Works Cited
- Austen, Jane. "Symbolism of the White Feather." Jane Austen's World. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2014. <http://janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/2012/01/03/downton-abbey-2-the-symbolism-of-the-white-feathers/>.
- "Conscientious Objection." Conscientious Objection. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2014. <http://www.ppu.org.uk/coproject/coww1a.html>.
- "From ResPoss | ‘Cowards or War Heroes?’ :Resolution:Possible." ResolutionPossible RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2014. <http://www.resolutionpossible.co.uk/challenging-perceptions-cowards-or-war-heroes#.UxYHf5GDkts>.
- Hancock, Judith. "Conscientious Objectors During WW1." HubPages. HubPages, 04 Mar. 2013. Web. 01 Mar. 2014. <http://hubpages.com/hub/Conscientious-Objectors-During-World-War-1>.
- Lloyd, Virginia. Richmond Castle: Conscientious Objectors and the Richmond Sixteen. English Heritage. English Heritage, 2004. Web. 01 Mar. 2014. <http://www.fredsakademiet.dk/tid/1900/1916/maj/richmond_sixteen.pdf>.
- "Picture Postcards from the Great War." WW1 Picture Postcards. Daily Mail War Postcard, n.d. Web. 03 Mar. 2014. <http://www.worldwar1postcards.com/>.
Conclusion
- While tribunal paper were destroyed at the end of WW1, surviving evidence of the conscientious objectors provides a new insight on life during the war
- Fighters on and off the battlefield
Pro-Conscientious Objectors and The Effects of Conscientious Objectors' Stories
- No-Conscription Fellowship
- Arthur Rowntree
- Increase in Public Sympathy
- Prison Reforms
- Set the path for Conscientious Objectors in WW2
The Non-Combatant Corps
Newspaper Articles on the Treatment of Conscientious Objectors
- Army set up NCC to coincide with the Military Service Act
- By June 1916, there were eight NCC companies for the 3,400 men who accepted Non-Combatant Service
- Road building, cutting timber, quarrying, sanitation, and moving supplies
Types of Conscientious Objectors
- Absolutists: Men who were unwilling to perform any form of alternative non-combatant service that might aid the war-effort
- Alternativists: Men who would perform alternative work as long as it was outside of military control
- Non-Combatant: Men who would join the army but on the basis that they were not trained to bear arms
Conscientious Objectors in Britain During WW1
Richmond Sixteen
- Richmond Castle in North Yorkshire served as a base for NCC
- Sixteen men, who were absolutists, refused to work and were put in the castle's jail->France
- Punished and imprisoned
- Ultimately, suffering metal-illness
- Difficulty adjusting into society upon release
Conscientious Objectors, Court-Martial and Death Sentences
- Richmond Sixteen
- Army Response: Imprisonment and Punishments
- White Feathers and Post cards
Who were Conscientious Objectors?
- At the outbreak of war in 1914, Britain had an army of 450,000 regular soldiers and 268,000 part-time soldiers
- As war progressed, recruiting figures declined while casualties on the battlefield rose.
- In March 1916, British government introduced conscription laws: Military Service Act
- Military Service Act had a special feature of a "conscientious clause"
- Conscientious objectors were individuals who held strong pacifist beliefs on the grounds of occupation, hardship, and religious beliefs (16,000 men out of 748,587 claims)