DORA, the Defence of the Realm Act, enabled the government to do such things as censorship. They introduced this Act so that they had more control over Britain and make Britain a more efficient home front by changing many life styles. DORA enabled the government to pass emergency laws. Factories could be taken over for making munitions, so this meant Britain could always be sending important ammunition to the troops. As the war progressed, the government changed licensing laws, meaning that pubs were open far less so people would spend more time at work and be more sober, they could also use private land for crop growing to feed troops and the public. They could also increase working hours.
This new act changed many peoples’ lives. If the government used your land for crops for the troops, you could lose your source of income. The increase of working hours meant that parents spent a lot less time at home and they didn’t really get paid anymore. The major change that this increase of working hours brought about was the amount of women in work.
Before the War began, only 25% of British women were in work outside of their homes. When conscription was introduced in 1916, there were very few able-bodied men left in the country. To keep Britain economically stable, the women were needed to take on the jobs the men had left behind them, and also the war created many new job opportunities. Women became factory and industrial workers, bus conductors, mechanics and many more enrolled as nurses. They had a new lease of life, and it gave them the incentive to push for greater things. For example, women began campaigning for the vote. Many politicians expected this, as it was clear that after they had been given the opportunity to do something, they would want to move on to the next step. After demonstrating several times, women finally got the vote in 1917, even though only women over 30 could vote, it made them feel more equal to men which is what they wanted most of all. Women’s attitudes changed too, they were more confidant and they felt that they could stand up for themselves better. Men looked upon them in a different light, as they could see that women could do the hard manual jobs that they used to do, and many could do it more efficiently too! In 1919 a lot more professions became available as well. However, I do not believe the war brought about any long lasting changes for them. As soon as the war was over, the men came back and wanted their old jobs again, so the women had no choice but to give them up. As quickly as they had gained this new life, they had lost it too. Many of the workers had got used to working and had enjoyed it, so were severely disappointed when they had to go back to working in the home. Although they had to return back to what they had done before, men had seen what women were capable of and they treated them more equal. The one major change that happened for women in the war was the fact that they gained the right to be able to vote.
Despite the war giving a new responsibility to women, in the back of many people’s minds was the harsh reality and soaring costs of war. Women were wondering whether their husbands, brothers, sons, and after conscription their fathers too would ever come home. When the casualty list after the battle of the Somme was published Britain was horrified at the figure of 57, 000 soldiers wounded after the very first day. It was devastating that so many soldiers had been killed in just one day of fighting, so after this British troops were running low and also their morale began to break down. Civilians began to criticise military leadership and some even began to condemn the war. However, this battle did bring about new techniques, tactics and weaponry, which later aided the allied troops.
In 1914 in an attempt to crack Great Britain there was a war in the skies above England. This basically involved German and British planes “dog fighting”, using out of date weaponry, such as pilots having to shoot the other planes with pistols and rifles. As this battle progressed new, specially designed fighter planes were made and actual bombings of towns began in 1914, when pilots dropped hand grenades out of the cock pit. Soon aircraft were built with torpedo firers s o they could attack at sea too. Both sides used these tactics as it lowered morale and planes could easily hit targets with just a few tries and it only really needed one person. The first side to launch an offensive against the civilian population was the Germans. They used large air ships known as Zeppelins. These could cause a lot of damage as they held a lot of bombs. At first, the spirits of the population did drop, because these were new weapons and it scared people because of their size and sheer ability to wipe out so much at one time.
Zeppelins were hard to shoot down, and it was 1916 before successful methods of defence had been introduced, such as anti – aircraft guns, search lights. Barrage balloons and night pilots. After the first few days of bombing, the opposite of the desired effect on morale began to happen. People untied and it brought communities closer together, as everyone was going through the same thing. The inhabitants of Great Britain were determined to pull through and were determined to get through. This sudden surge of morale caused Germany to call off the offensive, as they realised that Britain could not be invaded or be dispirited.
Many things changed between 1914 and 1918. Women had a new lease of life when the men went off to war and they had a chance to show what they could do. However, when the war was over the soldiers came back and wanted their jobs again and the women were forced back into their homes. Most women were not happy about that as they were not getting any income and they had enjoyed what they had been doing. The change for women was more short term; apart from the fact that now they could vote. So in one sense, that introduced a large degree of change.
There was also a new sense of community, as Britain began a new life again. Everybody had been through the war, everybody had been through the same thing and most felt the same. A lot of people had losses to grieve over, and it was easier to cope with if they had people around them who were going through the same thing. Not only did the allies end up winning the war in Europe, but they had won the war at home too.
