Home front

War Affects the Home Front

By the time the United States joined the Allies in 1917, the war had been raging for nearly three years. In those three years, Europe had lost more men in battle than in all the wars of the previous three centuries. The war had claimed the lives of millions and had changed countless lives forever.  The Great War, as World War I came to be known, affected everyone. It affected not only the soldiers in the trenches, but civilians as well.

Governments Wage Total War

World War I soon became a total war. This meant that countries devoted all their resources to the war effort. In Britain, Germany, Austria, Russia, and France, the entire force of government was dedicated to winning the conflict. In each country, the wartime government took control of the economy. Governments told factories what to produce and how much. Numerous facilities were converted to munitions (weapons) factories. Nearly every able-bodied civilian was put to work. Unemployment in many European countries all but disappeared.

So many goods were in short supply that governments turned to rationing. This limited how much food and other goods people could buy and hold so that armies in the field would have the supplies they needed. Eventually, rationing covered a wide range of goods, from butter to shoe leather.

Governments also suppressed antiwar activity, sometimes forcibly. In addition, the government censored news about the war. Many leaders feared that honest reporting of the war would turn people against it. Governments also used propaganda, one-sided information designed to persuade, to keep up morale and support for the war.

Women and the War

                  Total war also meant that governments turned to help from women as never before.  With so many men in the military, women played a growing role in the economies of the countries at war. Thousands of women replaced men in factories, offices, and shops. Women built tanks and munitions, plowed fields, paved streets, and ran hospitals. They also kept troops supplied with food, clothing, and weapons. Although most women left the work force when the war ended, they changed many people’s views of what women were capable of doing. Women also saw the horrors of war firsthand, working on or near the front lines as nurses. 

1.     Why was World War I called “the Great War?”

2.     What is “total war”?

How did the governments of the nations at war fight a total war? In at least one paragraph, explain 5 ways