The Role Of Women During World War I

Before World War I, women had the stereotype to be a dedicated mother or housewife. They were extremely limited to occupations around the cities. The war was not only an opportunity for women to take on tasks and jobs that men would normally do, but a chance to gain more rights and independence. Women grew tougher and the idea of women's rights became a bigger movement. They became less fearful and began standing up for themselves. Whereas men were seen as more important than women, women made huge contributions to society during World War I because they served as nurses and took over male jobs, as well as serving in the army. The Salvation Army, the American Red Cross and numerous different associations relied upon a huge number of female volunteers as nurses. The American Red Cross worked medical clinics to think about war setbacks, staffed by attendants, many who died during the war. In excess of 23,000 women served as medical caretakers from various associations engaged with the war, including the Army nurses, Navy medical nurses, volunteer medical nurses, and American Red Cross nurses. Over the span of the war, the American Red Cross enlisted over 20,000 medical nurses selected for military assistance. Even though Allied military leaders wished to keep the nurses distanced from the dangers of the battlefield, they noticed that a lot more soldiers lives could be rescued if wounds were first treated close to the front as opposed to at a far-away medical clinic. Various medical nurses served at fatality stations or with forward units. As a result of this, over 10,000 nurses served on the western front. The role played by nurses in World War I was all around an incredibly difficult job. First of all, their living conditions were far from perfect. Their living quarters were small and dirty. “The rain and cold persist. I have rarely felt colder than I have here: tents are old and leaky but fortunately I am in a hut and the leaks are few and far between. I light my little oil stove every day and try to imagine I am hot!”

The work was long and tiring, usually working from sunrise to sundown almost every day, yet they were still expected to be happy, motherly figures to every patient. Nurses had to clean wounds, give treatments with limited amount of supplies, and perform minor surgeries. New and imaginative practices included blood transfusions, the utilization of cleaning agents, nearby anesthetics, and painkillers. Women also risked their lives serving as nurses. Thousands of women died from horrible diseases and working of the front line. These women proved that skilled nursing improved patients morbidity and mortality throughout the war. During World War I, an immense amount of women were enlisted into jobs abandoned by men who went to fight in the war. New jobs were established as part of the war effort, for example, ammunition factories. Weapon’s were so demanded during the war that ammunition factories became the largest employer of women. At this time, the government started coordinating the employment of women by using campaigns and recruitment drives. This led to women working the jobs that were once reserved for men. This included railway guards, ticket collectors, police, firefighters, bank clerks, and postal workers. A few women also operated heavy machinery in engineering, led horses on land, and worked in factories. By 1917, employed women produced about 80% of the weapons and shells used by the British Army. These women risked their lives handling poisonous chemicals without proper protective clothing when they were exposed to TNT, a chemical explosive that is used in munitions and caused their skin to turn yellow. Nearly 400 women died from overexposure to TNT during World War I. “The women worked as ammunition testers, switchboard operators, stock takers. They went into every kind of factory devoted to the production of war materials, from the most dangerous posts in munition plants to the delicate sewing in aeroplane factories.” During the war, 1918 Women's employment rates almost doubled during World War I. From 23.6% of the working age population in 1914, almost 47% of women worked by the end of the war (1918). Since women received lower wages for doing the same work as men, there was a worry that employers would continue to employ women for jobs when the men returned. This did not happen, and women started going on strike because they refused to work for less money. This was the first strike regarding equal pay for men and women which was proposed, managed, and won by women. Though it would be years before many different international countries allowed girl soldiers, Russia, Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia did have women serve in combat troops.

The great known of these soldiers was Maria Bochkareva, the founder of the Russian “Women's Battalion of Death.” The first female to lead a Russian navy unit, Bochkareva went as far as to petition the Czar for permission to enlist in the Imperial Russian army in 1914 and was once granted permission to join. Initially stressed and ostracized, Bochkareva persisted, overcoming war accidents and becoming an adorned soldier and commander. Her all-female squad of shock troops, the 1st Russian Women's Battalion of Death, was created in 1917 to shame men into persevering with the fight. Though their education was once rushed, the group used to be despatched to the Russian western front to take part in the Kerensky Offensive in July 1917. Other girl devices have been additionally fashioned for their propaganda value, but few saw combat out of Bochkareva’s unit and the 1st Petrograd Women's Battalion, which helped protect the Winter Palace in the October Revolution. Ultimately, Russia ended their involvement in World War I with the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on March 3, 1918. Wanting to improve communication on the western front between the forces, General John J. Pershing called for the establishment of the Signal Corps Female Telephone Operators Unit. Women who were bilingual in French and English were recruited to serve as telephone switchboard operators. These women received physical training, watched harsh military protocol, wore identity coats, and worked extremely close to the battlefields. These girls were nicknamed the “Hello Girls” and became known for their courage and quick thinking under pressure. Nevertheless, the “Hello Girls” did not receive any veteran status or recognition when they returned to the United States when the war was over. It was not until 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed legislation that they few surviving women received recognition of their veteran status. Women made great contributions to society during the time of World War I. For years, they were told that they were weaker and deserved no rights. But during the year 1914-1918, women showed that they are just as strong and fierce as men. Women did not give up, and fought for their rights and country. Even though women were behind the scenes, they contributed just as much working as nurses and taking over male jobs. The military from World War I could not have functioned as well, or fuctioned at all, without the service of women.