Do mention the war - report from British Futures

In British Future's latest report, Do Mention The War, they highlight why the first world war remains a pivotal cultural reference point for understanding the last century and how it shaped the country we have become today. It draws on original research into what the public do and don’t know about the first world war, why they think next year’s centenary will matter and what they want it to be about.

British Future writes:

"Will 1914 matter in 2014? Nobody who experienced the war is still alive. Most of us struggle to recall more than the most basic facts about what happened and why. However, the first great global conflict remains a pivotal cultural reference point for understanding the last century and how it shaped the country we have become today.

In our new report, Do Mention The War, we highlight these points and more. Do Mention The War draws on original research into what the public know and don’t know about the first world war, why they think next year’s centenary will matter and what they want it to be about. For example, more people think Britain declared war in August 1914 because Germany invaded Poland (as was the case in 1939) than Belgium: only 13% knew the right answer. However, 81% do know that Germany was an enemy of Britain in 1914, but 8% of the under-24s believe that Britain and Germany were allies in the first world war trenches.

Drawing on public workshops in England, Scotland and Wales, alongside the new national polling, the report also reveals why most people think we should seize this chance to learn, and explores which meanings of the centenary people agree on and which ones don’t. Overall, research into public attitudes throughout the UK finds a strong commitment to using the centenary to learn about how the war changed Britain, from the million British lives lost to women getting the vote.

Highlights of Do Mention The War include:

• Baroness Warsi looks at the contribution made by soldiers from the Commonwealth.

• Alex Massie, a former correspondent at The Scotsman, asks how the vote for Scottish independence in 2014 will impact its ability to reflect on 1914.

• University of London’s Dr Daniel Todman suggests that it is healthy for us to challenge the widely-held perceptions of the war and even to disagree about the routes into our understanding of this period.

• Imperial War Museums’ Samantha Heywood discusses how the first world war changed everyone’s attitudes towards warfare, challenging its legitimacy as a way for states to achieve or defend their political aims..."

You can find out more at British Future