by James Taylor
There was no single person responsible for co-ordinating the poster campaigns, and this was a fundamental problem with the PRC. Hedley Le Bas was a significant adviser but he was not given overall control. In the absence of a guiding hand it was inevitable that a reactive rather than pro-active style of management would develop via a series of committees, and sometimes this was all too evident in the designs of the posters.
Occasionally the PRC would benefit from artists coming forward themselves to offer their services, but this was infrequent and the majority of posters were created anonymously. The PRC was ‘fortunate to be able to avail itself of the voluntary services of such well-known artists as the Misses Edith and Lucy Kemp-Welch, whose “REMEMBER SCARBOROUGH” and “FORWARD” will be remembered as two of the most striking posters. Mr Bernard Partridge, the famous Punch cartoonist, depicted, in the “Take up the Sword of Justice” design, the sinking of the Lusitania.’ On 7th May 1915, this Cunard ocean liner had been sunk by German torpedoes as it approached Ireland. She was carrying some American citizens and later this encouraged the USA to break its official isolationist policy and enter the war as an ‘associate power’, giving Britain much-needed support.
The PRC accounts, under a special section entitled ‘Influence of The Productions’, listed the most popular posters by the volume of demand:
LORD KITCHENER, Nos. 113 and 117: 145,000
REMEMBER BELGIUM, Nos. 16 and 19: 140,000
TAKE UP THE SWORD OF JUSTICE, Nos. 105, 106 and 111: 105,000
TO SERVE THE GUNS, Nos. 85, A, B and C: 101,000
HE DID HIS DUTY. WILL YOU DO YOURS?, (Lord Roberts), No. 20: 95,000
COME ALONG, BOYS! No. 22: 92,000
FALL IN, NOS. 12 and 13: 85,000
THE VETERAN’S FAREWELL, Nos. 24 and 63: 71,500
LINE UP BOYS, No. 54: 65,000
ENGLAND EXPECTS, No. 101: 60,000
FOLLOW ME! No. 11: 55,000
AT THE FRONT, No. 84: 55,000
OUR FLAG, No. 107: 40,000
‘Your Country Needs You’ (KCL)
The PRC added: ‘Of necessity, the King’s Message (in poster form), which opened up a much wider field of activity, had a vast circulation, 290,000 copies being distributed.’31
Hiley has compiled a more detailed list incorporating additional data resulting in a top fifteen of PRC posters. They are arranged in order of popularity:
1 LORD KITCHENER. Photograph of Lord Kitchener, with text from the speech, including ‘Does The Call Of Duty Find No Response In You Until Reinforced… By The Call Of Compulsion?’ Printed by David Allen and Sons, circa July to August 1915, as posters PRC 113 (20 x 30 inches) and PRC 117 (40 x 50 inches). Numbers printed: 145,000.
2 REMEMBER BELGIUM – ENLIST TO-DAY. In the official description: ‘a British soldier on guard in the foreground whilst in the background a woman and her babes are in flight from a blazing home’. Designed and printed by Henry Jenkinson Ltd, circa December 1914 to March 1915, as PRC 16 (40 x 30 inches) and PRC 19 (20 x 15 inches). Number printed: 140,000.
‘Take Up The Sword Of Justice’ (LoC)
3 TAKE UP THE SWORD OF JUSTICE. The sinking of the Lusitania with a figure rising from the sea and offering a sword. Printed by David Allen and Sons, Harrow, September 1915, as PRC 105 (40 x 25 inches), PRC 106 (60 x 40 inches) and PRC 111 (30 x 20 inches). Number printed: 105,000.
Come Along, Boys! Enlist To-day’ (KCL)
‘The Veteran’s Farewell’ (IWM)
4 WE’RE BOTH NEEDED TO SERVE THE GUNS! FILL UP THE RANKS! PILE UP THE MUNITIONS!. A soldier and munitions worker shaking hands with a battle scene in the background. Commissioned by the PRC, apparently at the request of the War Office and printed by Chorley and Pickersgill Ltd, circa May 1915, as posters PRC 85a (probably 80 x 120 inches), 85b (40 x 50 inches) and 85c (20 x 30 inches). Number printed: 101,000.
5 HE DID HIS DUTY. WILL YOU DO YOURS?. Portrait of Lord Roberts with his Victoria Cross and symbols of office. Printed by Johnson, Riddle and Co, circa December 1914, as PRC 20 (30 x 20 inches). There is also a Welsh version of this poster. Number printed: 95,000.
6 COME ALONG BOYS! ENLIST TO-DAY. A smiling soldier with a quotation from Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien: ‘The moment the order came to go forward, there were smiling faces everywhere’. Designed and printed by The Haycock-Cadle Co, and initially released circa November 1914 as the PRC’s first ‘window-card’, PRC 100c (11 x 11 inches). Also printed by the same company, circa December 1914 to January 1915, as poster PRC 22 (30 x 20 inches). The company also printed a Welsh version, and issued its design in a large poster for the Central London Recruiting Depot. Number printed: 92,000.
‘Remember Belgium’ (KCL)
Poster invoking Lord Nelson (Priv.
7 “FALL IN” ANSWER NOW IN YOUR COUNTRY’S HOUR OF NEED. A bugler is blowing a call. Designed and printed by Hill, Siffken and Co., circa November 1914 as posters PRC 12 (30 x 20 inches) and 13 (size unknown). The company also used its design in a large poster for the Central London Recruiting Depot. Number printed: 85,000.
8 THE VETERAN’S FAREWELL. “GOOD BYE, MY LAD, I ONLY WISH I WERE YOUNG ENOUGH TO GO WITH YOU!” ENLIST NOW! Initially designed by Frank Dadd (an artist who worked for The Graphic magazine) as a tobacco advertisement and subsequently used as a recruiting poster ‘by Kind Permission of Messrs. Abdulla & Co. Ltd’, and printed by both Straker Bros and by Petty and Sons, with a first release circa December 1914 and a reissue circa February 1915. Numbered PRC 24 (sepia, 30 x 20 inches) and renumbered as PRC 63s on reissue. The colour version was numbered PRC 63 (30 x 20 inches). Number printed: 71,500.
9 LINE UP, BOYS! ENLIST TO-DAY. Four kilted soldiers marching side by side. Apparently designed by Eyre and Spottiswoode, who were described as ‘owners of the copyright’. Printed by them and by A.White and Co. circa January to April 1915 as poster PRC 54 (30 x 20 inches). Number printed: 65,000.
10 LADS, YOU’RE WANTED: GO AND HELP. Advancing soldiers in silhouette. Printed by David Allen and Sons, circa March to May 1915, as poster PRC 78 (6 x 30 inches). Number printed: at least 65,000.
11 1805 “ENGLAND EXPECTS” 1915. Portrays Lord Nelson and the sea with the strapline ‘Are YOU Doing YOUR Duty To-day?’. Apparently designed by Seargeant Bros, who added ‘Design Copyright’ to the imprint. Printed by them, circa May 1915 as PRC 101 (20 x 30 inches) with the design later reissued as a poster for the Publicity Department, Admiralty Recruiting Office. Number printed: 60,000.
12 IF YOU CANNOT JOIN THE ARMY – TRY & GET A RECRUIT. White letterpress poster on a red and blue background. Printed by Haycock-Cadle Co., circa December to March 1915, as poster PRC 32 (30 x 20 inches). Number printed: at least 60,000.
13 FOLLOW ME! YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU. A marching soldier. This poster design is by E.J. Kealey (probably Edward J. Kealey and sometimes mistakenly written as E.V. Keeley), an artist who worked for Hill, Siffken and Co. Printed circa November to December 1914 as poster PRC 11 (30 x 20 inches). Number printed: 55,000.
‘Line Up, Boys! Enlist To-day.’ (KCL)
Recruitment poster PRC 23 (LoC)
14 AT THE FRONT! EVERY FIT BRITON SHOULD JOIN OUR BRAVE MEN AT THE FRONT. ENLIST NOW. Showing a field gun team and shellbursts. Printed by E.S. and A. Robinson Ltd, circa April 1915 as poster PRC 84 (30 x 20 inches). Number printed: 55,000.
15 BRITONS! YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU. Red lettering over grey map of Great Britain and Ireland. Printed by Saunders and Cullingham in December 1914 as poster PRC 23 (30 x 20 inches). Number printed: at least 50,000.
New ideas: outdoor meetings, Highland bands and Pals battalions
Leeds Pals (LLIS)
The display of posters went hand-in-hand with many other recruitment activities. As the war progressed new plans were developed and implemented. According to the PRC minutes ‘it was resolved to adhere to the method of simultaneous meetings, to give each district a big scheme of outdoor gatherings and to cover the whole country. From some of the large centres such as Manchester
and Liverpool, Leicester and Bristol it was resolved to organise a large number of meetings each night for the surrounding districts. Several new and attractive methods were put into operation. At Huddersfield, Leeds, Halifax, Bradford and other large cities the municipalities provided brilliantly decorated and illuminated tramcars, which, accompanied bands and speakers, were run out to various centres where, using the cars as a platform, most successful meetings were held.
‘In other large cities such as Nottingham, Newcastle and Birmingham, permanent outdoor platforms were erected in market squares and open spaces at which recruiting meetings were held daily and in some cases all day. Bands formed an attractive feature at these meetings and great crowds gathered. Recruiting officers, medical officers and magistrates were in attendance to enrol recruits on the spot; and on the same day or the day following, the new recruits were marched off to the station or to the depot, headed by military bands playing patriotic airs.’32
Edward George Villiers Stanley (1865–1948), better known by his title Lord Derby, served as British Minister of War from 1916 to 1918. He was a Conservative who joined Asquith’s wartime coalition government and introduced new schemes to encourage recruits. His proposal of ‘Pals battalions’ derived from an earlier idea of General Sir Henry Rawlinson. Lord Kitchener approved it. The idea was that groups of men from the same walks of life with shared work or leisure pursuits could serve together. Administrators, clerks, bank workers – men from the same factory and football team could join and fight together.
By the end of September 1914, over fifty towns had formed Pals battalions, whilst the larger towns and cities were able to form several battalions. Notable among them were ‘Pals’ from Accrington, Birmingham, Bradford, Durham, Grimsby, Liverpool, Lothian, Manchester, Newcastle, Salford and Sheffield. The scheme was in part positive as it ensured that men were motivated by being surrounded by friends who shared the same interests. A serious negative was that entire communities could be wiped out.
One of the most effective means of recruitment was the use of Highland bands. The PRC records stated: ‘Perhaps the most successful piece of work carried out by the Sub-division of the PRC in this direction was undertaken by Lieutenant W J West and his Highland Pipe Band. This band, consisting of twelve members, toured the country from Cornwall to Northumberland, and its record whether in town or country was one unending triumph for voluntary effort. The campaign commenced on November 22nd 1914 and concluded on February 26th 1916. The band has worked from the following centres:
‘Ashford, Barnsley, Bolton, Boston, Bourne, Bradford, Canterbury, Camborne, Chatham, Congleton, Consett, Dartford, Durham, Deal, Grays, Gravesend, Hastings, Helston, Huddersfield, Keighley, Leeds, Loughborough, Leicester, Macclesfield, Maidstone, Margate, Nelson, Penistone, Redruth, Rochdale, Sleaford, Southend, Sittingbourne, Spalding, Truro, Woking and Wilmslow.
‘Altogether 651 towns, cities and villages were visited. The following figures are interesting:
‘Miles travelled by railway 22,201
Miles marched 3,439
Speeches made by Lieut. West 859
… Recruits gained 22,201
‘The War Office engaged Lauder’s Highland Band for several weeks... the new plan of carrying the campaign into the open air had an immediate effect upon recruiting, and in many districts recruiting officers informed us that the numbers equalled, and in some cases exceeded, the recruits enrolled in the first few weeks of the war.’33
Sir Henry Lauder, known professionally as Harry Lauder, was an international Scottish entertainer, described by Sir Winston Churchill as ‘Scotland’s greatest ever ambassador!’ Private Joseph Quigley’s charming, comically illustrated publication The Slogan – Side-Lights on Recruiting: with Harry Lauder’s Band (Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent & Co., Ltd, London, 1916) highlighted the importance of the band’s work, which included a nine-week tour of Scotland: ‘what other band could sound the slogan in the World War but a band of pipers? Wherever Scottish regiments have set their faces to the foe, the shrill, defiant notes of the pibroch have been the talisman that revived the spirits of sinking men, made the long, weary march over hill and desert more lightsome, transmuted dark despair to glowing hope, and turned many a well-nigh hopeless field to imperishable victory. Wherever Scotsmen are, the straight and certain way to their hearts is along that avenue… which their national music can alone provide.
And, ‘With this knowledge, the Bands Bureau, which had been formed in Glasgow to supply musicians to bandless battalions, evolved the idea of sending out a company of pipers who would bear the Fiery Cross throughout the length and breadth of Scotland. The Central Recruiting Committee received the proposal with favour, and the War Office extended its benediction… Mr Harry Lauder consented to give his name to the band, which achieved an immediate success under the direction of Mr Joseph Quigley, the Honorary Manager of the Bands Bureau, who had been requested to undertake the organisation and management of the tour.’
‘Your Country’s Call’ (LoC)
‘Go! It’s Your Duty Lad’ (LoC)
The band was invited across the border and, when marching towards Bradford in West Yorkshire, Quigley noted that ‘The girls had discovered something more entertaining than work. A full highland pipe band was a real novelty… here as in many other parts of England numerous girls pleased for small pieces of the bright tartan kilt as a keepsake… It may have been nothing more than coincidence, but at the end of the tour the inside folds of several kilts had shrunk considerably… and it certainly suggested that had the tour lasted much longer the Band, or some members of it, would have played their farewell march in tunic and a sporran.’
Henry Davray also observed the Highland bands in London: ‘Here are the Scotch; the bagpipes fill the air with their shrill music; the men are superb; their high white gaiters move lightly up and down, and at every step, their pleated kilts expand like opening fans. An instant later, in some open space – Trafalgar Square, St. Paul’s churchyard, Covent Garden, or one of the Circuses – a band strikes up; the musicians blow in their little short bugles, to the notes of which succeed the piercing fifes, backed up by drums; the drumsticks rain down blows on the parchment, while one energetic performer, enveloped in a vast leather apron, deals vigorous alternate strokes on the big drum.’
The decline of the recruitment poster
PRC records outlined the ebb and flow of the work rate of the Publications Sub-Department: ‘Work was great until temporary suspension in July 1915 and then continued in middle of September… and the SD proceeded to prepare a further batch of pictorial appeals.’ At the beginning of October, however, Lord Derby (the newly appointed Director General of Recruiting) intimated his opinion that pictorial posters had had their day. It was decided to complete the printing of the half dozen posters which remained in the press, but from that time forward the number of picture posters was restricted and eventually curtailed.
‘The issue of His Majesty the King’s message to His People marked a new stage in the SD’s work, and from that time onward the volume of the publications was very great indeed. Save for a lull in December 1915 the Publications Department was engaged at high pressure… With the passing of the Military Services Act there came a recrudescence of activity; but by the month of April 1916 the work of the Department had sunk to its minimum.’
David Allen and Sons poster, 1915 (LoC)
What exactly did Lord Derby mean by asserting that ‘pictorial posters had had their day’? There is evidence of a growing resentment among soldiers of the recruitment posters. The cumulative effects of the ‘bullying by poster’ were producing detrimental effects to the war effort and ‘by the end of July 1915 the War Office begged the PRC to suspend operations arguing that its target market was now clearly “sick of posters and recruitment meetings”’ and by ‘the end of September 1915 official confidence in the poster campaign had in fact evaporated’.34
Initially patriotism played a part in the soldiers’ reluctance to rela
y the real horrors of war back home. Their mail was censored too. However, as the war went on, real reports were circulated back home and they made a stark contrast to the idealised images of war service projected by many of the recruitment posters. With very few exceptions British posters specifically avoided images of death, dreadful injuries and disablement. However, some artists provided psychological insights into the horrific effects of war. One oil painting, entitled ‘Return To The Front: Victoria Railway Station’ (1916), is now part of the York Art Gallery collections. The Sunderland-born artist Richard Jack (1866–1952) had studied art in York, London and Paris.
‘Return to the Front’ (Richard Jack Estate/York Museums Trust)
In 1916, Jack received a commission from the Canadian War Memorials Fund and was sent to northern France, serving with the rank of Major with a Canadian regiment; this was at the instigation of Sir Max Aitken, later Lord Beaverbrook. The artist was sent to France, attached to the Headquarters of General Sir Arthur Currie, to enable him to collect first-hand data and sketches for the two vast canvases (just over 12 x 20 feet) he was to paint in London: ‘The Second Battle of Ypres – April 22nd to May 25th, 1915’ and ‘The Taking of Vimy Ridge, Easter Monday’. These were exhibited at a joint exhibition of Canadian and British War Records at the Royal Academy of Arts in London before they were shipped to Canada, where they now hang in the collection at the Canadian War Museum, Ottawa.
