'The Truth About German Atrocities', 1915

May 1915 saw the release in NSW of the ‘Report of the Committee on Alleged German Outrages’,[1] which detailed accusations of human rights violations by the German forces in Belgium. The report, which was essentially a work of anti-German propaganda, was more popularly known as ‘The Bryce Report’, after the committee’s chair Viscount James Bryce.

Originally 430 pages long, the report was widely distributed throughout New South Wales and could be purchased at a reasonably low 2 shillings and three pence[2]. The report’s release coincided with a series of events in April and May 1915, including:

• the gassing of allied forces by German forces at Ypres, Belgium
• the landing of the ANZACs at Gallipoli, Turkey on 25 April, and subsequent printing of the first Australian casualty lists
• the torpedoing and sinking of the passenger liner Lusitania by a German submarine, with a loss of more than 1500 lives

These events a whole, coupled with the release of this and other anti-German propaganda material, greatly influenced the Australian public’s view of the war, and of Germany in particular. This was most acutely felt by persons of German birth living in Australia, many of whom were peaceful, long-term residents of NSW.

Under Premier Holman’s instruction in September 1915, an abbreviated version of the Bryce Report titled ‘The Truth About German Atrocities’ along with an accompanying document, ‘Germany’s Dishonoured Army’, was sent out to 323 NSW recruiting associations and affiliates. Additional copies of each were also sent to the heads of major churches, schools of arts, and country newspapers throughout NSW.[3]

The pages of ‘The Truth About German Atrocities’ can be read below:

Related

Wartime posters and publications

References:

[1] Evening News, 13 May 1915, p. 7
[2] Williams, John F. ‘German Anzacs and the First World War’, 2003, p.50
[3] State Archives NSW: Government Printing Office; NRS 4415, Correspondence with other Government departments; [1/193], 15/D4528