Military conscription?

[HappyPeach]

Hearing so much on social media about the exodus of Russian men to avoid conscription, I'm wondering if British men ran away to the same extent during WW1&2? Are all wars the same do you think or is the Russian situation slightly different?

There probably was a small amount of it, but nothing like the same scale. There weren’t similar transport options, and it’s a lot harder to run away from an island, especially when the nearest place you could get to was exactly where the war was going on.

I wouldn’t compare today with 100 years ago. There was a sense of community then which is no longer with us.

In WW1 people queued up to volunteer in the first few months! Conscription didn't start until half way through in 1916.

In WW2 there was a strong feeling that Hitler was being a bad guy and it was wrong to let him get away with invading Poland, so a lot of people supported the war. Obviously in both wars there were people who disagreed though, look up conscientious objectors.

It’s a completely different situation.

Very different because the Russians running away do not trust their government, do not believe in the cause and are terrified of how little support they will receive from their own army. They would be walking to certain death, they would not be protecting their country or their families in the process.

@1245J

I think perhaps there might be other reasons why you wouldn’t fight for Putin.

I would compare it to Germans who avoided fighting for the Nazis or sabotaged Nazi efforts. Yes, it happened because some people are incredibly brave in the face of evil. I’m not sure I could be, but it’s amazing people are able to stand up for what they believe is right under incredibly difficult circumstances.

In WW1 people queued up to volunteer in the first few months! Conscription didn't start until half way through in 1916.

My grandfather volunteered in 1916 because that way he got more of a choice in which unit he served with.

British men in both world wars could be exempted from conscripted military service by various routes; medically unfit, reserved civilian employment, conscientious objection.Conscientious objectors were in most cases given civilian jobs or non-fighting roles at the front.

Many men joined certain jobs such as police or bus conductors as a way to avoid conscription in WW2. If you look at the pattern of police numbers and recruitment since, you could certainly up until the early noughties trace it back to those who joined in 1939/40 retiring, then their replacements etc.

In WW2 You could register as a conscientious objector but would be a pariah in your community
I believe a lot of young men in both world wars lied about their age to join up, they were desperate to fight for king and country

I think you're looking at it the wrong way round.

In both WWI and WWII men did run away, produce injuries, join protected jobs etc to avoid joining up. It was generally disapproved of by the population and families would have put pressure on people not to do that because of the embarrassment.

However conscientious objecting was also possible, which I don't think it is in Russia.
My great uncle was a conscientious objector in WWII. He was a Quaker, and they refuse to have anything to do with fighting. He had to go to court to declare this and it had to be accepted. He went to the local court, and they said something along the lines of:
"Yeah, young lad, lots of people claim that. We'll reject it. You can go to the court above us, but make sure you have your bag packed because we'll tell you they'll laugh you straight down to the recruitment office"

So he went to the other court, showed a letter from his church and they said:
"Thank you for coming, we accept your appeal, but what will you do towards the war effort".
He said he would do anything that didn't involve dealing with weapons or killing. So they sent him to be a fireman in London where he stayed for the rest of the war.
I've seen in contemporary reports from the time that the Quaker firefighters were very much respected and I know that my grandad (who joined the RAFVR in 1938 so was called up on the onset of war) respected his position (as my great uncle did his).

That's really nice to hear @MargaretThursday That he could voice his concerns & that they could be accommodated. I wish I knew more about my grandparents war experience.