MUNITIONS, MINISTRY OF. The Ministry of Muni tions of the United Kingdom was created by act of parliament in May 1915 on the formation of the first Coalition Government.
The events which preceded its formation belong to the political history of that period, but, in effect, the creation of the Ministry resulted from the fact that the early months of the World War had shown that former methods of obtaining army supplies from a limited number of firms were inadequate to meet the needs of an army of unprecedented size and whose requirements were far be yond any previously contemplated, even for so large a force.
Its first obvious task was to make good the serious shortage revealed of guns and gun ammunition, but events moved so rapidly that during the formulation, in concert with the War Office, of the first detailed programme of requirements the demands became expanded beyond those first contemplated even in that pro gramme. From that time onwards programme succeeded pro gramme, each larger than its predecessor, in order to keep pace with the sustained bombardments at the front and with the intro duction of new apparatus and methods of war.
With regard to the supplies that entered into the first pro gramme, the subsequent increases specially affected the number and weight of guns and of their ammunition, as well as the num bers of machine guns; but the first of many successive programmes of trench warfare munitions soon followed, and the trench war fare department came to be responsible for the provision not only of grenades, bombs and mortars, but of steel helmets, chem icals and a great variety of special devices.
In the year 1916 the first considerable programmes of tanks and of aeroplanes were added, and the manufacture of agricultural implements, railway material and other supplies became the duty of the Ministry about the same time. In the end the Ministry became responsible for the complete mobilization of the whole of the British metal, engineering and heavy chemical trades, as well as of many related industries, and its powers were added to accord ingly in successive acts of parliament.
these methods may be gained by reference to the procedures found to be necessary in the first year of the Ministry's activity.
It was necessary to enlist the aid, on some organized plan, of the whole of the engineering and allied industries. There was a universal willingness to help, but in order to make that help avail able the widespread supply of designs and models, gauges and precise specifications was a first essential. This work involved the co-operation of many skilled trades, such as jewellers, scientific instrument makers, and others who were not obviously allied to munitions manufacture. Next, the variety in the equipment and capacity of the workshops, both in men and machinery, necessi tated the improvisation of an elaborate machinery of association whereby it could be arranged that each should make such parts as they were suited for. These circumstances led the Ministry to become responsible for the supply of materials or parts, to claim priority of execution and to supply or move machinery or labour. In these cases, therefore, as well as where the firms were already suited to munitions manufacture, a class of "controlled establish ments" was created, wherein the powers of the Ministry in regard to manufacture, materials and labour conditions were paramount. The number of these controlled establishments was constantly being added to as the work increased.
In order, locally, to marshal the help so freely available, a dis trict, or "area organization" was set up under the superintendence in each area of a "munitions committee." These committees were usually staffed by experienced men in the locality, and they ar ranged, particularly, for the mobilisation and assistance of firms that had not previously been concerned with this type of work. The district offices of the Ministry also became the headquarters of its own officers who had direct responsibility for manufacture, inspection, materials and labour supply, costs and other duties.