Defence of the Realm Act 1914
Template:Use dmy dates Template:More citations needed Template:Infobox UK legislation The Defence of the Realm Act 1914 (4 & 5 Geo. 5. c. 29) (DORA) was passed in the United Kingdom on 8 August 1914, four days after the country entered the First World War. It was added to as the war progressed. It gave the government wide-ranging powers during the war, such as the power to requisition buildings or land needed for the war effort, and to make regulations creating criminal offences.
DORA ushered in a variety of authoritarian social control mechanisms,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> such as censorship:
"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"<ref>Defence of the Realm (No. 2) Regulations, 1914, s. 4, at Template:London Gazette</ref>
Anti-war activists, including John MacLean, Willie Gallacher, John William Muir, and Bertrand Russell, 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 would antagonise Afrikaners.<ref name="Parsons">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="trove">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
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The activities no longer permitted included flying kites, starting bonfires, buying binoculars, feeding wild animals bread, discussing naval and military matters and buying alcohol on public transport. Alcoholic drinks were watered down and pub opening times were restricted to 12 noon–3pm and 6:30pm–9:30pm. (The requirement for an afternoon gap in permitted hours lasted in England until the Licensing Act 1988.)
In 1920 DORA was extended to deal with the violence in Ireland (see Irish War of Independence) with the Restoration of Order in Ireland Act 1920. That Act (under Section 3(6)) allowed military authorities to jail any Irish person without charge or trial and was repealed in 1953.<ref>McGuffin, John (1973), Internment!, Anvil Books Ltd, Tralee, Ireland, pg 33.</ref>
PurposeEdit
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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> 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. 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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
AmendmentsEdit
Section 1(1) of the Defence of the Realm Act 1914 read as follows:<ref name="Times">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="National Archives">Defence of the Realm Act, The National Archives</ref>
Template:Infobox UK legislation Template:Infobox UK legislation Template:Infobox UK legislation Template:Infobox UK legislation Template:Infobox UK legislation The original act was amended and extended six times over the course of the war,<ref name="Tucker">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. Template:ISBN</ref> first on 28 August 1914 by the Template:Visible anchor (4 & 5 Geo. 5. c. 63),<ref name="Times"/><ref name="National Archives"/> then on 27 November 1914 by the Template:Visible anchor (5 & 6 Geo. 5. c. 8), which repealed and replaced the previous acts.<ref name="National Archives"/><ref name="Tucker"/> It was amended three times in 1915, by the Template:Visible anchor (5 & 6 Geo. 5. c. 34), the Template:Visible anchor (5 & 6 Geo. 5. c. 37) and the Template:Visible anchor (5 & 6 Geo. 5. c. 42).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The Defence of the Realm Consolidation Act 1914 (5 & 6 Geo. 5. c. 8) contained the following:<ref name="National Archives"/> Template:Boxquote
Similar legislationEdit
| Era | Jurisdiction | Legislation |
|---|---|---|
| World War I | Template:Flag | War Precautions Act |
| Template:Flag | War Measures Act 1914 | |
| Template:Flag | Defence of India Act 1915 | |
| Template:Flag | Espionage Act of 1917; Sedition Act of 1918 | |
| Post-WWI | Template:Flag | Emergency Powers Act 1920; Restoration of Order in Ireland Act 1920 |
| World War II | Template:Flag | National Resources Mobilization Act |
| Template:Flag | Emergency Powers Act 1939 | |
| Template:Flag | Emergency Powers (Defence) Act 1939; Treachery Act 1940 |
See alsoEdit
ReferencesEdit
Further readingEdit
- Digital reproduction of the Original Act from the Parliamentary Archives catalogue Template:Webarchive