Managing Domestic Dissent in First World War Britain

The author argues that the way the British Government managed dissent during World War I is important for understanding the way that the war ended. He argues that, from humble beginings in 1914, a comprehensive and effective system of suppression had been developed by the war's end in 1918, with a still greater level of suppression prepared but not implemented. The general characteristics of the system of dissent manage ment were that it was incremental, growing in proportion to the degree of apprehended threat to the war effort; it never became more repressive than a working consensus of the population was prepared to tolerate; and it was calculated to be effective against the particular nature of British anti-war dissent. Britain's relative success in containing dissent was a major factor behind Britain's ultimate victory, it is argued - outlasting rather than outfighting Germany.

Brock Millman is a lecturer in modern history at the Royal Military College, Kingston, Canada, and is currently on sabbatical while completing research