As World War began in 1914, and eventually Germany declared war on France, Debussy immediately fell into a deep depression and withdrew almost totally from music for an entire year. Debussy was 52 years old at the time. He reportedly did not even touch the piano for weeks following the commencement of hostilities. Debussy had no desire to compose anything at all. He even did not wish for any of his works to be performed, at home or in other countries. A ballet of Debussy's that was being prepared for production was set aside. Debussy stated that he did not want "that work to be played before the fate of France has been decided, for she can neither laugh nor weep while so many of our men are heroically facing death."

The composer soon decided that he wished to compose some sort of piece for the war effort. Initially, he conceived of a "Marche Heroique," but that sort of thing did not mesh with his understated compositional style. A march which was meant to evoke strong patriotic feelings would have required loud, grand music. Debussy's piano music was always subtle and avoided "blatancy," as the composer put it. Also, Debussy thought that it seemed ridiculous for him to speak of heroism while he was living in peace, well away from the battles. In November 1914, the composer was able to compose his Berceuse Heroique for piano, which was dedicated to "His Majesty King Albert I of Belgium and his soldiers." The piece was included in the King of Belgium's Book. This simple piece for piano was to be the only work that Debussy composed in the 12 months following the start of the war.

A berceuse is a type of lullaby, mostly for solo piano. Many pieces in this genre were written in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Berceuse Heroique can still be called "heroic" because of its use of the Belgian national anthem, also known as the "Brabanconne." Debussy, as well as others, felt that the patriotism of the work did not reflect on listeners that would not recognize the tune. A sense of nostalgia, rather than heroism, is conveyed, especially in the orchestral version of the composition. Debussy completed this arrangement in December. The Belgian national anthem is presented somberly by many instruments throughout this orchestral work, as it is heard first in the bassoons, horns, and clarinets, then in the violas and cellos. The Concerts Colonne et Lamoureux, an orchestra, presented this version during their 1915 - 1916 season.

Debussy was beginning to increase his debt at an alarming rate while he compositionally dormant, so he agreed to revise Chopin's works for his publisher for an upcoming edition. He found this extremely difficult, as he had not had the proper amount of research and scholastic experience for this task. He managed to finish that project, before also revising J.S. Bach's sonatas for violin and clavecin for his publisher.

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