At the beginning of 1914 the British Army had a reported strength of 710,000 men including reserves, of which around 80,000 were regular troops ready for war. By the end of the First World War almost 1 in 4 of the total male population of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland had joined up, over five million men. Of these, 2.67 million joined as volunteers and 2.77 million as conscripts (although some volunteered after conscription was introduced and would most likely have been conscripted anyway). Monthly recruiting rates for the army varied dramatically.
At the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914, the British regular army numbered 247,432 serving officers and other ranks.[1] This did not include reservists liable to be recalled to the colours upon general mobilization or the part-time volunteers of the Territorial Army. About one-third of the peace-time regulars were stationed in India[1] and were not immediately available for service in Europe.
For a century British governmental policy and public opinion were against conscription for foreign wars. At the start of World War I the British Army consisted of six infantry divisions,[2] one cavalry division in the United Kingdom formed after the outbreak of war,[3] and four divisions overseas. Fourteen Territorial Force divisions also existed, and 300,000 soldiers in the Reserve Army. Lord Kitchener, the Secretary of State for War, considered the Territorial Force untrained and useless. He believed that the regular army must not be wasted in immediate battle, but instead used to help train a new army with 70 divisions—the size of the French and German armies—that he foresaw would be needed to fight a war lasting many years.[2]
Volunteer Army, 1914–15
A 1914 recruitment poster by the Parliamentary Recruitment Committee shows a Scottish soldier in Belgium, in response to Germany describing the Treaty of London, which protected Belgium's independence and neutrality, as a "scrap of paper" when they invaded in August 1914.
In 1914, the British had about 5.5 million men of military age, with another 500,000 reaching the age of 18 each year.[5] The initial call for 100,000 volunteers was far exceeded; almost half a million men enlisted in two months (see the graph). Around 250,000 underage boys also volunteered, either by lying about their age or giving false names. These were always rejected if the lie was discovered.[6]
One early peculiarity was the formation of 'pals battalions': groups of men from the same factory, football team, bank or similar, joining and fighting together. The idea was first suggested at a public meeting by Lord Derby. Within three days, he had enough volunteers for three battalions. Lord Kitchener gave official approval for the measure almost instantly and the response was impressive. Manchester raised nine specific pals battalions (plus three reserve battalions); one of the smallest was Accrington, in Lancashire, which raised one. One consequence of pals battalions was that a whole town could lose its military-aged menfolk in a single day of battle.[7]
May 1915 poster by E. J. Kealey, poster No. 75 from the Parliamentary Recruiting Committee
The women's suffrage movement was sharply divided, the slight majority becoming very enthusiastic patriots and asking their members to give white feathers (the sign of the coward) in the streets to men who appeared to be of military age to shame them into service. After assaults became prevalent the Silver War Badge was issued to men who were not eligible or had been medically discharged.
The popular music hall artistes of the time worked enthusiastically for recruitment. Harry Lauder toured the music halls, recruiting young soldiers on stage in front of the audience, often offering 'ten pounds for the first recruit tonight'. Marie Lloyd sang a recruiting song I didn't like you much before you joined the army, John, but I do like you, cockie, now you've got yer khaki on (1914). Vesta Tilley sang The Army of Today's alright.
Recruiting to British army 1914–1918. The 1916 figures include those transferred from the Special Reserve
The available pool was diminished by roughly 1.5 million men who were "starred": kept in essential occupations. Almost 40 percent of the volunteers were rejected for medical reasons. Malnutrition was widespread in U.K. society; working class 15‑year‑olds had an average height of 5feet 2inches (157cm) while the upper class was 5feet 6inches (168cm).[9]
From the start Kitchener insisted that the British must build a massive army for a long war, arguing that the British were obliged to mobilise to the same extent as the French and Germans. His goal was 70 divisions and the Adjutant General asked for 92,000 recruits per month, well above the number volunteering (see the graph). The obvious remedy was conscription, which was a hotly debated political issue. Many Liberals, including Prime Minister H. H. Asquith, were ideologically opposed to compulsion, but by 1915 they were wavering. 15 July 1915 the National Registration Act was passed by the British Government, exactly one month later there was a census of every citizen aged 15 to 65, approximately 29 million forms completed.[10] A pink coloured registration card was issued to each registree, listing pertinent data.[11] These records were ordered to be destroyed in 1921, yet fortunately some did survive, including the recently discovered forms of 2,409 women living in Cirencester, now[when?] transcribed and made publicly available.[12]
The Cabinet were given a strong warning in September 1915 in a paper presented by their only Labour member, Minister of Education Arthur Henderson.[13] He argued many working men would strongly resist serving a nation in which they did not have a legitimate share in governing. They resented the idea of being dragooned to face possible death by a Parliament they had no part in electing—forty percent of men over 21 were denied the vote by the franchise and registration laws (until the Representation of the People Act of 1918). To them conscription was yet another theft of working men's rights by rich capitalists. The only counter-argument the Government could offer was it was of absolute necessity. Workers must be convinced that there were too few volunteers to meet the need, meaning the loss of the war and the end of Britain!; Army leaders should convince Union leaders by stating military facts. Henderson's own son was killed in the war a year later.[14]
The Derby Scheme was launched in Autumn 1915 by the Earl of Derby, Kitchener's new Director General of Recruiting, to determine how many new recruits could be signed up, using appointed canvassers visiting eligible men at home to persuade them to 'volunteer' for war service.[15][16]
The scheme announcement caused an initial rise in recruitment, as some preferred to go to the recruiting office rather than wait for the inevitable. The process began with each eligible man's registry card, from the August 1915 National Registry, being copied onto another card which was sent to his local constituency's Parliamentary recruiting committee. This Committee appointed 'canvassers' who they considered "tactful and influential men", and not themselves liable for service, to visit the men in their homes.[17] Many canvassers were experienced in politics, though discharged veterans and the fathers of serving soldiers proved the most effective, while some just used threats to persuade. Although women were not allowed to canvas, they did contribute by tracking men who had moved address.[18]
Every man would be given a copy of a letter from the Earl of Derby, explaining the programme and stating that they were in "a country fighting, as ours is, for its very existence".[19] and had to state whether or not he was willing to attest to enlist.
Those who did agree to attest had to promise to present themselves at their recruiting office within 48 hours, while some were accompanied there immediately. If found they passed a medical they were sworn in and paid a 'signing bonus' of 2s 9d. The next day they were transferred to Army Reserve B. A khaki armband bearing the Royal Crown [20] was provided to all who had enlisted, or officially rejected, as well as to starred and discharged men. (This ceased once conscription was introduced, Jan.1916). The enlistee's data was copied onto another card and used to assign him to one of 46 married or unmarried age groups, and promised that only entire groups would be called for active service, after 14 days prior notice. Single men's groups would be called before married, any who wed after the day the scheme began were still classified as single. Married men were assured their group would not be called if too few single men attested – unless conscription was introduced.
The scheme was undertaken during November – December 1915 and obtained 318,553 medically fit single men.[21] However, 38% of single men and 54% of married men had resisted the orchestrated pressure to enlist in the war, so the British Government, determined to ensure a supply of replacements for mounting casualties overseas, instead passed The Military Service Act of compulsory conscription, 27 January 1916.[22]
Conscription 1916–1918
As there were too few volunteers to fill the ranks, the Military Service Bill was introduced in January 1916, with compulsory conscription for the first time in Britain's history. Every unmarried man and childless widower between 18 and 41 was offered three choices:
Enlist at once.
Attest at once under Derby's system.
Or on 2 March 1916 be automatically deemed to have enlisted.
In May 1916 the bill was extended to married men and in April 1918 the upper age was raised to 50 (or 56 if need arose). Ireland was excluded due to the 1916 Easter Uprising, yet many Irish men still volunteered to enlist.[22]
One of the immediate effects of conscription was the biggest protest demonstration Britain had seen since the 1914 anti-war protests.[23] Thousands marched from London's East End to Trafalgar Square, where they listened to speeches from Sylvia Pankhurst and a Glasgow councillor who reported that engineers had come out on strike along the Clyde. The event ended in violence when a group of soldiers and sailors charged the crowd, ripped their banners and threw dye in their faces. Some of the assailants were arrested, but Bow Street magistrates let them off with nominal fines and a warning to “leave these idiots alone in future”.[24]
As Arthur Henderson had warned, compulsion was unpopular, by July 1916, 93,000 (30%) of those called up for military service had failed to appear (In reality they had little chance of escape, although a lucky few were hidden by sympathisers) [25] and 748,587 had claimed an exemption – the men, or their employers, could appeal to a civilian Military Service Tribunal in their district on the grounds of work of national importance, business or domestic hardship, medical unfitness or conscientious objection.[26][27] Dealing with these cases filled the judicial courts, although the standards of appeal tribunals were dubious: in York a case was determined in an average of eleven minutes, while two minutes was typical at Paddington, London.[28] In addition to those objecting to enlisting, there were 1,433,827 already starred as being in a war occupation, ill or already discharged from service due to illness; the enforced conscription act ultimately failed to satisfy Govt demand for lives.[29]
Number of British other ranks during the war. The dip and recovery in 1918 are missing men returning to their units after the German Spring Offensive
Although it has been the focus of the tribunals' image since the war, only two percent of those appealing were conscientious objectors. Around 7,000 of them were granted non-combatant duties, while a further 3,000 ended up in special work camps. 6,000 were imprisoned. Forty two were sent to France to potentially face a firing squad. Thirty five were formally sentenced to death, but immediately reprieved, with ten years penal servitude substituted.
Many of those appealing were given some kind of exemption, usually temporary (between a few weeks and six months) or conditional on their situation at work or home remaining serious enough to warrant their staying at home. In October 1916 1.12 million men held tribunal exemption or had cases pending,[31] by May 1917 this had fallen to 780,000 exempt and 110,000 pending. At this point 1.8 million men were exempted, more men than were serving overseas with the British Army.[32] Some men were exempted on the condition that they joined the Volunteer Training Corps for part-time training and home defence duties; by February 1918, 101,000 men had been directed to the Corps by the tribunals.[33]
A newspaper report on 17 February 1916 listed five sample appeals for exemption from conscription, and their results.[34]
In 1917 the Commons passed a bill to give the vote to all males over 21 (and to many women as well), but it did not become law until 6 February 1918. In the same month occupational exemptions were withdrawn for men 18 to 23, in October 1918 there were 2,574,860 men in reserved occupations. Men aged 18½ were sent to the fronts starting in March 1918, violating a pledge to keep them safe until 19. There were also problems with men's suitability for active service. The healthy manpower was simply not there – recruits were sorted into three classes, A, B, and C, in order of fitness for front-line service. In 1918, 75 percent were classed as A, some B men also had to be sent into the trenches.
The upper limit on the number of men conscripted is usually calculated by assuming that all recruits after 1 March 1916 were conscripts: 1,542,807 men, 43.7% of those who served in the Army during the war. However, Derby had enlisted 318,553 single men in Special Reserve B, who were called up in spring 1916, which reduces the conscripted to 37%. The married men who had attested in the Derby plan are harder to categorize because they were not called up from the Reserve but swept up with the rest. It seems that somewhat less than 35% of the men in the army were compelled to serve.
This poster with Kitchener's image and words was the most produced official recruitment poster.
Official advertising for recruits was in the control of the Parliamentary Recruiting Committee (PRC), but private efforts such as that by the London Opinion with the now iconic image of Kitchener were also produced. Posters were prepared in different sizes according to where they would be used; two sizes 40 and 20 by 15in (1,020 and 510 by 380mm) were common. The PRC was formed of the Prime Minister and heads of political parties later joined by other representatives such as for the Trades Union Congress; its sub-committees handled the preparation and publishing of recruiting materials.
Over the course of the war the PRC was responsible for 164 poster designs and 65 pamphlets. Between those and other advertising materials a total of over 54 million pieces were produced at a cost of £40,000. According to numbers of posters produced, the most popular official PRC posters were:
"Lord Kitchener", 1915. Posters No. 113 and 117, 145,000 copies
"Remember Belgium", 1914–1915. PRC16 and PRC 19, a British soldier on guard while a woman flees her burning home. 140,000 copies
"Take Up The Sword of Justice", September 1915 PRC 105, 106, 11. By Bernard Partridge featuring the sinking of the Lusitania in the background with a figure offering a sword, 105,000 copies
"Serve The Guns" May 1915. PRC 85a, 85b, 85c. Soldier and munitions worker shaking hands. 101,000 copies
"He did his duty. Will You do Yours". December 1914. PRC 20. Portrait of Lord Roberts (who had recently died of pneumonia after visiting Indian troops on the Western Front) with his Victoria Cross. 95,000 copies.
The "King's Message" reprinted in poster form ran to 290,000 copies.[35]
Recruiting staff
Notable men who served as army recruiters during the war included:
The Conscription Crisis of 1917 was a political and military crisis in Canada during World War I. It was mainly caused by disagreement on whether men should be conscripted to fight in the war, but also brought out many issues regarding relations between French Canadians and English Canadians. Almost all French Canadians opposed conscription; they felt that they had no particular loyalty to either Britain or France. Led by Henri Bourassa, they felt their only loyalty was to Canada. English Canadians supported the war effort as they felt stronger ties to the British Empire. On January 1, 1918, the Unionist government began to enforce the Military Service Act. The act caused 404,385 men to be liable for military service, from which 385,510 sought exemption.
The New Army, often referred to as Kitchener's Army or, disparagingly, as Kitchener's Mob, was an (initially) all-volunteer portion of the British Army formed in the United Kingdom from 1914 onwards following the outbreak of hostilities in the First World War in late July 1914. It originated on the recommendation of Herbert Kitchener, then the Secretary of State for War to obtain 500,000 volunteers for the Army. Kitchener's original intention was that these men would be formed into units that would be ready to be put into action in mid-1916, but circumstances dictated the use of these troops before then. The first use in a major action of Kitchener's Army units came at the Battle of Loos.
The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry into a unified auxiliary, commanded by the War Office and administered by local County Territorial Associations. The Territorial Force was designed to reinforce the regular army in expeditionary operations abroad, but because of political opposition it was assigned to home defence. Members were liable for service anywhere in the UK and could not be compelled to serve overseas. In the first two months of the First World War, territorials volunteered for foreign service in significant numbers, allowing territorial units to be deployed abroad. They saw their first action on the Western Front during the initial German offensive of 1914, and the force filled the gap between the near destruction of the regular army that year and the arrival of the New Army in 1915. Territorial units were deployed to Gallipoli in 1915 and, following the failure of that campaign, provided the bulk of the British contribution to allied forces in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign. By the war's end, the Territorial Force had fielded twenty-three infantry divisions and two mounted divisions on foreign soil. It was demobilised after the war and reconstituted in 1921 as the Territorial Army.
The Pals battalions of World War I were specially constituted battalions of the British Army comprising men who had enlisted together in local recruiting drives, with the promise that they would be able to serve alongside their friends, neighbours and colleagues, rather than being arbitrarily allocated to battalions.
The National Volunteers was the name taken by the majority of the Irish Volunteers that sided with Irish Parliamentary Party leader John Redmond after the movement split over the question of the Volunteers' role in World War I.
Conscription in Australia, also called mandatory military service or National Service, has a controversial history dating back to the first years of nationhood. Australia currently has provisions for conscription only during times of war if it is authorised by the governor-general and approved within 90 days by both houses of Parliament, as outlined in Part IV of the Defence Act 1903.
The Canadian Expeditionary Force was the designation of the field force created by Canada for service overseas in the First World War. The force fielded several combat formations on the Western Front in France and Belgium, the largest of which was the Canadian Corps, consisting of four divisions.
The United Kingdom was a leading Allied Power during the First World War of 1914–1918. They fought against the Central Powers, mainly Germany. The armed forces were greatly expanded and reorganised—the war marked the founding of the Royal Air Force. The highly controversial introduction, in January 1916, of conscription for the first time in British history followed the raising of one of the largest all-volunteer army in history, known as Kitchener's Army, of more than 2,000,000 men. The outbreak of war was a socially unifying event. Enthusiasm was widespread in 1914, and was similar to that across Europe.
The 1917 Australian plebiscite was held on 20 December 1917. It contained just the one question.
The Derby Scheme was introduced during World War I in Britain in the autumn of 1915 by Herbert Kitchener's new Director General of Recruiting, Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby (1865–1948) after which it was named. The war was lasting longer than had been anticipated and the British military required more recruits; 'Derby's scheme' was a survey to determine how many could be obtained, via the use of appointed canvassers visiting eligible men at home to persuade them to 'volunteer' for war service.
The British Army came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England and Scotland. The Army has traditionally relied on volunteer recruits, the only exceptions to this being during the latter part of the First World War until 1919, and then again during the Second World War when conscription was brought in during the war and stayed until 1960.
In the United Kingdom, conscription has existed for two periods in modern times. The first was from 1916 to 1920, the second from 1939 to 1960, with the last conscripted soldiers leaving the service in 1963. Legally designated as "Military Service" from 1916 to 1920, and as "National Service" from 1939 to 1960. However between 1939 and 1948, it was often referred to as "war service" in documents relating to National Insurance and pension provision.
The Military Service Act 1916 was an Act passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom during the First World War to impose conscription in Great Britain, but not in Ireland.
During World War I (1914–1918), Ireland was part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, which entered the war in August 1914 as one of the Entente Powers, along with France and Russia. In part as an effect of chain ganging, the UK decided due to geopolitical power issues to declare war on the Central Powers, consisting of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria.
Military Service Tribunals were bodies formed by borough, urban district and rural district councils to hear applications for exemption from conscription into the British Army during the First World War. Although not strictly recruiting bodies, they played an important part in the process of conscription. Tribunals were published as part of the Derby Scheme in 1915, but were continued on a statutory basis by the Military Service Act 1916, which brought in conscription.
This is a table of the number of recruits for the British Army during the First World War, 1914–1918.
The article lists British Army reserve brigades in the First World War. At the start of the war, British Army volunteers in the vast majority of cases joined their local infantry regiments reserve battalion.
This is a timeline of the British home front during the First World War from 1914 to 1918. This conflict was the first modern example of total war in the United Kingdom; innovations included the mobilisation of the workforce, including many women, for munitions production, conscription and rationing. Civilians were subjected to naval bombardments, strategic bombing and food shortages caused by a submarine blockade.
During World War I, extensive military recruitment took place in Queensland. Although many enlisted voluntarily, there was considerable pressure for the unwilling to enlist, including two unsuccessful attempts to introduce conscription in 1916 and 1917. Overall, more than 57,700 Queenslanders fought in World War I and over 10,000 of them died.
The British home army in the First World War served the dual purpose of defending the country against invasion and training reinforcements for the army overseas. Initial responsibility for defending the nation lay with the Territorial Force, a part-time auxiliary designed in 1908 as a means of expanding the army in a major foreign conflict but, as a result of political compromise, implemented as a home defence army. It was supported in this role by 42,000 regular army troops, primarily belonging to the Royal Garrison Artillery and the Royal Engineers. The 14 infantry divisions and 14 mounted brigades of the Territorial Force were mainly allocated either to the Local Force, stationed near the coast and tasked with disrupting an invasion at the point of landing, or the Central Force, a mobile element tasked with defeating the invading force as it marched on London. The Local Force was augmented by units of the Special Reserve and Extra Reserve, which were the third battalions of the regular army line infantry regiments established to recruit and train replacements for their regiments' two combat battalions. The home army was also largely responsible for guarding vulnerable points, such as the communications infrastructure, rail network and munitions works.
References
1 2 Chandler, David (1996). The Oxford History of the British Army. p.211. ISBN0-19-285333-3.
↑ Becke, Major A.F. (1935). Order of Battle of Divisions Part 1. The Regular British Divisions. London: His Majesty's Stationery Office. p.6. ISBN1-871167-09-4.
↑ Beckett, I. F. W. "The real unknown army. British conscripts 1916–1990." The Great War, 1914–1918: the Illustrated Journal of First World War History, 2 (1988): 4–13.
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