‘Willing and Eager to Go in Their Turn’? Appeals for Exemption from Military Service in New Zealand and Great Britain, 1916–1918

Abstract

The Military Service Acts that introduced conscription in New Zealand and Britain in 1916 permitted appeals for exemption to a Military Service Board or Military Service Tribunal. This paper questions the inference that around half of all balloted New Zealanders appealed and argues that British men were considerably more likely to appeal. It is unlikely that this was due to satisfaction with the exemption process, a belief that appealing was not worthwhile, rates of conscription, or the pecuniary difficulties of enlistment. More credible explanations are that the British system protected many occupations and that appealing carried less of a stigma there. Although overt reluctance to serve was rare in both countries, the impact of covert reluctance cannot be quantified.