Although still relatively young, Masefield remained humble during this period of public adoration, although in a letter to Yeats, he humourosly described some of the gifts and requests he had received from his admirers.

In 1914, World War I began, and Masefield was no different than any other European, displaying consternation and concern about the safety of his country and family. He did write several �war poems� indicating his own patriotism, yet at the same time his despisal of human suffering was deeply felt and are clearly seen in his letters to his wife. He enlisted with the Red Cross and spent a good part of the first year of the war in France as an orderly assisting in the care of the wounded casualties. He was shocked by the both the conditions of the field hospitals and the brutal suffering of the injured and took it upon himself to attempt to raise funds privately to finance improvements in the medical war fields of France. He returned home however, before he was able to ensure these improvements. In 1916, because of his excellent work in France, he was requested to lead an expedition of a motor boat ambulance service at Gallipoli, and Masefield was able to return to his friends who had earlier pledged financial support for the French medical operation, and raised enough funds to finance the project. Unfortunately for Masefield, by the time he had arrived, the allied troops had been defeated in the area, and there was no long term requirement for his operation.