ABSTRACT
In 2014, the British Royal Mint issued a £2 coin to commemorate the beginning of the First World War, which depicts, in imitation of war-time recruitment posters, Lord Herbert Kitchener pointing his finger at the viewer. The accompanying inscription reads: “Your country needs you!” In 1914, Lord Kitchener became Secretary of State for War; in 1916, he drowned when HMS Hampshire struck a German mine. The Royal Mint explained its choice:
This design was selected to mark the centenary of the start of the First World War because the poster has come to be strongly associated with the outbreak of the war and is recognized by much of the population. It is intended to highlight the Government propaganda campaign to conscript army volunteers at the start of the war.1
