive a car in Britain.

And so the end of the 'rum ration' was declared, and on July 31, 1970 the Royal Navy sailors boarded their ship's decks to take their last 'tot' of rum, many wearing black armbands in tribute. 'Black Tot Day' was born and each year, on this day, the history of the British Navy is celebrated (and toasted, I am sure, with a 'tot' of rum).

Lamb's Navy Rum is marking Black Tot Day by giving away tots of rum and other Lamb's merchandise. To win these, and see Lamb's modern take on the tot recipe, visit their Facebook page before 2 August (You must be over 18 to view the website)