Avoiding conscription

[shaner13]

Just a query,could a conscript refuse to serve in ww1 on the basis of his parents religious beliefs,my g grandfather was church of england,however his parents were moravian,would that be cause enougth to dodge or refuse a call to arms?

[mike175]

Hi,

You might like to look at this link:

http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/conscientious_objectors.htm

My grandad was a conscientious objector and spent some time in Wormwood Scrubs and Dartmoor prisons. He was shunned by a lot of people, and his fiancee was more or less disowned by her own family for associating with him. So, yes it was possible to avoid conscription, but it wasn't an easy option.

Mike.

[shaner13]

Thanks for the link mike
Ive found a list of reasons on refusal to sign up,however i wonder if the argument of refusal to join based on your parents beliefs would pass for a legitimate excuse.
I could just imagine my g grandad been in a predictment in which his parents may disown him for going against there beliefs or been disowned by most of his village for not signing up.
I just find it odd that i can find no evidence of him or his brothers getting signed up when they were not in key jobs i.e mining etc and all were late teens to late twenties in age. 

[mike175]

I guess they would have to base their refusal on their own religious beliefs . . . my grandad was a Quaker.

Records are not readily available for conscientious objectors, so it's down to eliminating  other possibilities. Have you searched the World War One medal rolls on The National Archives? If they served there's a good chance they'll be there.

I suppose the other possibility is he might have been medically unfit for service?

Mike.

[Fitzjohn]

Mike is quite right in saying that a conscientious objector in WW1 would need to base his objection on his own beliefs and convictions, not those of his parents.  However, it is very probable that Moravians would be pacifists, and quite possible for Church of England sons of Moravian parents to become conscientious objectors in their own right.

The website to which Mike gave a link is not really very helpful.  It is presented at a basic level for younger school pupils rather than for family history researchers.  A more useful website is

www.ppu.org.uk/coproject

This is a specialist site on conscientious objection itself.  Moreover, it is possible to click on 'contact', then scroll down to Archives, and email a request to the Archivist for a search of a database of 3700 WW1 COs to see whether the grandfather or his brothers are listed.  Even if he is not listed, further advice can be given.