1. British Depth Study - Civilians
OCR History GCSE – How was British society changed, ?

2. Outbreak of War The First World War started in August 1914
The public mood was very positive; people expected the war to be over by Christmas
Most people felt that Britain would easily win the war, and it seemed like an adventure
Women were excited about work opportunities

3. Recruitment
Between 1914 and 1916, 2.5 million men volunteered for the British Army
This was a result of the recruitment campaign launched by the Government in 1914
Often whole groups of friends from an area joined up together as a ‘Pals Battalion’
By late 1915, the Government were considering conscription

4. Conscription
In January of 1916, military service became compulsory for all single men aged 18-41
However, in May this was later extended to all married men
According to the act, only those men in ‘reserved occupations’ were exempt; this included miners or those working in munitions factories
By 1918, all men up to the age of 51 were included in this act
Conscientious objectors were people who refused to fight or join the army
They were often imprisoned, and had to appear before a local tribunal to explain their beliefs

5. DORA
In August 1914, the Government introduced the Defence of the Realm Act (DORA)
This gave the government power to pass laws quickly and easily, and take over businesses to help the war effort
The Government fixed profits and wages of any remaining industries, including the coal industry
New state-run munitions factories were opened due to the munitions crisis
By the end of the war, the Government controlled about 20,000 factories

6. Food Shortage
The Government encouraged women to work on the land throughout the war
The ‘nine penny loaf’ was created to ensure that poor people could afford food
German U-Boats began attacking ships coming into the UK, so food shortages became serious
Voluntary rationing was encouraged in 1916 and 1917
These did not work, however, so compulsory rationing was introduced in 1918
There was a black market, but punishments for this were very severe

7. Civilian Casualties
Compared to military casualties, there were relatively few civilian casualties
However about 1,500 civilians were killed throughout the war
In late 1914, German warships shelled towns in North East England
In early 1915, Zeppelin airships began bombing raids on England
There were 57 raids
In May 1917, German Gotha bombers began the first of 27 raids on British towns

8. Propaganda
DORA allowed the government to control all propaganda that was released
A lot of propaganda was targetted at children through books, games and toys; this seems to have been the most effective
Official films aimed to persuade people to contribute to the war effort and mocked the Germans
Posters and cartoons always avoided explicit description of the war
Official photographs were not allowed to show the dead or dying; many soldiers laughed at these because they did not represent at all what life was like for them

9. Newspapers Newspapers were heavily monitored
The pacifist Newspaper The Tribunal was shut down
They used slang to keep morale high
The press did not publish bad news early on in the war
No casualty lists were published until May 1915
Newspaper correspondents were not allowed at the Front