#34: Keep Calm and Carry On

I was reminded of this poster the other day in my history class when we were talking about British stoicism during the Blitz. Though it's hanging on the wall in my apartment, I feel that I'm so often absorbed in other things that I forget it's there.

According to the UK National Archives Bookshop (?), the poster was designed in 1939 and was intended for distribution if the British Isles ever were invaded by the Germans.

The bookshop (?) of the Imperial War Museum has a slightly different story, saying that the posters were "intended to allay public fears in the wake of predicted German air raids at the outset of the Second World War."

Given that the poster was never widely circulated, and only (relatively) recently made it's way into the mainstream, I feel more inclined to lean towards the former explanation.

The official UK National Archives catalogue notes in the Collection of British war posters produced during the Second World War, 1940-1945:

"Encourages composure during the war. Fragile."