Question 1: Study Source A: What can you learn from Source A about why men volunteered for the armed forces
during the early months of the war?
Skill: TWO supported inferences
Inferences
Films had a big effect on
recruitment
Patriotism was a big influence
Support
Peer pressure and guilt made
men join
Question 2: Study Source B and use your own knowledge. What was the purpose of this poster?
Skill: Supported purpose
Start of exemplar answer: The purpose of the poster is to encourage more men to volunteer for the armed forces.
Complete answer:
Detail from source:
Detail from knowledge – what was happening at the time:
Question 3: Study Sources A, B and C. How far do these sources agree about why men volunteered for the armed
forces in the early months of the war? Explain your answer, using the sources.
Skill: Cross referencing and evaluation
Start of exemplar answer: Sources A and C agree that men rushed to enlist as soon as war was declared with C
declaring he enlisted ‘two days later’ and A knew he had to join up after ‘tears’ ran down his face.
Finish answer:
Sources A and B agree about the impact of government propaganda…
Sources A and C are fairly strong in their evidence…
Although useful for showing us examples of government propaganda in recruiting men, we have to be careful judging
this against reasons men did fight up because….
Question 4: Study Sources D and E and use your own knowledge. How reliable are Sources D and E as evidence of
voluntary recruitment in the first year of the war? Explain your answer, using Sources D and E and your own
knowledge.
Skill: Reliability/ usefulness of CONTENT and NATURE, ORIGIN and PURPOSE
Start of exemplar answer: Source D is reliable because it shows the great numbers queuing at the recruitment office
in response to Kitchener’s campaign. This reflects the massive response with 125,000 a month volunteering. Source D
is a reliable example of the propaganda used by the government to encourage volunteers. However, it may not have
been typical of all recruitment offices and have been carefully selected. The men are obviously posing.
E CONTENT
E NOP
CONCLUSION:
WHICH BEST
AND WHY
Reliable
Claims of recruitment everywhere – reflected
by source B
Personal reflections after the war
Answer to finish using planning grid:
Not
Writing to sell his book
Question 5: Study all the sources (A to F) and use your own knowledge. ‘The main reason that many men
volunteered for the armed forces was government propaganda.’ How far do the sources in this paper support this
statement? Use details from the sources and your own knowledge to explain your answer.
Skill: BALANCED argument that has been evaluated
Exemplar answer supporting statement: Sources B and D suggest that government propaganda played an important
role in encouraging men to volunteer. Britain did not have conscription in 1914 and needed to enlarge their small
professional army, especially after the heavy losses in the first few months on the Western Front. Source D provides
evidence of such propaganda. A photograph carefully selected by the government to encourage more to join up.
Sources B and D do not provide reliable evidence as Source D possibly distorts the level of recruitment with it being an
official government photograph and B exaggerates the effects on those who did not, portraying the ‘coward’ left
behind. Furthermore, although we know that men did join it is always difficult to assess the impact of propaganda on
them joining, due to its subjective nature.
Skill
Strong
Weak
OK
Against the statement – not government propaganda – other reasons
A – Peer pressure – first-hand account
F – Ashamed of not fighting – wicked monster claim supported by C
C – Anti-German and defend Belgium – likely tyo have been inspired by ‘Save Belgium’ propaganda.
125,000 in first few months
Genuine enthusiasm – over by Christmas
Pals Battalions – local groups (workers / football teams) – joined up in their droves.
DORA – censored newspapers and information from the start of the war. Information provided to
people what the government wanted them to hear.
Conclusion
Answer to finish using planning grid: