WW1 and the public

• The war was mostly popular in 1914 as major opposition groups such as the Suffragettes and Irish Nationalists suspending agitation and supporting the war.
• In 1914, the Suffragettes supported the war as they believed it would help boost women’s rights in the long run by giving them equal roles in factories etc.
• In 1914, the main, albeit limited, opposition to war came from the pacifist Quakers and anti-war Socialists. The Labour Party and the Trade Union Congress were supportive of the war. Industrial truce was able to stem left-wing activism
• Conscientious objectors refused military service and were assessed by tribunal, they were most often given medical or agricultural roles. If they refused they would be sent to the army or prison.
• The British government let the newspapers censor themselves in 1914, however they had official censors read the letters home from soldiers to remove any reference to unit names, plans etc.
• From Summer 1915 onwards, many newspapers printed casualty lists in full.
• Many members of the public in 1914 could act as though the war wasn’t happening (phony war period)
• War propaganda bureau was set up

  1914
• Domestic propaganda


  Focused on war aims
• Propaganda was also directed at the US
• Propaganda

  • Patriotic
  • Created "German atrocities" such as rape and murder of nuns etc.
• Nurse (British spy) Edith Cavel's shooting caused an outcry


  1915
• Anti-German sentiment became widespread with attacks on shops with German sounding names
• Many British saw the use of propaganda as "un-British"
• More public support was gained from German actions such as sinking of the Lusitania, bombardment of Scarborough and Zeppelin raids than propaganda
• Propaganda was also churned out by newspapers in the form of biased anti-German articles
• Most Britons stayed patriotic throughout the war
• Anti-German sentiment outweighed other grievances so war support remained strong
• Defence of the Realm Act 1914 restricted flow of information, meaning military matters could not be talked of in public and newspapers were forced to operate within censorship guidelines
• Over 50 million propaganda posters printed throughout the war
• The Battle of the Somme, although partially staged, was a large success. By October 1916 it had been shown in 2000 cinemas
• September 1914 War Office began its own battlefield reports called “Eyewitness“ written by Swinton and were too technical and received little interest
• Government reports were contradictory with those of the generals, so public lost trust in the government
• Many soldiers took cameras to take pictures of the war. After the Christmas truce of 1914, Marshal French issued a ban on cameras.
• Official British photographer in 1916 was Ernest Brooks but by the end of the war, there were 16 official photographers. The intent of the official photos was to show the positive aspects of the war, but it was later revealed that they were faking it by photographing training exercises instead.
• Starting in 1916, the BEF took official war artists to the Western Front. This was organised through the War Propaganda Bureau
• War Propaganda Bureau unsuccessfully tried to control the output of their officially sanctioned war artists on the Western Front. They ended up being too realistic as opposed to the idealised battlefield depictions that they wanted.
• Magazine illustrations and war art were very different in WW1, magazine illustrations were more sanitised for public enjoyment
• Trench humour:

  • Old Bill (vulgar but popular so allowed to continue)
  • Wipers Times was a satirical, dark-humour oriented paper created on the Western Front
• The Government was unable to censor poets but this had little impact until the publishing of their work in the post-war period
• Despite the wishes of the Generals, journalists were allowed on the Western Front
• Government eased press restrictions to maintain good relations with the USA
• Press Corps were briefed on surprise attacks by General Hubert
• Journalists were hurried away when guns opened fire
• Dispatches censored sensitive information with blue pencils
• The Times stopped giving full casualty lists because they were demoralising in May 1917
• Defence of the Realm Act 1914 gave the ability to rule by decree, gaining tight control of the munitions industry and the press (not socialism as most industry was still privately owned). Liberal MPs did not like this intervention.
• Asquith was a good peacetime PM but a shit war one. He refused to intervene in military matters and did not properly chase up government departments. In May 1915, he brought together the National Government which allowed Lloyd George to rise to prominence.
• Lloyd George became PM in December 1916. He took a more dictatorial approach than most other PMs. He centralised government power in the War Council and brought men from outside Parliament in to run key ministries. He was however, a poor administrator and his government’s successes are often overstated as the army and his departments were uncooperative
• The Liberal Party was divided before 1914 between those who were for social reform and those against government intervention. The Trade Unions didn’t want to fund either wing because the Labour Party seemed more cool. Furthermore, they failed to deal with the Irish powder keg.