Support! Vote! Strike!

World War I

The Netherlands remained neutral during World War I. The vivid war posters, which appeared on every street corner in countries such as Germany, France, and Great Britain, never surfaced in the Netherlands. The Dutch government launched very few propaganda campaigns at this time. Private organizations, however, provided information about healthcare (e.g. home nursing services) or tried to reduce the unemployment that resulted from the war (e.g. the Steuncomité 1914).

Peace lobbies, such as the Nederlandse Anti-Oorlog Raad [Dutch anti-war council] tried to establish international contacts to end the war sooner. Soon after the war, the social democrat Troelstra called for revolution. Although no posters were produced for this cause, some were designed for the volunteer relief corps and for the ubiquitous citizens' militias that monitored the socialists.

1. Cornelis Rol, National Exhibition, 1915

2. Huib Luns, Combat fly danger, 1915

3. Willy Sluiter, Farmers! Supply grain, ca. 1917

4. Ties Luyt, Dutch Anti War council, 1918

5. M. Thomassen, Support the legitimate authorities, 1918

All texts and picture files on this site are copyrighted. They are meant for display on this site only. Nothing may be copied, duplicated, or distributed in any other way without prior written permission. More information can be obtained from the Services department.