Home Front

During WWI, the economy was reformed temporarily, making it possible for the government to be able to access the country's full resources for military support. The government increased their influence over the economy, temporarily setting aside free-market capitalistic systems and set up price, wages, and rent controls to accommodate to the living conditions during the war. They also rationed food and materials, regulated imports and exports, and took over the transportation systems and industry. In effect, the Europeans set up a planned economy to utilize their full resources. Not only did they change the economic system, they created many work forces where women were able to participate and help support the war. Women were able to earn double the money than men at that time. These reforms were able to make a big impact on living standards including poverty and health. This caused an improvement of many of the nation’s poorest citizens. Liberty bonds were war bonds that were sold to support an allied country in the war. The United States were able to introduce the idea of financial securities to citizens for the first time. Each time a citizen bought a bond, that money was used for funds.

• Germany's aerial bombings against Britain was the first ever sustained strategic bombing campaign in history
• The bombing caused 4,743 casualties and around £2.9 million worth of damage
• In the span of two years, 59 Germans bombs hit British ground
• The bombings were carried out by Zeppelins, which at the time were large hydrogen balloons. They were also used to transport civilians of the upper class. Now, Zeppelins consist of helium due to the instability of the hydrogen when exposed to air.

Witness to a Zeppelin attack by Germany on Great Britain:

“The whole street seemed to explode. There was smoke and flames all over, but the worst of it was the screams of the dying and the wounded and mothers looking frantically for their kids.”

Mabel Bastable, an eye-witness at Silverton (A factory that exploded in Britain)

“There were shouts of “fire”, well you could not miss it, the whole place was lit up. We were all outside looking. I went upstairs to get a shawl. Suddenly I was downstairs and the house was on top of me. It’s funny but I can’t really remember hearing the explosion…..our house was blown down right enough. We don’t go up to Silverton again….I didn’t go to school again. There was no school, no house, so there was no point.”

During the war, women played an important role in the home front. Since the war was finally over, women had returned to their normal way of living, pushed out of their temporary jobs in the war due to the return of men from the war. The role of women in WWI affected society's view of them. Although some countries still refused to face the fact that women were the number one supporter in the war and see them as an individual. In other countries, women retained their value as a citizen and were granted complete rights. The war also pushed women to join suffrage movements larger than before the war. The war helped women find their voice in society and launched a women's right's campaign that would reshape society.