World War One (4th August 1914 – 11th November 1918)

 
This Women’s Land Army recruitment poster by the artist J Walter West, emphasises the work done by the Forage Department of the WLA. Source: Imperial War Museum

This Women’s Land Army recruitment poster by the artist J Walter West, emphasises the work done by the Forage Department of the WLA.
Source: Imperial War Museum

During World War One, 23,000 women were recruited to work full-time on the land, to help replace men who had left to fight in the war. (This form of National Service for young female civilian farm workers was misleadingly called the Women’s Land Army.)

There were three sections to the Women’s Land Army:-

  1. Agriculture
  2. Forage (haymaking for food for horses)
  3. Timber Cutting

The majority who worked in agriculture were milkers and field workers, but some were carters and ploughwomen (working with horses) and market gardeners. The main aim was to increase food production during the war.

Please use the navigation bar on the left hand side to find out more about the different aspects of the First World War Women’s Land Army.