How were people recruited?
Recruited means to get people involved in something, for
How many men fought in the war?
example the war. At first the government allowed people
to volunteer to fight in the war. Men could go to their
local signing up office and volunteer to fight for “King
and Country.”
In 1914 the British army had 710,000 men.
By September 1914 they had 750,000 men and by
January 1915 over 1 million had joined the army
voluntarily.
To encourage groups of friends and sports teams to sign
By the end of the war, almost 1 in 4 of the total men in
up together an idea was created of “Pals Battalions.” Men
Britain had joined up, that’s over 5 million men!
could sign up with their friends and were promised they
would
fight
together
and
serve
together.
This
encouraged huge groups of men to all volunteer together.
The most famous example was the “Accrington Pals” and
their story was told through the local Accrington
Observer newspaper every week.
As the war continued, the government brought in
“conscription”. From January 1916, men between the ages
of 18 and 41 who were physically fit could be called up to
join the army. Some could appeal and not join because of
their religion or their beliefs but most were made to
fight.
How did the government use posters?
The
government
used
propaganda
posters
that
encouraged people to join the war effort. The posters
got people to do many things, including:
1. Fight as soldiers.
2. Women to support the men at war.
3. Children to get involved at home.
4. Ordinary people doing their duty at home e.g. growing
vegetables.
5. Getting people to hate the enemy.
The government used three main tactics on their posters:
 Guilt to those not involved.
 Pride in the country and King.
 Selling the British army as being not just a job.
Recruitment in World
War One