Reasons for not being in the first or second world war??

[mrsericnorthman]

hmmm, this is all very interesting!! makes me realise how easy it must've been to get out of going, and I'm guessing my relatives all had similar situations, I'm not disappointed or anything about them not going, of course if they had i might not be here today! it's just i had the impression they were desperate for men so would take anyone, and my nan's so eager to tell me stories of her family i would've thought i'd heard something by now about any effort they may have participated in.

[ScouseBoy]

do not forget that women of the ATS,  WAAF, and WRNS  also served overseas when required.

[jim1]

Here's one for PrawnCocktail.

He was in the Territorials before WW1 (5th Cheshires), and left them in 1913,

Territorials did 4 years service + 1 on reserve. Once completed he would have been "time expired" & the rule at the time was these men couldn't be recalled even in wartime. This changed in 1916.
As has been said just because you can't find anything doesn't mean some of your menfolk didn't serve.
The 1918/19 ER is the way to find out for those over 21 at the time.
Apart from what's already been said about being deemed unfit to serve there was also a minimum height of 5' 3".
This led to near riots in recruitment centres with men ( a lot of them miners ) being turned down for this reason.
A Royal Warrant was granted & Bantam Battalions were formed for these men but too late for a lot of them.
There were no reserved occupations in WW1.
The RE took in thousands of miners as tunnellers.

[John915]

Good morning,

The OP did say that they were not in occupations that would stop them going.

John915

[medpat]

It's all not black and white with occupations e.g. my father is down as a lathe operator working for Electric Switch Gear and living in Walsall in 1939 - he was working at Castle Bromwich making spitfires.

He couldn't become an ARP because of the hours he was working.

This is for WW2 but may be similar for WW1.

http://anguline.co.uk/Free/Reserved.pdf

[dowdstree]

This is all very interesting and thanks Jim1 for your explanation as to why some were called up and some not.


My own father was in the Territorials just prior to WW2 and was called up the day before war was declared. I still have the telegram dated 2nd September, 1939. He was a Dental Mechanic to trade so was then in the Army Dental Corps, attached to the Medical Corps and wore a Red Cross Armband
 He spent 3 years in Freetown, West Africa and various postings in U.K.

His brother was in Bomb Disposal and saw many things he would never speak about.
An uncle was an engineer on the railways but eventually called up and was killed in Italy in 1945.

Just the way things worked out. As said no hard and fast rules apparently.

Dorrie

[PrawnCocktail]

Thanks, Jim1, that explains why Grandpa wasn't called up. Surprised me, because I would have expected ex-Terrys (especially a fit 29 year old, who knew how to handle a gun) to be amongst the first ones to go.

Not that I'm moaning, I might not have been here if he had been sent early!

[jim1]

I would have expected ex-Terrys (especially a fit 29 year old, who knew how to handle a gun) to be amongst the first ones to go.

That's one of the reasons why the rule changed in 1916.

[GillyJ]

Some may have been needed on the land or were in other occupations that were exempt. My relative was exempt as a pharmacist, providing an essential service and he became a special constable during the war so served his country in that way