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Civilians & War 1914-18 : DORA in Action
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Dora in Action *
Case study*DORA in Action
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DORA stands for Defence of the Realm Act. This Act was passed within a few days of the Great War breaking out in 1914. The Act gave the government wide-ranging powers to control many aspects of everyday life. It was regularly updated, with the government constantly giving itself new powers, and introducing new restrictions on everything from using petrol to turning on the lights.
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People in Britain had never experienced this kind of control before. Did they resent the control or did they approve of it because it was for the war effort?

In this case study you will be looking at a range of sources and examining how they were affected by DORA and how they reacted.
 
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* Sources *
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1. Defence of the Realm Act regulations, 1914

* 2. Poster on the Defence of the Realm Act
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Source 1

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3. Letter on motorists and lighting regulations, 1915

* 4. Handbill on savings bonds, 1916
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Source 3

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5. Letter urging councils to take land to grow food

* 6. Price of coal, 1917
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Source 5

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7. Police report on early shop closures, 1917

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Source 7

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How to use the sources in this case study   *
You can use the sources in this case study in two ways:
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* The Big Question *
* The sources in this case study can help you by providing information you can use in your presentation. *
* Study each source carefully. Note down anything that tells you about: *
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* The powers which the Defence of the Realm Act gave to the government *
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* How DORA was enforced *
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* How DORA affected people's everyday lives *
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* How people reacted to the restrictions which DORA placed on their lives. *
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Big question *
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* Exam practice *
* If you want to get some practice on examination type questions, just click on the Practice Questions button

Don't forget - if there are words or phrases in the sources which you cannot understand, try the glossary. 		*
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Practice questions

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