Half the Battle: Civilian Morale in Britain During the Second World War (review)

Robert Mackay offers a convincing modification to revisionist historians who have argued that civilian morale in Britain deteriorated in the face of continued aerial bombing and that the government did little to respond effectively to alleviate their suffering. He argues instead that while there was some panic and fear, most people shouldered the burdens required of them with the support of a dedicated government. To support his thesis, he first defines the characteristics of "low morale" as the Ministry of Information understood them, then illustrates how various government agencies sought to measure and improve civilian morale. He examines the range of civilian experiences during the war, identifying the strains the war imposed, how the general populace responded to them, and how Churchill's government worked to shape and maintain morale throughout the war. While the English people were shaken by the hardships they endured, according to Mackay, their resolve to see the war through to inevitable victory never broke. The people generally supported Britain's war aims and oftentimes accepted bad news more readily than the government thought they would.

One of the distinctive features of the study is its emphasis on the civilians themselves: the impact on families whose children were evacuated, the reactions of the urban young to rural surroundings, the responses of more traditional communities to their new inhabitants, and the privations imposed on everyone during the war years. Their daily struggles emerge vividly from his pages in an engaging narrative and combine with a picture of an active government conscious of the importance of preserving high morale and working steadily to improve conditions. Mackay details public reactions to the blackout and rationing and uses a range of evidence from the anecdotal to official polling data to support his claims. Throughout, the analysis is based upon a close reading of contemporary records and relies extensively on two official resources: the reports of Home Intelligence and Mass-Observation, both of which specifically monitored and measured civilian morale. His knowledge and understanding of the primary evidence is encyclopedic and he has used the sources appropriately to support his claims.

Mackay constructs a convincing case against the exaggerations of the revisionist interpretation. While pacifism, criminality, class antagonisms, and other divisive elements were certainly present in English society, they never prevailed. Most citizens joined with their government to support the war, preserve morale, and plan for a brighter future. The work should appeal to scholars, students, and all who face the terror of war.