World War I: 100 Years Later

A Smithsonian magazine special report

The Posters That Sold World War I to the American Public

A vehemently isolationist nation needed enticement to join the European war effort. These advertisements were part of the campaign to do just that

Jia-Rui Cook

propaganda posters during ww1

On July 28, 1914, World War I officially began when Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. In Europe and beyond, country after country was drawn into the war by a web of alliances. It took three years, but on April 2, 1917, the U.S. entered the fray when Congress declared war on Germany.

The government didn’t have time to waste while its citizens made up their minds about joining the fight. How could ordinary Americans be convinced to participate in the war “ Over There ,” as one of the most popular songs of the era described it?

Posters—which were so well designed and illustrated that people collected and displayed them in fine art galleries—possessed both visual appeal and ease of reproduction. They could be pasted on the sides of buildings, put in the windows of homes, tacked up in workplaces, and resized to appear above cable car windows and in magazines. And they could easily be reprinted in a variety of languages.

To merge this popular form of advertising with key messages about the war, the U.S. government’s public information committee formed a Division of Pictorial Publicity in 1917. The chairman, George Creel, asked Charles Dana Gibson, one of most famous American illustrators of the period, to be his partner in the effort. Gibson, who was president of the Society of Illustrators, reached out to the country’s best illustrators and encouraged them to volunteer their creativity to the war effort.

These illustrators produced some indelible images, including one of the most iconic American images ever made: James Montgomery Flagg’s stern image of Uncle Sam pointing to the viewer above the words, “I Want You for U.S. Army.” (Flagg’s inspiration came from an image of the British Secretary of State for War , Lord Kitchener, designed by Alfred Leete.) The illustrators used advertising strategies and graphic design to engage the casual passerby and elicit emotional responses. How could you avoid the pointing finger of Uncle Sam or Lady Liberty? How could you stand by and do nothing when you saw starving children and a (fictional) attack on New York City?

“Posters sold the war,” said David H. Mihaly, the curator of graphic arts and social history at the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, California, where 55 of these posters will go on view August 2. “These posters inspired you to enlist, to pick up the flag and support your country. They made you in some cases fear an enemy or created a fear you didn’t know you had. Nations needed to convince their citizens that this war was just, and we needed to participate and not sit and watch.” There were certainly propaganda posters before 1917, but the organization and mass distribution of World War I posters distinguished them from previous printings, Mihaly said.

Despite the passage of 100 years—as well as many wars and disillusionment about them—these posters retain their power to make you stare. Good and evil are clearly delineated. The suffering is hard to ignore. The posters tell you how to help, and the look in the eyes of Uncle Sam makes sure you do.

“ Your Country Calls!: Posters of the First World War ” will be on view at the Huntington from August 2 to November 3, 2014. Jia-Rui Cook wrote this for  Zocalo Public Square .

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Humor and Horror: Printed Propaganda during World War I

Destroy This Mad Brute: Enlist | Lithograph poster depicting an ape as a German soldier holding a woman hostage

Left: Harry Ryle Hopps (American, 1869–1937). Destroy This Mad Brute: Enlist , 1917. Color lithograph, image: 38 3/4 x 25 5/8 in. (98.4 x 65.1 cm). Collection of Mary Ellen Meehan

During wartime, large-format, full-color posters plastered walls from city streets to classrooms. They mobilized support for the war effort, summoned donations to charities, encouraged participation in war bonds, and publicized victories in notable battles to a broad public. Illustrators of varying renown were called on to produce forceful images whose meaning could be quickly and easily grasped by a diverse audience.

Calling on American men to enlist, Harry Ryle Hopps's poster Destroy This Mad Brute: Enlist (1917) casts Germany as a barbarian who has arrived on U.S. shores, leaving behind a destroyed Europe. The "mad brute" wears a spiked helmet emblazoned with the word "militarism" and dons a mustache suggestive of Kaiser Wilhelm II's whiskers. He has abducted an allegorical figure of Lady Liberty and clenches the bloodied club of German Kultur (culture). The motif of the barbarous enemy abounds in propaganda issued by the Allied forces, and the ape-like figure in particular—a precursor to the title character in the 1933 film King Kong —spoke to an audience familiar with Charles Darwin's theories of evolution.

'Help Us Win! Buy War Bonds (Helft uns siegen! Zeichnet die Kriegsanleihe)' | A German soldier in uniform with a gas mask hanging from his neck

On the German side, Fritz Erler designed Help Us Win! Buy War Bonds (1917) after making studies of soldiers at the front. The man depicted in his poster wears a type of steel helmet introduced by the German army in 1916. The gas mask on his chest, the two "potato-masher" grenades in a pouch dangling from his left shoulder, and the barbed wire that surrounds him are all visual hallmarks of World War I. The artist formed the soldier's pupils into small crosses, harnessing Christian symbolism to cast him as a noble and timeless figure. The poster was produced in three sizes and was also issued as a postcard to promote war bonds to German citizens.

Two maps of Europe, one from 1870 and the other from 1914

Paul Hadol (French, 1835–1875) and Walter Trier (Bohemian, 1890–1951). Map of Europe in 1870 / Map of Europe in 1914 , 1914. Commercial color lithograph, sheet: 14 5/16 x 37 3/16 in. (36.4 x 94.5 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Mrs. William O’D. Iselin, 1961 (61.681.9a, b)

Drawing on humor to sway public opinion, French artist Paul Hadol illustrated a satirical map of Europe at the beginning of the Franco-Prussian War (1870–71), from which the Prussian army emerged victorious one year later. In response, German artist Walter Trier produced a map of the region at the outbreak of World War I, with each country similarly cast as a caricature. He depicts Germany and Austria-Hungary as heroic soldiers fending off surrounding nations, each represented by a negative stereotypical figure. A percentage of the proceeds from sales of his map supported the Red Cross.

1914 postcard showing two cartoonish soldiers making their way across Europe

November 10 , from the series Battles of August–November, 1914 , 1914. French. Color lithographs, sheet: 4 x 6 in. (10.2 x 15.2 cm). Leonard A. Lauder Postcard Archive. Promised gift, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Thanks to their diminutive size, postcards were another ideal tool for circulating propaganda and publicizing wartime events. Like Trier's poster, a series of postcards based on cartoons published in an English magazine uses caricature in comparing the opposing armies to a pair of "scientific wrestlers." The sequence in the spread, published on November 4, 1914, ends on October 26, at the height of the First Battle of Ypres. The postcard issuer included an additional scene (above): the November 10 Battle of Langemarck, represented as a knockout blow.

Russian postcard depicting two women in soldier's garb

The provisional government in place in Russia, which controlled the country following the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II and prior to the ascendance of the Bolsheviks in 1917, established all-female combat units in an attempt to inspire war-weary male soldiers and demonstrate the Bolshevik model of equality among citizens. Postcards featuring members of the women's battalions were paired with moralizing captions celebrating qualities such as bravery, unity, and good hygiene.

1915-16 postcard depicting a war plane against a dark-blue sky filled with gray clouds

Carl Otto Czeschka (Austrian, 1878–1960). Central Power Aircraft in Flight , from the series German Armaments , 1915–16. Color lithograph, sheet: 4 x 6 in. (10.2 x 15.2 cm). Leonard A. Lauder Postcard Archive. Promised gift, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Other wartime postcards were considered objets d'art. Those designed by Carl Otto Czeschka, a member of the Wiener Werkstätte (a community of artists in Vienna established in 1903 devoted to restoring thoughtful craftsmanship to industrial production), extol German armaments like the aircraft pictured above. The Bahlsen cookie company issued the postcards for the German military postal service ( Feldpost ), which provided complimentary mail service to soldiers. Their streamlined compositions and color palette also appealed to collectors with a taste for modernist design.

1914-15 photolithograph postcard of a Belgian carrier pigeon

Trade cards—antecedents to today's business cards—were a popular means for companies to publicize their products, and often included captivating images to encourage customer loyalty. Trade cards from the Jefferson R. Burdick Collection distributed in packs of Sweet Caporal cigarettes illustrate the unprecedented convergence of modern technologies with traditional wartime tools, such as homing pigeons that deliver messages in code inscribed on their feathers. While such collectables were used for promotional purposes, they also had an educational component and aimed to spread knowledge about all facets of the war.

These posters, postcards, and trade cards may all be viewed through January 7, 2018, in the exhibition World War I and the Visual Arts ; many of these works are also discussed in the accompanying issue of The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin .

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Many of the posters were commissioned by the Committee on Public Information's Division of Pictorial Publicity.  George Creel, chair of the committee, felt strongly that posters would be extremely important in influencing Americans’ feelings: "I had the conviction that the poster must play a great role in the right for public opinion. The printed word might not be read; people might choose not to attend meetings or to watch motion pictures, but the billboard was something that caught even the most indifferent eye . . ." [1]

Other organizations heavily involved in the war and war relief efforts, such as the U.S. Army, the YMCA, and the Red Cross, also commissioned their own posters from artists.  The proliferation of posters put out by the government and other organizations served to motivate and influence the American people in a variety of ways.  Some simply aimed to promote patriotism and to encourage public support of the war.  However, many took this aim a step further by encouraging enlistment, promoting Liberty Bonds, and recruiting volunteers for a variety of work on the home front.  Posters attempted to reach these goals by speaking to different audiences in a variety of ways.  For example, to promote enlistment a poster could tell men that Uncle Sam wanted them for the U.S. Army; it could play on feelings of guilt for men who did not enlist; it could convince mothers and wives that they needed to tell the men in their lives to enlist; or it could show enticing, heroic action on the battlefield.

The depiction and usage of women in World War I posters varied, depending on the goal of the organization that commissioned them. In some posters, women appeared in distress or seeking help as victims of the war. Prior to American entry, these posters functioned to sway American public opinion in the direction of joining the Allies by cultivating outrage that a country, particularly its women, had been attacked. After the U.S. entered the war, the posters depicting women as victims played on the traditionally masculine role as a protector of women in order to convince men to enlist in the armed forces.

Unlike the posters that portray women as victims, passive observers of the war, or seductresses, many of the World War I posters show women taking a much more active role in contributing to war efforts. For example, many of the Red Cross posters (oftentimes soliciting donations or seeking more volunteers and nurses) show nurses in the thick of the conflict, carrying stretchers with wounded soldiers, caring for the soldiers, and attending to families displaced by the war. These women are portrayed as strong, courageous, and patriotic, thus promoting the work of nurses and the Red Cross and prompting other Americans to likewise lend their support.

Posters showing active, patriotic women were also used on the home front to promote and recruit for war efforts in America. These posters, like the Woman's Landy Army one pictured below, show women in their home front jobs, typically appearing enthusiastic and further promoting the home front efforts.  Additionally, the women are usually depicted as "'ordinary' women . . . in order to set an example for potential participants in war-related activities" in America. [2]

Allegorical women also appeared in World War I posters, most often representing a country such as France or America, or representing certain national ideals or goals such as liberty, victory, and justice. Many of the posters featuring allegorical women were aimed at recruiting men for the armed forces, although when not soliciting enlistment, the posters also targeted women.

Aside from featuring women, many of the posters included in this section highlight the wartime organizations that contributed to the war effort, such as the Red Cross, the War Camp Community Service, and the YWCA, many of which were run by women and/or whose volunteer base was largely composed of women.

Please note that the Archives Center at NMAH is in the midst of digitizing their vast poster collection, so images may not be available for all of the posters included in this section—check back soon!

Further Resources

David Haberstitch, “Memories of a wartime poster model,”  O Say Can You See? Stories from the National Museum of American History  (blog), October 12, 2010 .

Elizabeth Prelinger and Barton C. Hacker, "'The Spirit of Woman-Power': Representation of Women in World War I Posters," in A Companion to Women’s Military History , ed. Barton C. Hacker and Margaret Vining (Boston: Brill, 2012), 453–484.

Eric Van Schaack, "The Division of Pictorial Publicity in World War I," Design Issues 22, no. 1 (Winter 2006): 32–45.

Jia-Rui Cook, "The Posters That Sold World War I to the American Public," Smithsonian Magazine , July 28, 2014 .

Michele J. Shover, "Roles and Images of Women in World War I Propaganda," Politics & Society 5, no. 4 (December 1975): 469–486.

World War I Posters at the Library of Congress .

World War I Posters at the U.S. Army Center of Military History .

"World War I Posters: The Graphic Art of Propaganda," LIFE.com .

"Your Country Calls!: Posters of the First World War" at The Huntington .

[1] George Creel, as quoted in Eric Van Schaack, "The Division of Pictorial Publicity in World War I," Design Issues 22, no. 1 (Winter 2006): 33 . 

[2] Elizabeth Prelinger and Barton C. Hacker, "'The Spirit of Woman-Power': Representation of Women in World War I Posters," in A Companion to Women’s Military History , ed. Barton C. Hacker and Margaret Vining (Boston: Brill, 2012), 464.

Image Sources:

Herbert Andrew Paus, "The Woman's Land Army of America," 1918, Photos, Prints, Drawings, Library of Congress, JPEG file,  http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/ppmsca/13400/13492r.jpg  (accessed April 30, 2015).

Howard Chandler Christy, "I Want You For The Navy," 1917, Photos, Prints, Drawings, Library of Congress, JPEG file,  http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3g00000/3g02000/3g02000/3g02010r.jpg  (accessed April 30, 2015).

propaganda posters during ww1

Join the R.A.A.F Back Them Up!

propaganda posters during ww1

Back them Up!

propaganda posters during ww1

Join the R.A.A.F. - Back them Up!

propaganda posters during ww1

Join the R.A.A.F Back them Up!

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HistoryTen

Propaganda Posters Used in World War 1

After the United States declared war on Germany in 1917, industry resources on weaponry and technology increased considerably.

It prompted President Woodrow Wilson to establish the Committee on Public Information, managing its official propaganda and advertising efforts.

The Creel Committee was named for its director, George Creel, who recognized the importance of the press in molding public opinion.

Creel appointed Charles Dana Gibson, the country’s most well-known and well-paid commercial illustrator, to head the Division of Pictorial Publicity. 

As such, Gibson oversaw the work of over 300 illustrators who became known as The Vigilantes for their contributions to the war cause. 

Edward Penfield, James Montgomery Flagg, Joseph Christian Leyendecker, Howard Chandler ChristyHoward Chandler Christy, Herbert Paus, C.B. Falls, E.H. Blashfield, Joseph Pennell, Joseph Leyendecker, Jessie Willcox Smith, and L.N. Britton were among the group’s renowned commercial artists. 

Posters were essential to the United States’ war efforts during World War 1 .

Their unrivaled capacity to communicate swiftly enabled the government and support groups to mobilize the home front by convincing and enlightening the population on public policy issues. 

War efforts also used posters to generate funds, attract soldiers, increase production, increase public support, incite anger at enemy crimes, and promote assistance for various relief activities.

In less than two years, the United States generated over 2,500 posters and approximately 20 million posters—nearly one for every four citizens. 

Their historical significance and enduring popularity originate from their ability to express the spirit of patriotism and a sense of duty in spectacular visual metaphors in the early twentieth century.

What type of propaganda was used in W.W. 1?

The government propelled propaganda in postcards, posters, and trade cards that flourished during World War 1 due to developments in print technology that began in the 19th century.

What effect did propaganda have on W.W. 1?

The governments of the conflicting countries used propaganda like any other war, with the truth of suffering. Propaganda ensured that the citizens learned only what the governments wanted them to know.

Who made propaganda posters in W.W. 1?

Some of the most famous W.W. 1 propaganda posters were designed and created by James Montgomery Flagg, a prominent U.S. artist. He designed 46 posters for the government. The most famous of his posters was the “I Want You for U.S. Army.”

World War 1 Poster Purpose, Themes, and Series

World War 1 saw many primary kinds of poster series .

The themes included recruitment posters, financial posters, national symbols, posters dealing with food issues, war bonds and funds posters, relief posters, and organizational posters. 

Recruitment Posters

A WW1 Recruitment poster, by W.A. Rogers

Enlistment in the Marines, U.S Army, Air Force, Navy, Tank Corps, American Field Service, various municipal and state regiments, and the National Guard was encouraged via recruitment posters. 

Many recruitment posters also urged males to exercise civic duty and join the military. During the prior war years, the United Kingdom produced many recruitment posters.

Before May 1916, the British army was entirely voluntary when conscription was implemented. 

Attractive posters were an essential strategy in getting as many men to enroll as possible.

Four pristinely preserved and rarely seen posters, printed in Jamaica and sent to the men of the Bahamas, demonstrate how this conflict-affected many places of the world outside the actual battlegrounds.

Financial Posters 

Poster to promote the sale of Liberty Bonds

Likewise, financial support posters urged Americans to purchase the first four Liberty Loans and the Victory Liberty Loan . It also encouraged various war bonds and war savings stamps.

Recruitment was not an urgent requirement in countries where conscription was the norm (France, Germany, Austria), and most advertisements were targeted at raising money to finance the war. 

Those who did not join were requested to purchase bonds or make war loan payments. Many finance posters make use of numismatic imagery to make their point.

Coins can become projectiles, crush opponents, or serve as shields in the battle effort.

Patriotic Posters

World War I poster

Patriotic posters , also produced by the government and various state civilian organizations, likewise encouraged farmers, workers, women, and children to participate in war work and support their country’s war effort. 

Among the messages encouraging general patriotism are warnings to be on the lookout for spies, avoid rumors, and avoid “war talk.”

Conservation posters similarly, urged civilians to preserve food, fuel, and other supplies for the war effort.

Foreign Aid Posters

Call for volunteer speakers on US WW1

On relief posters, aid was asked for other countries, children, families, and troops. Organizational posters for the Red Cross, the Y.W.C.A., the Y.M.C.A., and other organizations’ varied aid and membership activities.

The Women’s Land Army began as a British civilian group to increase agricultural output by farming the fields for farmers serving in the military. 

Organizational Posters

Poster by the United States Fuel Administration during World War 1

In the United States, a Women’s Land Army was also formed. In like manner, foreign posters encouraged Americans to join the Allies in their fight against aggressors in Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Furthermore, throughout Europe during the war, food shortages were common. Before the U.S. entered the war, American aid organizations transported food to other countries. 

On the home front, it was perceived that Americans would change their eating patterns so that food could be saved and delivered abroad.

Americans were urged to consume less meat and grains and more corn and fish. 

Americans were also encouraged to grow victory gardens and preserve fruits and vegetables. In the United Kingdom, eggs were gathered for the injured to aid in their recuperation. 

The Comité National de Prévoyance et d’Economies in France sponsored a poster competition for pupils to design conservation posters.

National Symbol Posters 

Poster depicting Winston Churchill as a British Bulldog

Many of the posters use symbolism to make their point. Uncle Sam appears regularly as a symbol for the United States on posters.

On other posters, the United Kingdom is represented by John Bull and Britannia, while Marianne represents France. 

The Allies frequently depicted Germany as a caricature known as a “Hun,” commonly represented wearing a pickelhaube (spiked helmet), often covered in blood.

Whistler’s mother from the painting “Arrangement in Grey and Black” on a single Canadian poster represents all mothers. Men are recruited to enter the Irish Canadian Rangers and “fight for her.”

Brief History of Poster Art in America (The Country that Produced the Most Propaganda Posters during WW 1) 

Front cover of a US anti communist propaganda

Posters have numerous purposes, including art, advertising, and education. Poster art also acts as cultural commentary by reflecting its creator’s political and social tendencies.

Posters were also widely used as a communication medium before World War 1.

Alois Senefelder invented lithography in 1796, printing multiple copies of a document or image on a limestone plate.

Soon, lithographers began producing colored prints and posters on a succession of limestone plates.

Jules Cheret’s three-stone lithography process, which generated brilliant colors and astonishing textures, elevated poster creation to an art form in the 1870s. 

Cheret’s designs blended words and images with stunning fonts and brilliant colors to create a dramatic innovation: the lithographic poster. Several notable artists, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, created poster art during this period. 

Toulouse-debut Lautrec’s poster, Moulin Rouge, raised posters to the realm of great art in 1891.

Although the poster played an important part in communication throughout WW2, it was overshadowed by other forms of media, primarily radio and print. 

Poster production began to fall in the 1950s as television became a new competition. The poster’s role and appearance have evolved continuously over the last century to satisfy society’s evolving needs.

Although the poster’s role in communication is less important than 100 years ago, it still can affect opinion and define our culture.

Famous Propaganda Posters of World War 1 and their Sentiments towards People 

I want you for u.s. army.

To recruit soldiers for both World War 1 and World War 2

James Montgomery Flagg’s serious image of Uncle Sam pointing at the viewer above the words “I Want You for U.S. Army” is one of the most famous American images ever created. 

The illustrators employed advertising methods and visual design to engage and provoke emotional responses from passers-by.

It is, without question, the most well-known World War 1 poster. 

The artist was portrayed as Uncle Sam. The poster was first printed in 1916; by 1918, over four million copies had been sold. 

Flagg was a member of Charles Gibson’s Committee on Pictorial Publicity, part of the federal government’s Committee on Public Information, which George Creel chaired.

Britons. Join Your Country’s Army!

The title page of the London Opinion in 1914 for the first time printed images

This is possibly the most iconic poster from the First World War. It depicts Field Marshal Lord Kitchener urging people to join the British Army. 

First created in 1914, the poster gained greater iconic importance since the war when it was not extensively distributed outside of the London area. 

However, its stunning visual appeal was adopted by other artists, especially those in the United States, where the image of Kitchener was substituted with Uncle Sam.

Columbia Calls

Columbia Calls Enlist Now for U.S. Army

The poster depicts Columbia holding a flag and a sword while standing in North America on top of a globe in print. There is the text of a poem by Halsted in the lower right corner. 

The poster’s contributors include Halsted Vincent as the artist and Frances Adams as the designer.

Frances Adams Halsted penned her poem, Columbia Calls, in 1916, convinced that war with Germany was unavoidable.

Halsted submitted her poetry and the accompanying picture design to the United States War Department after America declared war on April 6, 1917. 

After three months or so, the New York Times announced plans to print 500,000 posters with the proceeds to establish a shelter for orphaned children of American soldiers and sailors. 

Vincent Aderente, the painter who executed Halsted’s design, moved from Italy when he was six.

He studied with and trained at the Art Students League in New York City and worked as an assistant to muralist Edwin Howland Blashfield.

Women of Britain say, ‘Go!’

Women of Britain say Go

This billboard displays the use of commercial advertising strategies in the recruiting effort. It appeals to the British female population to persuade more men to join the army. 

The poster shows women and children in need of protection.

On the other hand, the First World War significantly boosted the number of women in paid work and the variety of jobs they performed.

Wake up, America!

Poster of Wake Up America Day on April 19, 1917

On April 6, 1917, the United States entered World War 1 after two and a half years of neutrality.

In this poster, displayed on “Wake Up, America” Day in New York City just thirteen days later on April 19, James Montgomery Flagg, who created some of the war’s most unforgettable imagery, rang the alarm for all residents. 

Flagg’s Columbia model was actress Mary Arthur, representing America and Liberty.

She is portrayed sleeping while wearing patriotic stars, stripes, and a Phrygian cap. These had been used as a symbol of freedom since Roman times. 

Sinister storm clouds gather in the backdrop as she falls asleep against a fluted column, another pictorial reference to Western classical antiquity and civilization.

Women Urgently Wanted For The W.A.A.C.

Women Urgently Wanted For The W.A.A.C.

In December 1916, the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) was formed. Women who joined the Corps performed various non-combatant duties in France. 

This was aimed at allocating more men for front-line service.

On March 31, 1917, the first group of 14 women arrived on the Western Front. Nine thousand women eventually served with the regiment in France. 

Remember Scarborough

propaganda posters during ww1

The German First High Seas Fleet Scouting Group bombed the North Sea ports of Hartlepool, West Hartlepool, Whitby, and Scarborough on December 16, 1914. 

137 people were killed, and 592 were injured. The ad used the incident to encourage people to enlist, but the British public and press were equally upset at the Royal Navy for failing to protect the towns.

Conclusion 

Posters helped sell the war. These posters encouraged you to enroll, raise the flag, and fight for your nation.

They made you fear an enemy or manufactured a fear you didn’t realize you had in other circumstances. 

Nations had to persuade their citizens that this war was just, and we had to join rather than sit back and watch.

Although propaganda posters existed before 1917, World War 1 posters’ coordination and mass dissemination distinguished them from previous printings. 

Despite the passage of 100 years and many wars and disillusionment with them, these posters continue to pique one’s interest.

The lines between good and evil are drawn. It’s difficult to ignore the pain. The signs also instruct people on how to assist the war efforts. 

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The propaganda posters that sold World War I to the American public, 1914-1918

I Want You for U.S. Army, 1917, James Montgomery Flagg.

I Want You for U.S. Army, 1917, James Montgomery Flagg.

The United States entered World War I in 1917 as an associated power on the allied side of Britain and France. By the time that World War I came around, the United States was a leader in the recently discovered art of movie making and the new profession of commercial advertising.

Such newly discovered technologies played an instrumental role in the shaping of the American mind and the altering of public opinion into a pro-war position.

The government didn’t have time to waste while its citizens made up their minds about joining the fight. How could ordinary Americans be convinced to participate in the war “over there”?

Posters—which were so well designed and illustrated that people collected and displayed them in fine art galleries—possessed both visual appeal and ease of reproduction.

They could be pasted on the sides of buildings, put in the windows of homes, tacked up in workplaces, and resized to appear above cable car windows and in magazines. And they could easily be reprinted in a variety of languages.

Step into Your Place, 1915, artist unknown.

Step into Your Place, 1915, artist unknown.

To merge this popular form of advertising with key messages about the war, the U.S. government’s public information committee formed a Division of Pictorial Publicity in 1917.

The committee, headed by former investigative journalist George Creel, emphasized the message that America’s involvement in the war was entirely necessary in achieving the salvation of Europe from the German and enemy forces.

In his book titled “How we Advertised America,” Creel states that the committee was called into existence to make World War I a fight that would be a “verdict for mankind”.

He called the committee a voice that was created to plead the justice of America’s cause before the jury of public opinion. Creel also refers to the committee as a “vast enterprise in salesmenship” and “the world’s greatest adventure in advertising”.

The committee’s message resonated deep within every American community and also served as an organization responsible for carrying the full message of American ideals to every corner of the civilized globe.

Wake Up, America! Civilization Calls Every Man Woman and Child!, 1917, James Montgomery Flagg.

Wake Up, America! Civilization Calls Every Man Woman and Child!, 1917, James Montgomery Flagg.

Enlist / On Which Side of the Window Are You?, 1917, Laura Brey.

Enlist / On Which Side of the Window Are You?, 1917, Laura Brey.

You / Buy a Liberty Bond Lest I Perish, 1917, Charles Raymond Macauley.

You / Buy a Liberty Bond Lest I Perish, 1917, Charles Raymond Macauley.

Help the Red Cross, ca. 1917, Herman Roeg.

Help the Red Cross, ca. 1917, Herman Roeg.

Il Cibo Vincerà la Guerra! (Food Will Win the War!), ca. 1917, Charles E. Chambers.

Il Cibo Vincerà la Guerra! (Food Will Win the War!), ca. 1917, Charles E. Chambers.

Preserve Co-operation, 1917, Carter Housh.

Preserve Co-operation, 1917, Carter Housh.

Treat ’em Rough / Join the Tanks United States Tank Corps, 1918, August William Hutaf.

Treat ’em Rough / Join the Tanks United States Tank Corps, 1918, August William Hutaf.

Teamwork Builds Ships, ca. 1918, William Dodge Stevens.

Teamwork Builds Ships, ca. 1918, William Dodge Stevens.

Hunger Breeds Madness,1918, Emil Grebs.

Hunger Breeds Madness,1918, Emil Grebs.

If You Can’t Enlist - Invest / Buy a Liberty Bond, ca. 1918, Winsor McCay.

If You Can’t Enlist – Invest / Buy a Liberty Bond, ca. 1918, Winsor McCay.

(Photo credit: The Huntington Library).

Updated on: November 30, 2021

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Women in world war i war posters.

Many of the posters were commissioned by the Committee on Public Information's Division of Pictorial Publicity.  George Creel, chair of the committee, felt strongly that posters would be extremely important in influencing Americans’ feelings: "I had the conviction that the poster must play a great role in the right for public opinion. The printed word might not be read; people might choose not to attend meetings or to watch motion pictures, but the billboard was something that caught even the most indifferent eye . . ." [1]

Other organizations heavily involved in the war and war relief efforts, such as the U.S. Army, the YMCA, and the Red Cross, also commissioned their own posters from artists.  The proliferation of posters put out by the government and other organizations served to motivate and influence the American people in a variety of ways.  Some simply aimed to promote patriotism and to encourage public support of the war.  However, many took this aim a step further by encouraging enlistment, promoting Liberty Bonds, and recruiting volunteers for a variety of work on the home front.  Posters attempted to reach these goals by speaking to different audiences in a variety of ways.  For example, to promote enlistment a poster could tell men that Uncle Sam wanted them for the U.S. Army; it could play on feelings of guilt for men who did not enlist; it could convince mothers and wives that they needed to tell the men in their lives to enlist; or it could show enticing, heroic action on the battlefield.

The depiction and usage of women in World War I posters varied, depending on the goal of the organization that commissioned them. In some posters, women appeared in distress or seeking help as victims of the war. Prior to American entry, these posters functioned to sway American public opinion in the direction of joining the Allies by cultivating outrage that a country, particularly its women, had been attacked. After the U.S. entered the war, the posters depicting women as victims played on the traditionally masculine role as a protector of women in order to convince men to enlist in the armed forces.

Unlike the posters that portray women as victims, passive observers of the war, or seductresses, many of the World War I posters show women taking a much more active role in contributing to war efforts. For example, many of the Red Cross posters (oftentimes soliciting donations or seeking more volunteers and nurses) show nurses in the thick of the conflict, carrying stretchers with wounded soldiers, caring for the soldiers, and attending to families displaced by the war. These women are portrayed as strong, courageous, and patriotic, thus promoting the work of nurses and the Red Cross and prompting other Americans to likewise lend their support.

Posters showing active, patriotic women were also used on the home front to promote and recruit for war efforts in America. These posters, like the Woman's Landy Army one pictured below, show women in their home front jobs, typically appearing enthusiastic and further promoting the home front efforts.  Additionally, the women are usually depicted as "'ordinary' women . . . in order to set an example for potential participants in war-related activities" in America. [2]

Allegorical women also appeared in World War I posters, most often representing a country such as France or America, or representing certain national ideals or goals such as liberty, victory, and justice. Many of the posters featuring allegorical women were aimed at recruiting men for the armed forces, although when not soliciting enlistment, the posters also targeted women.

Aside from featuring women, many of the posters included in this section highlight the wartime organizations that contributed to the war effort, such as the Red Cross, the War Camp Community Service, and the YWCA, many of which were run by women and/or whose volunteer base was largely composed of women.

Please note that the Archives Center at NMAH is in the midst of digitizing their vast poster collection, so images may not be available for all of the posters included in this section—check back soon!

Further Resources

David Haberstitch, “Memories of a wartime poster model,”  O Say Can You See? Stories from the National Museum of American History  (blog), October 12, 2010 .

Elizabeth Prelinger and Barton C. Hacker, "'The Spirit of Woman-Power': Representation of Women in World War I Posters," in A Companion to Women’s Military History , ed. Barton C. Hacker and Margaret Vining (Boston: Brill, 2012), 453–484.

Eric Van Schaack, "The Division of Pictorial Publicity in World War I," Design Issues 22, no. 1 (Winter 2006): 32–45.

Jia-Rui Cook, "The Posters That Sold World War I to the American Public," Smithsonian Magazine , July 28, 2014 .

Michele J. Shover, "Roles and Images of Women in World War I Propaganda," Politics & Society 5, no. 4 (December 1975): 469–486.

World War I Posters at the Library of Congress .

World War I Posters at the U.S. Army Center of Military History .

"World War I Posters: The Graphic Art of Propaganda," LIFE.com .

"Your Country Calls!: Posters of the First World War" at The Huntington .

[1] George Creel, as quoted in Eric Van Schaack, "The Division of Pictorial Publicity in World War I," Design Issues 22, no. 1 (Winter 2006): 33 . 

[2] Elizabeth Prelinger and Barton C. Hacker, "'The Spirit of Woman-Power': Representation of Women in World War I Posters," in A Companion to Women’s Military History , ed. Barton C. Hacker and Margaret Vining (Boston: Brill, 2012), 464.

Image Sources:

Herbert Andrew Paus, "The Woman's Land Army of America," 1918, Photos, Prints, Drawings, Library of Congress, JPEG file,  http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/ppmsca/13400/13492r.jpg  (accessed April 30, 2015).

Howard Chandler Christy, "I Want You For The Navy," 1917, Photos, Prints, Drawings, Library of Congress, JPEG file,  http://lcweb2.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3g00000/3g02000/3g02000/3g02010r.jpg  (accessed April 30, 2015).

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propaganda posters during ww1

A new exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York features rarely seen propaganda art commissioned by the U.S. government during World War I.

Propaganda is central to any war effort. In the early 20th century, the persuasion to head into battle came, in part, from art: The government recruited artists and illustrators to create propaganda materials. In a new exhibit, the Museum of the City of New York is showing how New York City-based artists and creatives working for the federal government’s Division of Pictorial Publicity helped sell World War I to the public.

Posters and Patriotism: Selling World War I in New York showcases a collection of more than 60 mass-produced propaganda posters from the era—some on display for the first time—that the railroad millionaire John W. Campbell donated to the museum in 1943. They make up just a small sample of the 20 million copies of approximately 2500 posters that the government distributed around the U.S.

1. "ENLIST" BY FRED SPEAR, 1915

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.147

this is caption

2. "JEWISH WELFARE BOARD" BY JOSEF FOSHKO, C. 1917

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.240

3. "I WANT YOU FOR U.S. ARMY" BY JAMES MONTGOMERY FLAGG, C. 1917

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.142

4. "CLEAR THE WAY!!" BY HOWARD CHANDLER CHRISTY, C. 1917

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.56

5. "TO-DAY BUY THAT LIBERTY BOND" BY UNKNOWN ARTIST, C. 1917

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.4

6. “PER LA LIBERAZIONE SOTTOSCRIVETE! (FOR LIBERATION SUBSCRIBE TO THE NATIONAL LOAN!)” BY ACHILLE MAUZAN, 1918

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.564

7. “REMEMBER! THE FLAG OF LIBERTY SUPPORT IT!” BY HEYWOOD, STRASSER & VOIGHT LITHO CO. (NEW YORK, N.Y.), 1918

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.35

8. “LEST WE PERISH” BY ETHEL FRANKLIN BETTS BAINS, 1917-18

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.109

9. “TREAT 'EM ROUGH” BY AUGUST WILLIAM HUTAF, C. 1918

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.178

10. “HELP THE RED CROSS” BY HERMAN ROEG, 1918

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.93

11. “FOR EVERY FIGHTER A WOMAN WORKER” BY ADOLPH TREIDLER, C. 1918

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.123

12. “EVERY GIRL PULLING FOR VICTORY” BY EDWARD PENFIELD, 1918

MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, GIFT OF MR. JOHN W. CAMPBELL, 43.40.131

Posters and Patriotism: Selling World War I in New York opens April 5. 

First Call: American Posters of World War One from the Collection of Roger N. Mohovich

Introduction.

The enormous output of posters in the United States during and just after the First World War belies this country’s late entry into that conflict. Spurred by the example of the various European combatants, the creation and production of appropriate “pictorial publicity” quickly achieved a very high level of artistic involvement and industrial application. Thousands of designs were created, and most of them were printed in very large numbers. As a result, very few of these posters are scarce even today, and only a small handful might qualify as “rare.”

A large number of artists were involved in the creation of posters during the war. Some of them came to the work with their reputations already secured through their commercial work in books, magazines, and advertising: of these, for example, Howard Chandler Christy and James Montgomery Flagg are represented in this exhibition, Harrison Fisher and Edward Penfield are not. Some of the artists in the exhibit are now known to us largely because they did these—and other—posters. “Ruttan” and the euphonious “H. Blyleven Esselen” defeated attempts to track them down in the reference resources at hand; John E. Sheridan, who might well be a mystery elsewhere, is known here because he attended Georgetown in the closing years of the 19th century and his first poster work was probably the series he did advertising Georgetown baseball games against Princeton, Yale, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. As in Britain, some posters took advantage of work first published as cartoons in the daily papers; the examples shown here by W. A. Rogers and Oscar Cesare are typical. Many of the artists, whether obscure or famous, contributed their work gratis to the war effort.  

The posters helped not only with the obvious aim of recruiting members for the armed forces, but with the parallel home-front efforts embodied in various conservation efforts, in the multiple aims of the United War Work Campaign, in the work of the Red Cross, and perhaps most notably in the rapid subscription of the Liberty and Victory loans. Each of the four Liberty loan campaigns (two in 1917, two in 1918) and the Victory loan campaign of early 1919 brought an outpouring of poster art on both the local and national levels. Of the six posters in the exhibit not listed in Theofiles’ book, three relate one way or another to recruiting, and the other three are loan appeals.  

We note also that the same printing firms which thrived on the production of the posters contributed in some cases to their creation. W. F. Powers in New York made and donated the color plates for the Cesare poster; the Robert Gary Company in Brooklyn contributed the entire Cyrus LeRoy Baldridge effort. And the striking poster by Joseph Grosse, unknown to Theofiles, was contributed by the “Cloak, Suit and Skirt Industry Committee.” In a context where the various Liberty and Victory loan drives achieved something like 30 billion dollars in returns these efforts may seem tiny, but cumulatively they and others like them did much for the proliferation of the poster as an important means of war effort communication.

The current exhibition, timed to open on the 81st anniversary of Armistice Day, November 11, is the second in what we hope will be a series of exhibits of posters drawn from the collection of Roger N. Mohovich, acquired in 1997 as a gift from his heirs, David van Buskirk and Warren Wilson. See also: TAKE UP THE SWORD OF JUSTICE: British Posters of World War I.

Entries for each poster are arranged in the following format: artist (where known); title; size (in inches, height before width); place of printing, publisher, and date; notes (those in quotation marks taken directly from the posters themselves); and references. References are to the following works: George Theofiles, American Posters of World War I (Dafran, 1973); Labert St. Clair, The Story of the Liberty Loans (James William Bryan Press, 1919); Joseph Darracott, The First World War in Posters (Dover, 1974); and Maurice Rickards, Posters of the First World War (Walker, 1968).

George M. Barringer Georgetown University Library

Flagg's "First Call"

Flagg, James Montgomery, 1877-1960 [New York]: Leslie-Judge Co. 1917 printed on board 11 x 21 Not in Theofiles

A Wonderful Opportunity for YOU

A Wonderful Opportunity for YOU

Ruttan [n.p., 1919?] 28 x 20 1/4 Probably a post-war appeal for recruits. Not in Theofiles

ONLY THE NAVY CAN STOP THIS

ONLY THE NAVY CAN STOP THIS

Rogers, William Allen, 1854-1931 New York: U. S. Navy Publishing Bureau [1917] 25 1/4 x 19 1/2 Reproduction of a cartoon from The New York Herald . Theofiles 47; Rickards 180

YOU DRIVE A CAR HERE - WHY NOT A TRANSPORT IN FRANCE?

YOU DRIVE A CAR HERE - WHY NOT A TRANSPORT IN FRANCE?

Esselen, H. Blyleven [n.p., 1918?] 27 1/2 x 19 1/4 Not in Theofiles

HOLD ON TO UNCLE SAM'S INSURANCE

HOLD ON TO UNCLE SAM'S INSURANCE

Flagg, James Montgomery, 1877-1960 Boston: Forbes [1919?] 30 x 20 Theofiles 324

Be Patriotic

Be Patriotic

Stahr, Paul C., 1883-19?? New York: W. F. Powers [1918?] 28 3/4 x 21 Theofiles 97

Food is Ammunition

Food is Ammunition

Sheridan, John E. [n.p., 1918?] 28 3/4 x 20 1/4 Theofiles 76; St. Clair, p. 155

SEE HIM THROUGH

SEE HIM THROUGH

Rice, Burton [n.p.] 1918 25 3/4 x 19 3/4 Theofiles 294, attributed to "Carlson Rice"

Back our girls over there

Back our girls over there

Underwood, Clarence Frederick, 1871-1929 [n.p., 1918?] 28 x 21 1/4 Theofiles 213; St. Clair, p. 177

FOR YOUR BOY

FOR YOUR BOY

Brown, Arthur William, 1881-19?? Philadelphia: Ketterlinus [1918?] 29 3/4 x 20 Produced by the Committee on Public Information, Division of Pictorial Publicity. Theofiles 197

The Hun ~ his Mark

The Hun ~ his Mark

St. John, J. Allen. Chicago: Manz Engraving Co. [1917] 30 1/4 x 19 3/4 Theofiles 137; St. Clair, p. 84; Darracott 40

Remember Your First Thrill of AMERICAN LIBERTY

Remember Your First Thrill of AMERICAN LIBERTY

[Anonymous] New York: Sackett & Wilhelms [1917] 30 x 20 Theofiles 135; St. Clair, p. 73

WOMEN! HELP AMERICA'S SONS WIN THE WAR

WOMEN! HELP AMERICA'S SONS WIN THE WAR

Porteous, R. H. Chicago: Edwards & Deutsch [1917] 30 x 20 Theofiles 131, attributed to "P. S. Porteus;" St. Clair, p. 73

"THAT GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE..."

"THAT GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE..."

[Anonymous] [n.p., 1918] 30 x 20 Theofiles 152; St. Clair, p. 36

HALT the Hun!

HALT the Hun!

Raleigh, Henry, 1880-19?? Chicago: Edwards & Deutsch [1918] 28 3/4 x 19 3/4 Theofiles 140; St. Clair, p. 37

HELP CRUSH the MENACE of the SEAS

HELP CRUSH the MENACE of the SEAS

Grosse, Joseph L. New York: O'Connor-Fyffe Adv. [1918?] 27 3/4 x 18 1/4 "Poster Contributed by Cloak, Suit and Skirt Industry Committee" Not in Theofiles

PROVIDE THE SINEWS OF WAR

PROVIDE THE SINEWS OF WAR

Pennell, Joseph, 1860-1926 New York: Heywood, Strasser & Voigt 1918 printed on board 20 x 21 Theofiles 162

HUN OR HOME?

HUN OR HOME?

Raleigh, Henry, 1880-19?? Chicago: Edwards & Deutsch [1918] 29 3/4 x 19 3/4 Theofiles 166; St. Clair, p. 137

Pvt. TREPTOW'S PLEDGE

Pvt. TREPTOW'S PLEDGE

Baldridge, Cyrus LeRoy, 1889-19?? Brooklyn: Robert Gair Company 1918 30 x 19 3/4 Poster donated by the printing company. Not in Theofiles

REMEMBER THE BOND

REMEMBER THE BOND

Cesare, Oscar E. [New York]: The Nation Press [1918?] 24 3/4 x 18 1/2 "Color Plates made and donated by Powers Engraving Co., N. Y." Reproduction of a cartoon from The New York Evening Post. Not in Theofiles

Answer the Red Cross Christmas Roll Call

Answer the Red Cross Christmas Roll Call

Greenleaf, Ray, 18??-1950 Buffalo: Niagara Litho. Co. 1918 30 x 20 Produced by the Committee on Public Information, Division of Pictorial Publicity. Theofiles 232

Hold up your end!

Hold up your end!

King, William B., 1880-1927 [New York?] 1918? 27 1/2 x 20 1/4 Theofiles 221; St. Clair, p. 142

Have YOU a Red Cross Service Flag?

Have YOU a Red Cross Service Flag?

Smith, Jessie Wilcox, 1863-1925 Chicago: Edwards & Deutsch [1918?] 28 x 22 1/4 Theofiles 237

Keep this Hand of Mercy at its work

Keep this Hand of Mercy at its work

Morgan, P. G. [New York?] 1918? 27 1/2 x 20 1/2 Theofiles 228, attributed to "C. Emerson, Jr."

THE SPIRIT OF AMERICA

THE SPIRIT OF AMERICA

Christy, Howard Chandler, 1872-1952 Boston: Forbes [1918?] 30 x 20 Theofiles 242; Darracott 6

propaganda posters during ww1

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How the US Government Used Propaganda to Sell Americans on World War I

By: Patricia O'Toole

Updated: March 28, 2023 | Original: May 22, 2018

propaganda posters during ww1

When the United States declared war on Germany in April 1917, President Woodrow Wilson  faced a reluctant nation. Wilson had, after all, won his reelection in 1916 with the slogan, “He kept us out of the war.” To convince Americans that going to war in Europe was necessary, Wilson created the Committee on Public Information (CPI), to focus on promoting the war effort.

To head up the committee, Wilson appointed a brilliant political public relations man, George Creel. As head of the CPI, Creel was in charge of censorship as well as flag-waving, but he quickly passed the censor’s job to Postmaster General Albert S. Burleson. The Post Office already had the power to bar materials from the mail and revoke the reduced postage rates given to newspapers and magazines.

Creel dispatches positive news to stir a ‘war-will’ among Americans

Handsome, charismatic, and indefatigable, Creel thought big and out of the box. He disliked the word “propaganda,” which he associated with Germany’s long campaign of disinformation. To him, the CPI’s business was more like advertising, “a vast enterprise in salesmanship” that emphasized the positive. A veteran of Wilson’s two successful presidential campaigns, Creel knew how to organize an army of volunteers, and 150,000 men and women answered his call. The Washington office, which operated on a shoestring, was part government communications bureau and part media conglomerate, with divisions for news, syndicated features, advertising, film, and more. At Wilson’s insistence, the CPI also published the Official Bulletin , the executive-branch equivalent of the Congressional Record.

Creel’s first idea was to distribute good news and disclose as many facts about the war as he could without compromising national security. His M.O. was simple: flood the country with press releases disguised as news stories. Summing up after the war, Creel said he aimed to “weld the people of the United States into one white-hot mass instinct” and give them a “war-will, the will to win.”

propaganda posters during ww1

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During the 20 months of the U.S. involvement in the war, the CPI issued nearly all government announcements and sent out 6,000 press releases written in the straightforward, understated tone of newspaper articles. It also designed and circulated more than 1,500 patriotic advertisements. In addition, Creel distributed uncounted articles by famous authors who had agreed to write for free. At one point, newspapers were receiving six pounds of CPI material a day. Editors eager to avoid trouble with the Post Office and the Justice Department published reams of CPI material verbatim and often ran the patriotic ads for free.

Propaganda describes the enemy as ‘mad brute’

For the first two months, nearly all of the information generated by the CPI consisted of announcements and propaganda of the cheerleading variety: salutes to America’s wartime achievements and American ideals. At Creel’s direction, the CPI celebrated America’s immigrants and fought the perception that those who hailed from Germany, Austria, and Hungary were less American than their neighbors. Creel thought it savvier to try to befriend large ethnic groups than to attack them.

But after two months, Creel and Wilson could see that popular enthusiasm for the war was nowhere near white-hot. So on June 14, 1917, Wilson used the occasion of Flag Day to paint a picture of American soldiers about to carry the Stars and Stripes into battle and die on fields soaked in blood. And for what? he asked. In calling for a declaration of war, he had argued that the world must be made safe for democracy, but with his 1917 Flag Day speech, he trained the country’s sights on a less exalted goal: the destruction of the government of Germany, which was bent on world domination.

After Flag Day , the CPI continued to churn out positive news by the ton, but it also began plastering the country with lurid posters of ape-like German soldiers, some with bloody bayonets, others with bare-breasted young females in their clutches. “Destroy this mad brute,” read one caption. It also funded films with titles like The Kaiser: The Beast of Berlin and The Prussian Curse .

WWI Enlistment Poster- Destroy this Mad Brute

Vigilantes inflict terror on suspected skeptics of the war

The CPI’s happy news sometimes downplayed the shortcomings of the U.S. war effort, but the demonizing of all Germans played to low instincts. Thousands of self-appointed guardians of patriotism began to harass pacifists, socialists, and German immigrants who were not citizens. And many Americans took CPI’s dark warnings to heart. 

Even the most casual expression of doubt about the war could trigger a beating by a mob and the humiliation of being made to kiss the flag in public. Americans who declined to buy Liberty Bonds (issued by the Treasury to finance the war) sometimes awoke to find their homes streaked with yellow paint. Several churches of pacifist sects were set ablaze. Scores of men suspected of disloyalty were tarred and feathered, and a handful were lynched. Most of the violence was carried out in the dark by vigilantes who marched their victims to a spot outside the city limits, where the local police had no jurisdiction. Perpetrators who were apprehended were rarely tried, and those tried were almost never found guilty. Jurors hesitated to convict, afraid that they too would be accused of disloyalty and roughed up.

Both Creel and Wilson privately deplored the vigilantes, but neither acknowledged his role in turning them loose. Less violent but no less regrettable were the actions taken by state and local governments and countless private institutions to fire German aliens, suspend performances of German music, and ban the teaching of German in schools.

In their effort to unify the country, Wilson and Creel deployed their own versions of fake news. While the worst that can be said of the sunny fake news flowing out of the CPI was that it was incomplete, the dark fake news, which painted the enemy as subhuman, let loose a riptide of hatred and emboldened thousands to use patriotism as an excuse for violence.

Patricia O’Toole is the author of five books, including The Moralist: Woodrow Wilson and the World He Made  and The Five of Hearts: An Intimate Portrait of Henry Adams and His Friends , which was a finalist for  the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award . 

propaganda posters during ww1

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Propaganda posters

Propaganda is a form of communication that promotes a particular perspective or agenda by using text and images to provoke an emotional response and influence behaviour.

Can you think of some modern examples of propaganda?

1. During the First World War, propaganda was used around the world for fundraising, to build hatred of the enemy, and to encourage enlistment. Posters were an ideal method of communicating this propaganda, as they could be printed and distributed quickly in large quantities.

Here are two examples of Australian propaganda posters, which aimed to encourage enlistment by promoting a sense of comradery and duty:

Collection Item C101052

Accession Number: ARTV05616

Sportsmens’ Recruiting Committee, Troedel and Cooper Pty. Ltd, Enlist in the Sportsmens’ 1000 , 1917, chromolithograph on paper, 98.7 x 73.2 cm

Collection Item C95715

Accession Number: ARTV00141

David Souter, Win the War League, William Brooks and Co. Ltd, It is nice in the surf, but what about the men in the trenches? , 1915, lithograph printed in colour on paper, 76.2 x 51.4 cm

a. What messages are the posters presenting?

b. Who are those posters targeting? Who are they not targeting, and why?

c.What do these posters tell us about how the typical Australian man was percieved during the early 1900s?

d. Do you think these posters would have influenced people like Augusta Enberg , the Christensen family , or Peter Rados ? Why or why not?

2. The following propaganda posters also encouraged enlistment, but did this by building fear of the enemy.

Collection Item C95655

Accession Number: ARTV00078

Norman Lindsay, Commonwealth Government of Australia Syd. Day, The Printer Ltd, ?, 1918, chromolithograph on paper, 99 x 74.4 cm

Collection Item C101462

Accession Number: ARTV06030

B.E. Pike, VAP Service, Must it come to this? , 1914 – 1918, chromolithograph on paper, 57.7 x 46 cm

Collection Item C254150

Accession Number: ARTV00079

Norman Lindsay, Commonwealth Government of Australia, W.E. Smith Ltd, Will you fight now or wait for this? , 1918, chromolithograph on paper, 98.3 x 74.6 cm

a. How is the enemy depicted, and what message is being presented?

b. How does the artist use text and images to convey this message?

c. What mood is being created?

d. What design elements (colour, typography, shape, space, and scale) have contributed to the mood of this poster?

e. Do you think the artist has been successful in getting their messages across? Why or why not?

f. How do you think these posters might have made Australians with German heritage feel?

3. Below are German propaganda posters that also focus on the notion of the enemy.

Collection Item C2075583

Accession Number: ARTV10343

Claus Berthold, Das Duetsche Scharfe Schwert [The German sharp sword], 1917, lithograph on paper, 90.8 x 58 cm

Collection Item C2075587

Accession Number: ARTV10346

Leopold von Kalckreuth, Hurrah, Alle Neune [Hurrah, all nine!], 1918, lithograph printed in colour, 75.4 x 57 cm

Collection Item C100554

Accession Number: ARTV05099

Egon Tschirch Was England Will! [What England will do!...], 1918, lithograph printed in colour, 93 x 67cm

a. Translate the text on these posters using Google Translate . You can also find out more about the posters by searching with the image number (such as ARTV10346) at www.awm.gov.au

b. Compare and contrast these three German posters, to the three Australian posters that also focus on the enemy. Identify similarities and differences relating to message, tone, and the representation of the opposing side. Which posters do you think have the greatest impact? Why?

4. Design your own First World War propaganda poster. You might like to consider:

a. Will you use an Australian, British, German, French or other perspective?

b. What are you trying to get the viewer to think or feel?

c. Will your message be positive or negative?

d. What colours, font, size, and style will you use to get your message across?

For more images and activities relating to propaganda posters from the First and Second World Wars, view the Hearts and Minds education kit.

Last updated: 19 January 2021

propaganda posters during ww1

Manipulating the masses: How propaganda was used during World War I

WWI recruitment propaganda

World War I was a conflict that extended beyond the trenches and battlefields, reaching into the hearts and minds of millions through the strategic use of propaganda.

This invisible weapon, wielded with as much precision and impact as any physical armament of the era, played a pivotal role in shaping public opinion, mobilizing resources, and maintaining morale.

But how exactly was propaganda used during World War I?

What were the different types of propaganda employed by the warring nations?

And how did it influence society's perception of the war? 

What is 'propaganda'?

The term 'propaganda' often carries negative connotations, associated with manipulation and deceit.

However, its roots are far more neutral, derived from the Latin 'propagare', meaning 'to spread or propagate'.

In essence, propaganda is about disseminating information, ideas, or rumors for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person.

It is a powerful tool of persuasion, capable of molding public opinion and directing collective action.

Propaganda, as a concept, is as old as human civilization itself. From the ancient Egyptians who used it to glorify their pharaohs, to the Romans who utilized it to control public opinion, propaganda has been a constant tool for those in power.

However, it was during World War I that propaganda was used on an industrial scale, leveraging the advancements in mass communication technologies such as the printing press, radio, and cinema.

The onset of World War I in 1914 marked a turning point in the use of propaganda. The conflict was unlike any seen before, involving nations from across the globe and resulting in a level of destruction and loss of life that was unprecedented.

It was a total war, requiring the mobilization of entire societies to support the war effort.

Governments quickly realized that to sustain such a war, they needed not just the physical resources but also the psychological backing of their citizens.

How countries used propaganda

The First World War marked a significant shift in the way nations conducted warfare. It was not just a battle of armies, but also a battle of ideologies, where the power of words and images was as crucial as the power of guns and bombs.

Propaganda played a pivotal role in this ideological warfare, serving as a tool to shape public opinion, maintain morale, and mobilize resources.

Each nation involved in the war had its unique propaganda strategies, reflecting their specific goals and circumstances.

However, there were common themes and techniques that transcended national boundaries.

Propaganda was used to justify the war, to portray it as a noble and necessary endeavor.

It was used to demonize the enemy, to paint them as a threat not just to the nation but to civilization itself.

It was also used to mobilize resources, to encourage men to enlist and civilians to buy war bonds or contribute to the war effort in other ways.

The British, for example, established the War Propaganda Bureau early in the war, recognizing the importance of controlling the narrative.

They enlisted famous writers and artists to create compelling propaganda materials, which were distributed both at home and abroad.

The Germans, on the other hand, used propaganda to maintain morale during the British naval blockade, which caused severe food shortages in Germany.

In the United States, which entered the war later, propaganda played a crucial role in swaying public opinion in favor of joining the war.

The Committee on Public Information, established by President Woodrow Wilson, launched a massive propaganda campaign to build support for the war effort.

This campaign was not just aimed at adults but also at children, with propaganda materials distributed in schools to instill a sense of patriotism and duty from a young age.

In Russia, propaganda was used to maintain support for the war amidst growing social unrest, which eventually led to the Russian Revolution.

The Russian government used propaganda to portray the war as a fight against German imperialism, appealing to the nationalist sentiments of the Russian people.

Common types of WWI propaganda

During World War I, propaganda was employed in a variety of forms, each designed to serve a specific purpose.

The types of propaganda used can be broadly categorized into recruitment propaganda, war bond propaganda, enemy demonization propaganda, and nationalism and patriotism propaganda.

Recruitment propaganda

One of the most visible forms of propaganda during the war was recruitment propaganda. As the war dragged on and casualty numbers rose, it became increasingly important for nations to encourage more men to enlist.

Recruitment posters often depicted the ideal soldier as brave, honorable, and patriotic, appealing to a sense of duty and masculinity.

Iconic images such as Lord Kitchener's "Your Country Needs You" poster in Britain, or Uncle Sam's "I Want You" poster in the United States, became powerful symbols of the call to arms.

War bonds propaganda

Another crucial aspect of propaganda was the promotion of war bonds. Financing the war was a massive undertaking, and governments turned to their citizens for help.

War bond propaganda aimed to convince the public that purchasing bonds was not just a financial investment, but a patriotic duty.

These campaigns often used emotional appeals, suggesting that buying bonds was a way to support the troops and contribute to the war effort.

Enemy demonisation propaganda

The demonization of the enemy was a common theme in World War I propaganda. By portraying the enemy as monstrous, barbaric, or inhuman, governments could justify the war and stoke a sense of fear and hatred.

This type of propaganda was often based on stereotypes or outright lies, such as the infamous "Rape of Belgium" campaign by the Allies, which exaggerated German atrocities to gain international support.

Nationalisation and patriotism propaganda

Propaganda was also used to foster a sense of nationalism and patriotism. This was especially important in multi-ethnic empires like Austria-Hungary or the Ottoman Empire, where loyalty to the state was not a given.

Nationalistic propaganda often used symbols, myths, and historical narratives to create a sense of shared identity and purpose.

The impact on society

One of the most significant impacts of propaganda was its role in mobilizing the public for war.

Through recruitment posters and speeches, propaganda instilled a sense of duty and patriotism, encouraging men to enlist and civilians to contribute to the war effort in other ways.

It created a culture of sacrifice and service, where everyone was expected to do their part for the war effort.

Propaganda also played a crucial role in shaping perceptions of the enemy. Through the demonization of the enemy, propaganda created a sense of fear and hatred, justifying the war and the sacrifices it required.

This had a lasting impact on international relations, contributing to the animosity and mistrust that fueled future conflicts.

Furthermore, propaganda influenced the way the war was understood and remembered.

It created a narrative of the war that highlighted the heroism and sacrifice of the soldiers, while downplaying the horror and destruction.

This narrative was often uncritically accepted, leading to a romanticized and distorted view of the war.

Finally, the use of propaganda during World War I had a significant impact on society by introducing new methods of mass communication and persuasion.

The techniques developed during the war, from the use of posters and films to the manipulation of news and information, became a standard part of political and commercial communication in the decades that followed.

The crucial role of artists and designers

Artists and designers played a crucial role in World War I propaganda. Their skills were harnessed to create powerful images and messages that could sway public opinion and mobilize support for the war effort.

They were, in essence, visual storytellers, crafting narratives of heroism, sacrifice, and patriotism that resonated with the masses.

The power of visual imagery in propaganda cannot be overstated. A well-designed poster or illustration could convey a message instantly and emotionally, making it a potent tool for persuasion.

Artists and designers used a variety of techniques to maximize the impact of their work, from the use of bold colors and simple, striking designs to the manipulation of symbols and stereotypes.

In Britain, the War Propaganda Bureau enlisted prominent artists and writers to produce propaganda materials.

One of the most famous examples is the "Your Country Needs You" poster, featuring Lord Kitchener.

The poster, designed by Alfred Leete, became an iconic symbol of the call to arms, its simple yet powerful design resonating with the British public.

In Germany, artists like Ludwig Hohlwein and Lucian Bernhard created striking posters that promoted war bonds and recruitment.

Their work, characterized by bold typography and dramatic imagery, was instrumental in maintaining morale and unity during the war.

In the United States, artists like James Montgomery Flagg and Howard Chandler Christy created memorable propaganda posters.

Flagg's "I Want You" poster, featuring Uncle Sam, became one of the most iconic images of the war, while Christy's posters, featuring idealized images of women, appealed to a sense of chivalry and duty.

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propaganda posters during ww1

The History Hit Miscellany of Facts, Figures and Fascinating Finds

10 Anti-German Propaganda Posters from World War One

propaganda posters during ww1

Alex Collin

03 aug 2022.

propaganda posters during ww1

World War One was named for the scale of fear the conflict unleashed. It was a total, industrialised war that stretched across empires. During the conflict, both the Allied and Central Powers conducted propaganda campaigns with the purpose of evoking fear and anger, as well as pride and patriotism to unite the public behind the government – and against the enemy.

Striking at the moral heart of the home front, in propaganda produced by Britain, France and the United States, Germans were presented (often literally) as monsters, and atrocities both real and imagined were exploited.

Here are 10 anti-German propaganda posters used during World War One to garner support for the war.

1. ‘The Hun and the Home’ (1914)

propaganda posters during ww1

‘The Hun and the Home’

Image Credit: David Wilson, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The stereotype of the German ‘Hun’ emerged in British propaganda during World War One, and was used to reinforce British values in contrast to German aggression and barbarism.

German atrocities in Belgium also played into the hands of Allied propaganda artists. British propagandists made a point that not only was Germany guilty of starting the conflict by invading Belgium, Holland and France, but that its armies had committed atrocities in those countries: rape of women and deliberate starvation of the population including women and children.

2. ‘Britain Needs You At Once’ (1914)

propaganda posters during ww1

‘Britain Needs You At Once’

Image Credit: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Britain’s propaganda campaign aimed to stoke patriotism, and to do this, appealed to easily identifiable symbols of national identity. This recruitment poster depicts St. George slaying the dragon. The patron saint of England served as a national symbol for several parties during the war, ironically including Germany.

3. The Question Mark (1918)

propaganda posters during ww1

Australian WWI war poster. Poster depicts an ape monster in a German helmet with bloody hands reaching around the globe

Image Credit: Norman Lindsay, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

One of six posters designed by Norman Lindsay designed for the last recruiting campaign of the Australian government during World War One. Australia is shown to be threatened by the colonising ambitions of the Kaiser and Germany, pictured as a blood-thirsty and monstrous ape wearing a German pickelhaube.

Designs such as this de-humanised the Germans, and characterised them as animalistic and therefore without human morals. Stories of spike-helmeted Germans cutting off the hands of children or boiling corpses to make soap were widely believed by the British public, especially after the Bryce Commission of 1915 which concluded many of these claims were true.

4. ‘Men of Britain!’ (1915)

propaganda posters during ww1

Poster showing a little girl holding a baby, outside a bomb-damaged building

Image Credit: Unknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The British often invoked the German attack on the town of Scarborough to incite anti-German feeling. The deaths of non-combatants was seen as a contravention of decent warfare codified in the laws at the Geneva conferences of 1864 and 1906. Although both Allied and Central Power forces committed atrocities during the war.

5. ‘Red Cross or Iron Cross’ (1914-1918)

propaganda posters during ww1

‘Red Cross or Iron Cross?’

Image Credit: UBC Library Digitization Centre, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

Many posters of World War One referred to nurses. This had particularly high propaganda value after the shocking execution of British nurse Edith Cavell , who saved the lives of soldiers from both sides without discrimination and aided some 200 Allied soldiers’ escape from German-occupied Belgium. She was arrested by the German military and executed in line with German martial law.

6. ‘L’Allemagne c’est la guerre’ (1914)

propaganda posters during ww1

French WWI propaganda poster

The British were not alone in vilifying Germany through their wartime propaganda. This French poster personifies Germany as an ugly, brutish woman carving up French and Dutch land to be fed to the mean-looking dog beside her. It translates to ‘Germany is War’. The text below the table, ‘Boucherie Pangermaniste’ means all the Germans’ butcher-shop, condemning German imperial expansion.

7. ‘La bête féroce’ (1915)

propaganda posters during ww1

Image Credit: Flickr.com

Another example of French propaganda characterising the Germans as beast-like and ravenous. The text means, ‘The beast is hungry!”. This design from 1915 became a popular French postcard – a cheap mode of communication that grew popular during World War One, and that would have circulated images and ideas quickly.

8. ‘Will you fight now or wait for This?’ (1918)

propaganda posters during ww1

New Zealand Expeditionary Force recruitment posters

Image Credit: Archives New Zealand from New Zealand, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

It was not just Britain, France and the USA that spread anti-German sentiment during the war. This Australian poster designed by Norman Lindsay (an Australian artist and cartoonist) painted with the words “Will you fight now or wait for This”, depicts an Australian man and woman being threatened by a German firing squad. The Commonwealth played a large role in supplying troops to the European front lines.

9. ‘Only the Navy can stop this’ (1917)

propaganda posters during ww1

A WWI Recruitment poster, using a New York Herald cartoon by W.A. Rogers

Image Credit: William Allen Rogers, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

This poster shows a German soldier wearing a pirate-like skull-and-crossbones and brandishing a bloody sword as he wades through a tide of women’s and children’s bodies. Printed in 1917 by the US Navy, the images was designed to encourage US enlistment and suggested only a strong naval force could repel the Germans.

10. ‘Once a German – Always a German!’ (1918)

propaganda posters during ww1

‘Once a German – Always a German!’ WWI propaganda poster

Image Credit: US Library of Congress

In the post-war years, anti-German sentiment remained a powerful tool for political groups like the nationalist British Empire Union, an organisation that stood for patriotism, social reform, industrial peace, promotion of the British Empire and anti-socialism. This image continues to utilise ‘atrocity propaganda’, for example mentioning the death of the British front-line nurse, Edith Cavell.

propaganda posters during ww1

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IMAGES

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  3. Pin by Sarah Zar on World War I

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  5. World War I Propaganda (U.S. Army, c. 1917-18). Recruitment Poster

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  6. WWI Recruitment Poster

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    There were certainly propaganda posters before 1917, but the organization and mass distribution of World War I posters distinguished them from previous printings, Mihaly said. Despite the...

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    World War 1 Propaganda Posters Used By The U.S. Government World War I Posters That Reveal The Roots Of Modern Propaganda By John Kuroski | Edited By Savannah Cox Published December 26, 2016 Updated November 9, 2023

  3. Humor and Horror: Printed Propaganda during World War I

    December 28, 2017 Allison Rudnick, Associate Curator, Department of Drawings and Prints Propaganda in the form of posters, postcards, and trade cards flourished during World War I due to developments in print technology that had begun in the 19th century.

  4. About this Collection

    Available online are approximately 1,900 posters created between 1914 and 1920. Most relate directly to the war, but some German posters date from the post-war period and illustrate events such as the rise of Bolshevism and Communism, the 1919 General Assembly election and various plebiscites.

  5. How was propaganda used in World War One?

    Slide 1 of 8, Lord Kitchener recruitment poster from World War One, This famous poster used the face of Lord Kitchener to persuade men to join the army. Kitchener died when his ship hit a...

  6. War Posters

    The use of posters as propaganda took off during World War I, and some of the most iconic images from this era are still in use today. For example, the image of Uncle Sam pointing at viewers and saying, "I WANT YOU," created by James Montgomery Flagg, dates from 1916 and was subsequently used throughout the rest of World War I, repurposed for World War II, and is still identifiable to many ...

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  8. The propaganda posters that sold World War I to the American public

    World War 1; World War 2; By Topic; Books; The propaganda posters that sold World War I to the American public, 1914-1918. I Want You for U.S. Army, 1917, James Montgomery Flagg. ... The US was the number one in the world , starting with WW1 and certainly during WW2 with images depicting the enemy in the most brutal inhumane murderous way. Soon ...

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  10. Posters: World War I Posters

    Available online are approximately 1,900 posters created between 1914 and 1920. Most relate directly to the war, but some German posters date from the post-war period and illustrate events such as the rise of Bolshevism and Communism, the 1919 General Assembly election and various plebiscites.

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    Russian World War 1 propaganda posters generally showed the enemies as demonic, one example showing Kaiser Wilhelm as a devil figure. [12] They would all depict the war as 'patriotic', with one poster saying that the war was Russia's second 'patriotic war', the first being against Napoleon.

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    Posters and Patriotism: Selling World War I in New York showcases a collection of more than 60 mass-produced propaganda posters from the era—some on display for the first time—that the...

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    Introduction The enormous output of posters in the United States during and just after the First World War belies this country's late entry into that conflict. Spurred by the example of the various European combatants, the creation and production of appropriate "pictorial publicity" quickly achieved a very high level of artistic involvement and industrial application.

  15. Posters: World War I Posters

    About the World War I Posters During World War I, the impact of the poster as a means of communication was greater than at any other time during history. The ability of posters to inspire, inform, and persuade combined with vibrant design trends in many of the participating countries to produce thousands of interesting visual works.

  16. How the US Government Used Propaganda to Sell Americans on ...

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  18. What is propaganda and how was it used in World War One?

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    As students become comfortable with evaluating propaganda posters, consider asking them to select a poster or two from the Library of Congress online collections for close analysis and to better understand the evolving public opinion of American involvement throughout the war. Students could identify the message, the target audience, any subtext, and how the artist is trying to convince the ...

  21. WW1 Recruitment Posters

    To understand the historical context of recruitment posters during the First World War. © IWM (Art.IWM PST 2734) Britons. Join Your Country's Army! This is perhaps the most famous poster from the First World War, and shows Field Marshal Lord Kitchener, appealing for people to join the British Army.

  22. 10 Anti-German Propaganda Posters from World War One

    Here are 10 anti-German propaganda posters used during World War One to garner support for the war. 1. 'The Hun and the Home' (1914) The stereotype of the German 'Hun' emerged in British propaganda during World War One, and was used to reinforce British values in contrast to German aggression and barbarism.

  23. Free to Use and Reuse: World War I Posters

    During World War I, the impact of the poster as a means of communication was greater than at any other time during history. The ability of posters to inspire, inform, and persuade combined with vibrant design trends to produce thousands of interesting visual works. Explore this selection and view more WWI posters.