Recruitment, Conscription,
Censorship and Propaganda
in Britain
Recruitment
Conscription
Censorship and Propaganda
Recruitment
Recruitment is the enlistment of volunteers to fight in their country’s army.
During the early months of the war recruiting committees were established
all over Britain and had little problem encouraging men to join.
By mid-November 1914, 700 000 men had volunteered, and by January 1915
that number had risen to over 1.34 million men.
As competition to enter the ranks became tough, enlistment rates fell
dramatically thus recruitment campaigns became more radical. Sports clubs
and professional football association were used effectively to promote
recruitment, as was war propaganda.
Britons Wants You: Join Your Country’s Army
Lord Kitchener (pictured) was the Minister of
War and featured on early recruitment posters to
encourage men to defend their country and
participate in the war.
This poster was a prominently used and well
known recruitment poster which influenced the
decision of many man to join the army.
This poster appealed to men’s patriotism
individually and made them believe they could
make a difference and help their country and
families.
It is of the perspective of a British Recruiting
Office which uses Lord Kitchener’s authoritative
influence for recruitment.
Source: Webb,K -World War 1: From Sarajevo to Versailles
Wanted at the Front: Enlist Today
This poster is appealing to the men’s pride
and patriotism for their country and their
want to defend their land and king.
The flag demonstrates the patriotism and the
lines of men embarrass the other men in the
crowd as they aren’t doing anything to help.
This poster deals with needing more men at
the fighting front and trying to motivate them
in to helping their bit.
The poster is inclusive and personal and
would have made men think about why they
haven’t joined up and then changed that.
The perspective of the poster is of a soldier or
higher army general who need more men to
enlist.
Source: http://library.georgetown.edu
Women Of Britain Say- ‘Go’
The ‘Women of Britain Say- Go’ poster was a
popular recruitment poster as it appealed to
women to encourage their brothers, husbands,
male family members to enlist in the war.
It was an effective poster as the women did
encourage the men to enlist and the men who
didn’t would be embarrassed and ashamed as they
were called a coward and given a white feather to
symbolise this.
The women and young boy in this poster are
looking to the soldiers in admiration as they go to
defend their country. This would appeal to the
men and they would want women to admire them
also.
This source is of the perspective of women of
Britain, telling the men in their lives to go to war
and do their bit for Britain.
Source: http://library.georgetown.edu
Recruitment Poster: Who’s Absent
This recruitment poster is direct and
personalised. It is aimed at the men who
hadn’t volunteered to fight.
The pointing finger is accusing, as is his stare,
and is designed to be direct and bring shame
to the men who hadn’t joined the army.
The poster demonstrates British pride and
patriotism and is eluding that not joining the
army is proving that you aren’t patriotic.
The perspective of the poster is that of the
British army appealing to men to enlist in the
army.
Source: http://quadri.wordpress.com/-propaganda-in-the-first-world-war/
Conscription
Conscription is the forcible enlistment of men into the armed services.
In Britain the voluntary recruitment system had reached its limits by
early 1915. The Director of Recruitment, Lord Derby, introduced the
Derby Scheme which aimed to boost numbers dramatically, but failed
and was closed in December 1915.
In May 1916, conscription was introduced in Britain with the Second
Military Service Act whereby all men were liable for service.
Extending Conscription Report
This source is an extract from a government
report on the possibility of extending
conscription to married men.
It demonstrates means that were taken as
apart of the First Military Services Act of
1916.
Conscription became necessary when
recruiting numbers fell dramatically. This
source is explaining the fall in numbers and
the need for conscription to start to raise the
number of soldiers once again.
This source is of the perspective of the Army
generals who need more soldiers.
Source : http://www.learningcurve.gov.uk/britain1906to1918
Conscription Poster
This poster is directed at men who
hadn’t enlisted willingly already at the
beginning of the war.
It provides details on enlistment and
conscription at that time and where to
go to signup.
The use of Lord Kitchener again
emphasises his authoritative influence.
It is of the perspective of Britain army
and recruiting office, appealing for
more men.
Source : http://pierreswesternfront.punt.nl
To Arms!
This poster demonstrates Britain’s desperate
need for more men in the army as they begin
to appeal to all men.
It displays the amplified need for conscription
as there wasn’t enough men enlisting.
It demonstrates that the British government
had a shortage of men and there attempts to
replenish the army.
It is of the perspective of the British
army/government who need more men to
join the army.
Source: http://libcom.org/files/images/
Anti-Conscription Petition
The perspective of this source is that of
the British conscientious objectors who
are opposed to the idea of forcing men
to join the army.
Conscientious objectors are an
important part of understanding
conscription because there will always
be people who object to being forced
into things.
Source : http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/
Censorship and Propaganda
Propaganda is the deliberate presentation of a one-sided view or
argument of an issue. Its aim is to convince an audience of a particular
point of view, mainly those of the composer.
The British used propaganda for many purposes in World War 1 in
particular to promote voluntary enlistment, to create hatred of the
enemy, to encourage women to take on war work and to gain support
of neutral states.
Censorship is negative propaganda. The aim of censorship is to
prevent the other side of the issue being presented and to limit what
the public hears about a situation.
Women of Britain
This form of propaganda is aimed at women to
encourage them to do their bit in the war effort.
At the home front in Britain, women were being
encouraged to help out in the workforce to help
supply resources to the soldiers. This poster
appeals to women to enrol in the work force
and help out.
This poster is an example of the different types
of propaganda that was used in the First World
War. Not only was there recruiting posters but
also censorship and home front propaganda.
It is portrays women as being empowered by
getting factory jobs and helping out in the war
effort. Giving them a sense of inclusion and
accomplishment.
It is of the perspective of patriotic factory
owner’s wanting women to work in their
factories to help with the war effort.
Source: www.st-andrews.com.uk
Recruitment Propaganda
This poster was a significant recruiting
poster as it displays a sense of shame in the
man’s face when his children asked him
what he did to help out during the war, and
he didn’t do anything at all.
This sense of shame would have been a
driving force to join as they didn’t want to
have that same shame when asked what
they did.
The young boy playing with soldier figurines
demonstrates that the war is a major part of
society and should be important to
everyone.
It is of the perspective the little girl, asking
her daddy what he did to help out. This will
help appeal to men as they don’t want to be
embarrassed.
Source: http://quadri.wordpress.com
British Propaganda: How The Huns Hate
This source is an example of one of the many
atrocity stories that were being spread
throughout Britain.
These stories painted the Germans as horrid
monsters , Huns, that committed crimes
against men, women and children and they
needed to be stopped.
These stories scared the public and made it
easier for people to hate the Huns and to want
to go to war and stop them.
This poster is of the perspective of a British
army member who ‘witnessed’ this incident
and is appalled by the atrocities that were
committed against one of their men by the
Huns.
It is warning the public to be aware and realise
that they need to stop the Huns before they
get more dangerous.
Source: http://quadri.wordpress.com
Censorship Propaganda
This British Propaganda poster promotes
the idea of secrecy and security when it
came to talking about the British war
situation.
The poster gives an inside to the paranoid
feeling during the war of not only the
government, but also the public who had
a genuine fear of the Germans.
Censorship increased during the war for
numerous reasons being that the
government didn’t want their secret
tactics revealed to the Germans.
Also the government didn’t want the
public to see the true horrors of war that
the soldiers faced, which would have led
to large opposition to the war and a
decline in volunteers.
The poster is of the perspective of paranoid
and cautious army members at the Ministry of
Information who didn’t want important
information to be leaked to the enemies.
Source: http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk