Our Brisbane History

Your Country Calls

Recruitment

World War I was an international war of unprecedented scale. Australia's imperial obligations committed it to a role in the fighting in Europe. As a consequence, from August 1914 there was a requirement to bring together an Australian Imperial Force.

During the course of the war, Australian troop levels reached 416,809. Of this number, 57705 came from Queensland. At the declaration of war many enthusiastically enlisted. However, during the next four years this enthusiasm waxed and waned and it was often difficult for State Governments and Local Recruiting Committees to reach the agreed quotas. During the war monthly enlistment figures in Queensland varied from 163 to 3,886.

Sophisticated advertising techniques using powerful graphic design were enlisted in a series of recruitment campaigns to encourage young men to enlist. These generally appealed to an over-simplified sense of imperial obligation.