Kate Adie

at Bishopsgate Institute

Fighting on
the Home Front

The Legacy of Women
in World War One

Bestselling author and award-winning former television reporter Kate Adie reveals the ways in which women’s lives changed during World War One and what the impact has been for women in its centenary year.

In 1914 the world changed forever. When World War One broke out and a generation of men went off to fight, Kate Adie shows how women emerged from the shadows of their domestic lives.

They became a visible force in public life, and began to take up essential roles — from transport to policing, munitions to sport, entertainment and even politics. They had finally become citizens, a recognised part of the war machine, acquiring their own rights and often an independent income.

Former BBC Chief News Correspondent Kate Adie charts the seismic move towards equal rights with men that began a century ago and through first-hand research shows just how momentous the achievements of those pioneering women were.

This is history at its best — a vivid, compelling account of the women who helped win the war as well as a revealing assessment of their legacy for women’s lives today.