Patriotism and Propaganda in First World War Britain
The National War Aims Committee and Civilian Morale
Distributed for Liverpool University Press
The story of patriotism and propaganda in Britain during and after World War I too often focuses on the clichés of Kitchener, “over by Christmas,” and the deaths of patriotic young volunteers at the Somme. However, this book, in reviewing the activities of the National War Aims Committee (NWAC) in 1917–18, shows that propaganda and patriotism continued to be rigorously bolstered into the last years of the war. Examining the semiofficial Parliamentary organization of the NWAC, David Monger shows how it pushed stories of patriotism to reinvigorate a war-weary civilian population.
Acknowledgements
List of Abbreviations
Introduction
Part 1. The National War Aims Committee
1. The Development of Wartime Propaganda and the Emergence of the NWAC
2. The NWAC at Work
3. Local Agency, Local Work: The Role of Constituency War Aims Committees
Part 2. Patriotism for a Purpose: NWAC Propaganda
4. Presentational Patriotisms
5. Adversaries at Home and Abroad: The Context of Negative Difference
6. Civilisational Principles: Britain and its Allies as the Guardians of Civilisation
7. Patriotisms of Duty: Sacrifice, Obligation and Community—The Narrative Core of NWAC Propaganda
8. Promises for the Future: The Encouragement of Aspirations for a Better Life, Nation and World
Part 3. The Impact of the NWAC
9. 'A Premium on Corruption'? Parliamentary, Pressure Group and National Press Responses
10. Individual and Local Reactions to the NWAC
Conclusion
Appendix 1. Local Case Studies
Appendix 2. Card-Index Database
Bibliography
Index
History: British and Irish History | Military History
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