1929 - 1945 Glossary

Austerity: living simply; managing with only the basic needs and wasting nothing
Censorship: government control over what the public can read, view or hear
Conscription: a system of compulsory service in a nation’s armed forces
Evacuate: to move out of an area, usually because there is a potential danger or threat
Fascism: a governmental system led by a dictator having complete power based upon a nationalist ideology. In the case of NAZI Germany, the ideology was the belief that Germanic people were biologically superior to other races, in particular superior to the Jews
Fuzzy-Wuzzy Angels: term used by Australian soldiers for people of Papua who helped them during the war
Geneva Convention: an international agreement on the rules for wartime treatment of prisoners of war and the wounded
Internment: the practice of keeping people under guard in a certain area
Khaki: the colour of Australian soldiers’ desert uniforms in World War II. The khaki uniforms had to be dyed green before being used in jungle fighting.
Munitions: weaponry, ammunition and other materials used in fighting war
Nationalism: Total devotion and loyalty to one's own nation
NAZI: The name given to the fascist political movement/party led by Adolf Hitler
Prisoners of War (PoW): people taken prisoner during a war and held against their will while the conflict continues
Rationing: a system involving the exchange of coupons for goods and foods that were in short supply during the war, to ensure everyone could obtain a share
Reserve Labour Force: a term used to describe how women have been used as a ‘spare’ labour force in times of need, leaving their traditional roles in the home and taking up jobs in the paid workforce
Siege: the surrounding and blockading of a place
Total War: a war in which everyone in a country is involved by either fighting or helping those who are fighting