Case study: conscientious objectors in the First and Second World War

Who were conscientious objectors in WW1?  

  1. From March 1916, the Military Service Act said all unmarried men of fighting age must join the army.  

  1. Some men refused to fight and became known as conscientious objectors (COs) – often for religious reasons or for political reasons. Often they were pacifists – people who believe that war in all circumstances is immoral.   

  1. People who refused to the support the war in any way were called absolutists, and refused to support the war even indirectly.  

  1. Others refused to serve in the military but were prepared to do jobs like carrying stretchers or driving ambulances. These people were called alternativists.  

  1. The Military Service Act did allow for people objecting to joining the army. Around 16,500 men made this request. 

 

Treatment of COs in WW1 

  1. To request not to join the army you had to appear in front of a special court called a tribunal. They did not always give a fair hearing, and varied a lot from area to area.  

  1. Many absolutists who refused to support the war were imprisoned. Sometimes they were put in solitary confinement.  

  1. Some COs were punished by being sent to the front line. If they then refused to follow orders once they were there, they were sentenced by a military court. A small number were sentenced to death, although the prime minister then intervened and this was reduced to ten years imprisonment.   

  1. The government presented refusal to fight as ‘unmanly’ and even traitorous, as the press presented it is cowardly and unpatriotic. This was because the government needed to recruit a lot of men to win the war, so they didn’t want pacificist ideas spreading.  

  1. Some COs were isolated by friends and neighbours. Some received hate mail or white feathers as a symbol of cowardice.  

 

Changes of COs during WW2 

  1. In WW2, COs were offered alternative occupations such as farm work. Prison was generally seen as a last resort.  

  1. Members of an organisation called the Peace Pledge Union, who posted anti-war posters, were put on trial, but their case was dismissed by the judge.  

  1. However, public opinion could still be hostile to those who refused to fight. Some COs were verbally abused in public, and some lost their jobs.