page_title: Recruitment to the British Army during the First World War
section_title: Volunteer Army, 1914–15
hierarchical_section_title: Recruitment to the British Army during the First World War / Volunteer Army, 1914–15
caption_attribution_description: English: British army recruiting 1914-1918
context_page_description: 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 men, 2.67 million joined as Volunteers and 2.77 million as conscripts. Monthly recruiting rates for the army varied dramatically.
context_section_description: In 1914, the British had about 5.5 million men of military age, with another 500,000 reaching the age of 18 each year. 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, to which recruiters often turned a blind eye.
  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.
  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.
  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 society, working class 15‑year‑olds had a mean height of 160 cm, while the upper class was 171 cm.
  From the first Kitchener insisted that the British must build a massive army for a long war. He argued that the British were obliged to mobilize 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. By 1915 they were wavering. In summer 1915 every man aged 18 to 41 was recorded under the National Registration Act. A pink card for each man listed his pertinent data.
  The Cabinet were given a strong warning in September 1915 in a paper presented by their only Labour member, Minister of Education Arthur Henderson. 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 telling counterargument the government could offer was absolute necessity. Workers must be convinced that there were too few volunteers to meet the need, so they would lose the war, which would mean the end of Britain; army leaders should convince union leaders by laying out the military facts.
caption: Recruiting to British army 1914–1918. The 1916 figures include those transferred from the Special Reserve[9]
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