Morality in the First World War
Student worksheets
Warmer – the morality of war
Discuss the following statement. Do you agree with it?
‘War is always morally wrong.’
Task 1 – A call to arms!
What can you see in the posters? What do you think they are about?
Posters produced by the British government, 1914-15 © IWM (Art.IWM PST 5109 and Art.IWM PST 13654)
Task 2 – Morally justified?
Read the speech below and answer the questions:
Bishop Arthur Winnington-Ingram
‘Everyone that loves freedom and honour … are banded in a great
crusade – we cannot deny it – to kill Germans; to kill them, not for the
sake of killing, but to save the world; to kill the good as well as the bad,
to kill the young as well as the old, to kill those who have shown
kindness to our wounded as well as those fiends who sank the
Lusitania, and who turned machine-guns on civilians …’
Arthur Winnington-Ingram, Bishop of London from 1901 to 1939
1. Which side do you think this person was on?
2. What reasons does he give for killing the enemy?
3. Are you surprised that the man who said this was a bishop? Why?
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Morality in the First World War
Student worksheets
Task 3 – Vocabulary
Match the words to their definitions.
1. morally justified
a) having a good reason for doing something
2. starvation
b) when an army, navy or country surrounds or closes a place,
especially a port, to stop people or goods from coming in or out
3. a blockade
c) suffering or death caused by not having enough food to eat
4. neutral
d) not supporting or helping either side in a disagreement
Task 4 – Essay
Read the student’s essay. Does the writer agree or disagree with the statement?
Discuss the statement ‘In the First World War all sides were morally justified in their actions’.
To many, the First World War was a moral war. Each side fought because they felt it was right to do
so, and that their opponent was the enemy of freedom or justice. Countries were prepared to do
terrible things and claim the moral high ground. How far were their actions
justified?
On the morning of the 16th December 1914, the German navy bombed the
tourist town of Scarborough in the north of Britain. One hundred and thirtyseven people were killed in the attack, many of them civilians. For the British
this was a terrible crime but for Germany, on the other hand, it was
completely justifiable. By attacking the coast the Germans hoped to bring out
British ships that were hiding in ports, and perhaps break their control of the
North Sea. If British ships were not going to come out to fight then Germany
believed it was justified to attack.
© IWM (Q 33169)
From the start of the war, the British operated a blockade to starve the Germans
of the food and materials they might need to fight the war. They blocked ships carrying goods, even
food. Within weeks, Germany and Austria were hungry. There weren’t enough people working the
land, there were bad harvests in 1916, and food riots took place in winter. Some people only had
animal food to eat. Schools were closed because they couldn’t be heated. More than four hundred
thousand Germans died from disease or starvation because of the blockade and it is believed to be
one of the key reasons for the allied victory. For the British, all of this was justified. Cutting off German
supplies would help the British win. How does this number of German deaths compare to the British
civilians killed in the bombing of Scarborough?
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Morality in the First World War
Student worksheets
Germany hit back. They began to attack and sink civilian
ships, even though this was not a ‘fair’ way to fight. Some
Germans were worried that neutral countries would take the
British side, so leaders told their ships to fight fairly and give
warnings of their attacks. Although Germany were trying to
play fair, this made the neutral USA angry with Germany.
A cargo ship called the Lusitania was due to sail to Britain
A lifebelt from The Lusitania.
from New York. The Germans warned the ship that they
would fire on the ship if it sailed. The Lusitania was just off the Irish coast when it was hit by a single
torpedo. One thousand two hundred people died on board, including one hundred and twenty-eight
Americans, many of them civilians. For Germany, this course of action was within the rules, as they
warned the ship before they fired. For the UK, however, this was considered a terrible crime and it
started a wave of anti-German feeling across the UK.
Despite being neutral, America had an important role to play in the war even before it joined in 1917.
American businesses made money by supplying all sides with the materials they needed to fight.
Britain spent a large amount of their war budget in America and Germany also relied on the USA for
supplies. The USA could turn a blind eye to the war in Europe, although both sides needed American
goods to kill each other.
In the First World War, all sides claimed to be right and each side could provide good arguments as to
why their actions were moral and justifiable. In war, perhaps, there is no morality and when countries
start to fight and kill each other, there can be no justification for their actions.
Task 5 – Arguments for and against
Read the text again. Fill in the table with arguments from the text. Use your own ideas too.
Event
Arguments for
Arguments against
The bombing of Scarborough
The British blockade
The sinking of the Lusitania
The USA profiting from the war
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Morality in the First World War
Student worksheets
Task 6 – Contrasting language
Read the sentences from the text and choose the best linking word/s.
1. For the British, the bombing of Scarborough was a crime, but for Germany, although / on the
other hand / but , it was completely justifiable.
2. Germany began to attack and sink civilian ships, however / on the other hand / even though
this was not a ‘fair’ way to fight.
3. Although / Despite / However Germany were trying to play fair, this made the neutral USA
angry with Germany.
4. For the UK, however / although / but , sinking the Lusitania was considered a terrible crime.
5. The USA could turn a blind eye to the war in Europe, on the other hand / although / despite
both sides needed American goods to kill each other.
Task 7 – Discussion
Talk about these questions with your partner.
1. Which crime do you think was worse, the
bombing of Scarborough or the British
blockade of Germany? Why?
2. Was Germany justified in sinking the
Lusitania? Why or why not?
3. Was America justified in selling weapons to
both Britain and Germany? Why?
4. Is war ever justified? Are there any benefits
from war?
5. Do you believe that anti-war protests can
achieve anything? Why?/Why not?
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