How were men asked to join the army?
In August 1914, Lord Kitchener, the Secretary of State for War, realised Britain needed more soldiers.
Posters showed him pointing his finger at anyone passing by.
Men felt proud to fight for their country.
- 54 million posters were put up.
- 8 million letters were sent.
- 12,000 meetings were held.
- 20,000 speeches were given by military spokesmen.
In the first weekend of the war, 100 men an hour (3,000 a day) signed up to join the armed forces.
By the end of 1914 1,186,337 men had joined.
Who joined the army?
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What were Pals Battalions?
Did some people refuse to fight?
- Some men refused to fight for moral or religious reasons.
- They were called conscientious objectors.
- A white feather was given to men in the street or on the bus if they weren't wearing uniform. The idea was to shame the man and make him join the army. This was unfair. There were many good reasons why a man might not be in uniform.
- Some conscientious objectors were allowed to do other jobs like farming in Britain, or carrying stretchers on the battlefield.
- Others were sent to prison.
What happened to all the soldiers?
Millions of British men were injured or died in the war. The government needed to replace them so recruitment became a part of everyday life.
By the end of the war almost one quarter of all the men in Britain had been in the armed forces.
Activities
Activity 1: Quiz 鈥 Soldier Recruitment
Activity 2: History Explorer game
Play this game to test your knowledge and learn even more facts about World War One.
History Explorer: Secrets through time
History Explorer: Secrets through time: KS2 History
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