27 September 2024 to 27 April 2025

IWM London

Everyone

Free event

 Human thought, emotion, and behaviour is critical to war.

War and the Mind is a free exhibition at IWM London exploring war’s many psychological dimensions, from the First World War to the present day.

What motivates people to start and support wars? How do humans think, feel and act during conflict? How do we make sense of the devastating conflicts that have shaped our world?

Enduring War

A white, knitted child's mitten.
EPH 11827
A child's mitten belonging to the baby son of Flying Officer George Shrimpton which he carried on bombing missions during his service with the RAF.

Objects such as this newly-acquired mitten, which belonged to the baby son of a British airman, illustrate how sentimental objects and lucky charms soothed the nerves of many superstitious aircrew as they embarked on fraught missions.

For civilians caught up in conflict, there is a psychological adjustment to a brutal ‘new normal’ - the threat of violence, uncertainty, and separation from loved ones. War and the Mind will explore how exhausted populations are encouraged to endure war’s hardships. 

Shattered Safety

Protect and Survive, a booklet providing advice on what to do in the event of a nuclear attack, issued by the UK government in 1980.
IWM
A booklet providing advice on what to do in the event of a nuclear attack, issued by the UK government in 1980. LBY K. 80 / 3280

During the Cold War, the threat of nuclear war prompted the British government to issue this Protect and Survive booklet to households across the country. It gave people practical tips on how to cope in the event of atomic attack, from creating a designated ‘fall-out room’ to dealing with casualties within the home. The booklet's stoic tone was at odds with the terror provoked by nuclear weapons.

Throughout War and the Mind, cutting-edge UK Research and Innovation projects delve deeper into the psychology of conflict – from the use of drones and the front line experiences of British armed forces in the Falklands Conflict, to attitudes towards the enemy and the significance of soldiers’ dreams during the First World War.  

Find out more about the research projects that have helped to shape the exhibition.

Part of the War and the Mind Season

Teaser image - War and the Mind Live
Expert talks
IWM London

War and the Mind Live

26 April 2025
Group image of members of The Soldiers' Arts Academy in a recording studio.
©IWM
IWM London

War and the Mind: The Soldiers' Arts Academy

To mark the opening of War and the Mind at IWM London, a group of veterans, serving personnel and their families came together to explore their feelings about the themes tackled in the exhibition. Find out more about their experience and listen to the original song they created.

Three German civilians stare at a poster showing horrors in the German concentration camps
EA 68410
Second World War

Was denazification successful?

Nazism was more than a political party, it was a cultural ideology. In this video, IWM curator Simon Offord discusses how the Allies planned for the denazification of post-war Germany and how that effort unfolded.

German prisoners in a POW camp at Langemarck, 26th September 1917 with morale graph overlaid.
IWM
First World War

Why did German morale collapse in the First World War?

In 1918, the Allies were preparing for the final phase of the First World War. They expected the offensive into Germany to last well into 1919. Instead, 1918 saw a catastrophic collapse in the German will to fight. German soldiers and citizens had previously believed they could win the war - so what happened? 

Visitors view exhibits in War and the Mind, a temporary exhibition at IWM London.
© IWM

Planning Your Visit

We recommend allowing around 90 minutes to visit War and the Mind. You may also like to explore permanent galleries and displays at IWM London as part of your trip.

To further explore the themes covered in War and the Mind, browse and buy relevant titles in the IWM bookshop on your visit. 

 

Large print guides will be available at the exhibition.

Partners and sponsors

RAF pilot sitting in a field of red poppies, reading a book

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