Irishmen avenge the Lusitania: join an Irish regiment to-day.

  • Creator: W.E.T.

Lusitania in flames and sinking, with people in the water and lifeboats in the foreground.

  • OCLC #: 917168907
  • Physical Location: Pritzker Military Museum & Library — Corridor-2 — PRINT 01813
  • Personal Collection:
    • WWI Hunter Collection
  • Production, Publication, Distribution, Manufacture, and Copyright Notice: Ireland :Dublin : Central Council for the Organisation of Recruiting in Ireland, John Shuley & Co. [1915]
  • Physical Description: 1 print : color ; 75 x 50 cm
  • General Notes:
    • Title from item.
    • "Wt. P. 110 - 7,500. 5/'15."
  • Biographical/Historical:
    • On May 7, 1915, a German submarine sunk the British-owned passenger liner Lusitania off the coast of Ireland. In total 1,200 lives were lost when the ship sank. After the sinking, the British propaganda machine took advantage of the tragedy to portray the incident as an act of German barbarism. The Central Council for the Organization of Recruiting in Ireland published this poster in 1915. Many Irishmen were of the opinion that this was not their war and therefore they should not enlist. Some Irishmen who opposed joining the military went so far as to participate in anti-British activities. While there were many who did not support joining the British military, between 1914 and 1916 roughly 180,000 Irishmen enlisted in the British armed forces.
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