Every modern war has its home front, but the First World War - the Great War
- was the first utterly to transform civilian life. In words and images 'Home
Front 1914-1918' tells this remarkable story, from Lord Kitchener's initial call
in August 1914 for 100,000 army volunteers, through to the armistice
celebrations in 1918/19. The war years brought far-reaching changes in Britain,
as ordinary people - from schoolchildren to the elderly, ladies of leisure to
coalminers - struggled to adapt to new conditions and an often perilous world.
The wide-ranging Defence of the Realm Act of 1914 heralded unprecedented
attempts to control people's lives - from what they were paid, to when they
drank and what they could read. The volatile four years that followed saw
Belgian refugees pouring into the country and women taking on men's jobs, as
well as such novelties as conscription, aerial bombardment and propaganda films;
meat rationing and queues for coal; and the advent of British Summer Time.
Numerous other anxieties, both official and unofficial, provoked such responses
as the banning of homing pigeons and , even more bizarrely, riots against
Chinese businesses.
Rarely seen photographs, original letters, memos and personal testimonies
bring to life the voices of very diverse individuals and contribute to this
fully rounded picture of Home Front life in England.
Contents:
Author's Acknowledgements
1. War's Beginnings
2. Men at Work
3. Working Girls
4. Life Goes On
5. Enemies Within
6. Enemies Without
7. War's End
Epilogue: The First 'World' War
Chronology
Further Reading
Index
