According to news items and reviews, J. Stuart Blackton, the vice-president of Vitagraph and the producer of this film, received the commentary and endorsement of several public figures who actively supported military preparedness, the most notable being Theodore Roosevelt. Because of President Wilson's strict policy of neutrality, Blackton avoided identifying "the enemy" as Germany (Emanon is "no name" spelled backwards), although the beer drinking parties and the Kaiser Wilhelm moustaches of the invading soldiers typified prevailing German stereotypes. In fact, modern sources credit this film with setting the tone for the anti-German propaganda pictures of 1917-18. The picture was extremely popular in the U.S. and other Allied Nations. It was shown for the first time on 6 Aug 1915 to an invited audience at the Vitagraph Theatre in New York. Sources disagree concerning the film's New York premiere; while NYT states that it was first shown on 14 Sep 1915, most sources give 9 Sep 1915 as the premiere date. Before its New York opening, the film was to be shown at militia encampments, special meetings, before authorities in Washington, D.C., in state capitals, at the Army and Navy Club in Washington and on the White House lawn. Contemporary sources note that the following public figures lent their cooperation and also appeared in the film: Secretary of State Robert Lansing, Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt, Major General Leonard Wood, Secretary of War Lindley Garrison, Admiral George Dewey, Rev. Dr. Lyman Abbott, General Montgomery M. Macomb, Admiral Charles D. Sigsbee and Admiral Marix. Twenty-five thousand National Guard troops also were used in the film. S. L. Rothapfel arranged the musical accompaniment for the New York showing, while M. Winkler arranged the music for state rights showings. The film was reviewed at lengths of five, eight and nine reels. It was released in Britain under the title An American Home, and was followed by a sequel released in 1917, Womanhood, the Glory of a Nation. In 1917, The Battle Cry of Peace was re-edited and re-released under the title The Battle Cry of War. According to MPW, Vitagraph filed suit against Henry Ford on 26 Jun 1916 asking a judgment of one million dollars because of damage from allegations which Ford published in his essay "Humanity and Sanity," which ran in newspapers throughout the country in May 1916. Vitagraph stated that Ford's allegations were that The Battle Cry of Peace attempted to inspire a belief that the United States stood in great danger of an invasion in order that munitions manufacturers, including Hudson Maxim, whose book inspired the film, could profit greatly. Ford's statements, Vitagraph contended in the suit, prejudiced many people against the film and damaged its business in many cities. According to modern sources, Vitagraph was awarded the judgment a year later. Modern sources include Harry S. Northrup and James Lackaye in the cast and credit Frank Tyrell with some of the camera work.
       In 1987, the George Eastman House had a short roll of negative from The Battle Cry of Peace, but the remainder of the film was thought to be lost.