The Defence of the Realm Act (DORA) was passed in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on 8 August 1914, four days after it entered the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and was added to as the war progressed. It gave the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

wide-ranging powers during the war, such as the power to requisition buildings or land needed for the war effort, or to make regulations creating criminal offences. DORA ushered in a variety of authoritarian social control mechanisms, such as

censorship Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

"No person shall by word of mouth or in writing spread reports likely to cause disaffection or alarm among any of His Majesty's forces or among the civilian population"

Anti-war activists, including John MacLean, Willie Gallacher, John William Muir, and

Bertrand Russell Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, ...

, were sent to prison. The film, '' The Dop Doctor'', was prohibited under the act by the South African government with the justification that its portrayal of Boers during the

Siege of Mafeking The siege of Mafeking was a 217-day siege battle for the town of Mafeking (now called Mafikeng) in South Africa during the Second Boer War from October 1899 to May 1900. The siege received considerable attention as Lord Edward Cecil, the son of ...

would antagonise

Afrikaners Afrikaners () are a South African ethnic group descended from predominantly Dutch settlers first arriving at the Cape of Good Hope in the 17th and 18th centuries.Entry: Cape Colony. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Volume 4 Part 2: Brain to Cas ...

. The trivial peacetime activities no longer permitted included flying kites, starting bonfires, buying binoculars, feeding wild animals bread, discussing naval and military matters or buying alcohol on public transport. Alcoholic drinks were watered down and

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

opening times were restricted to 12pm–3pm and 6:30pm–9:30pm (the requirement for an afternoon gap in permitted hours lasted in England until the Licensing Act 1988).

Intention

Postal censorship message 1916 IWM Documents

Like most wartime acts, the Defence of the Realm Act was designed to help prevent potential invasion and to keep homeland morale at a high. It imposed censorship of journalism and of letters coming home from the front line. The press was subject to controls on reporting troop movements, numbers or any other operational information that would potentially be exploited by the

Central Powers The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires,german: Mittelmächte; hu, Központi hatalmak; tr, İttifak Devletleri / ; bg, Централни сили, translit=Tsentralni sili was one of the two main coalitions that fought in ...

. People who breached the regulations with intent to assist the enemy or not would have been sentenced to death. 10 people were executed under the regulations. Though some of the act's rules and provisions are questionable by today's standards, they were in a way jusitifed. Otherwise innocent activities such as flying a kite or lighting a bonfire were prone to possibly attracting enemy aircraft, and feeding wild animals was a waste of food, especially after rationing was introduced in 1918 near the end of the war.

The original Act, its amendment, and consolidation

Section 1(1) of the Defence of the Realm Act read as follows:Defence of the Realm Act
'' The National Archives''

The original Act was amended and extended six times over the course of the War,Defence of the Realm Act (DORA)
in ''The Encyclopedia of World War I: A Political, Social, and Military History'', Dr Spencer C Tucker, vol. 2, pp 341–2. firstly on 28 August 1914 by the Defence of the Realm (No. 2) Act 1914, and on 27 November 1914 by the Defence of the Realm (Consolidation Act), 1914 (which repealed and replaced the previous Acts). It was amended three times in 1915, by the Defence of the Realm (Amendment) Acts, 1915 (5 Geo. 5, cc. 34, 37), and (5 & 6 Geo. 5, c. 42). The Defence of the Realm (Consolidation Act), 1914 contained the following:

Similar legislation

References

External links

* * Hynes, Gregory
Defence of the Realm Act (DORA)
, in
1914-1918-online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War

Open Library - August 1918 edition of Defence of the Realm Manual
{{UK legislation 1914 in military history Emergency laws in the United Kingdom United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1914 United Kingdom in World War I United Kingdom military law World War I legislation

Intention

The original Act, its amendment, and consolidation

Similar legislation

See also

References

Further reading

External links