This print is from a portfolio series entitled ‘The Great War: Britain’s Efforts and Ideals’, which was published by the Ministry of Information, a government department that was responsible for publicity and propaganda from the end of the First World War. Unfortunately, little is known about the circumstances surrounding the commission of the series because almost all of the related records were destroyed in a fire at HMSO (Her Majesty’s Stationary Office) in the 1980s. It was, however, certainly initiated for propaganda purposes, since it was subsequently widely reproduced in the press and was displayed in exhibitions that toured in Britain, France and the United States of America.

Twenty-one artists, including Charles Pears (1873-1958) and Muirhead Bone (1876-1953), created prints relating to the ‘Ideals’ and ‘Effects’ associated with the war. Pears contributed to the ‘Effects’, which was made up of black and white lithographs depicting different aspects of Britain’s war effort, including scenes of action, women at work, the training of the Navy, and aircraft production. The prints that formed the ‘Ideals’, on the other hand, were all in colour and concentrated on specific or general territorial ambitions and aims.