What happened when people returned from World War I?

When the guns fell silent on 11 November 1918, millions of British Empire soldiers hoped they would soon be back home. But the task of demobilising so many troops was huge. The government's efforts to quickly integrate returning soldiers back into society had mixed results. There was also much debate about how best to mark the Allied victory and commemorate the fallen.
Over 2 million men in the British and Commonwealth armies were wounded during the war. Thousands suffered long-term disabilities caused by amputation, blindness, disfigurement and poison gas damage to heart and lungs. Others had mental health problems caused by the psychological traumas they had experienced. Improvements in artificial limbs, plastic surgery, facial reconstruction techniques and psychiatry brought some relief. But many were left to fend for themselves with little financial or social support from the state.
Following the end of the First World War millions returned and were immobilised without any support from the state. Men were left without work and little money or support. These millions included men who had returned from the war with terrible injuries along with the families who had lost their male relatives. At first servicemen formed a number of independent organisations to provide support and welfare. The British Legion was formed in 1921 when four national organisations of ex-servicemen were united. Their Aims were to support the men who had survived the war and to help the families of those who did not return.  It was in 1921 that the first official Poppy Appeal was held. Since that day the poppy has become an international symbol of remembrance across the UK in parts of the Commonwealth and in other parts of the world.
Despite the Lloyd George government’s promise of a 'land fit for heroes', many ex-soldiers suffered during the 1921 economic slump. Unemployment increased and the ambitious programme of post-war reconstruction was cancelled.
But, despite the widespread industrial and political unrest of the era, the majority of Army veterans were re-integrated successfully into the British economy. Unlike many of their German, Russian and Italian counterparts, most British ex-servicemen did not support extremist political parties or paramilitary organisations.