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Women to the Front: The Unsung Heroes of Britain’s War Effort
Members of the Women's Land Army from various parts of the country, November 1, 1943

Nowhere was the transformation of wartime Britain more dramatic than in the role of women. From factory floors to front lines, they shattered barriers and rewrote the rules of society.

Hundreds of thousands stepped into roles unthinkable a decade earlier — civil defence volunteers, air raid precautions officers, Auxiliary Fire Service firefighters, and local defence recruits.

The 80,000-strong Women’s Land Army became the lifeline of a nation under siege, working the fields to stave off starvation as U-boats choked food imports. Without them, Britain would have faltered.

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