Home Front Flashcards
What month and date did the parliament after to increase the army ? And to how much?
6 th of August
500,000
In August how many men volunteered?
300,000
What year and month was a regular professional army?
August 1914
Why did recruitment become more difficult in 1915?
In dec 1914 the volunteers had fallen, by 1915 they was to 88,000
The war wasn’t going to be over by Christmas, the news from war was reaching Britain
Unemployment fell and wages rose, volunteering had less and less attraction
How did methods of recruitment change in 1915?
Posters became more strident
The suffragettes launched the white feather campaign
National registration of the single men seas introduced in August 1915, so they could be called upon
The derby scheme
Lord Derby organised a massive recruitment campaign in late 1915
Asked men to promise to volunteer if they were called
No married men would be taken until all unmarried were in the army
WAS A FAILURE
by then 2,500,000 men had volunteered.
Conscription
Compulsory military service and it was introduced in Britain for the first time by the military service act of jan 1916
Why was conscription introduced
Failure of the Derby scheme
Haig, who became commander-in-chief in dec 1915 - believe the big push, demand more men so could break through western front
1916-1918 3,500,000 men were conscripted into the armed forces
The military service acts
Made all unmarried men between the ages of 18-41 liable for service
May 1916 the act extended to include married men
Conscripts could claim - if who claimed exemption had to go before a military tribunal
- absolute exemption
- conditional exemption
- exemption from combatants
-rejection
What happened to absolutist?
Be ordered to join the army
Sent to prison
From June 1916 conscientious objectors were sent to joke office work centres
New government powers and their impact on civilian life
Defence of the realm act was passed in August 1914
Gave the government extensive powers
More serious restrictions on hoarding food
Trade union fights were limited
Rationing
DORA
Defence of the realm act - gave the governor the power to start rationing food
Government tried to set up voluntary scheme
War socialism
Rationing was introduced after David Lloyd Georg became prime minister in 1916
In 1917 Lloyd George introduced the convoy system to try to ensure that essential supplies reached Britain from the USA and Canda
Took over 5 industry’s and ran then in the interests of the war economy
The Lusitania
The Lusitania was a liner - was sunk on 8 May 1915 by a German submarine.
Sinking led to furious protests by the U.S. Government S 128 passengers are U.S. Citizens
The Lusitania was sunk because was carrying contraband
The use of film
From 1915 films were made to encourage support for the war effort, and in 1916 the battle of the Somme film was shaken in cinemas all over Britain.
Produced anti war feelings
