Mass conscription refers the compulsory recruitment of the public to military service. In other words, conscription refers to the ability of established authorities to influence and mobilize the armies and the public of conflicting powers to engage in wars with their rivals. The act dates back to the ancient times and it continues to date in some countries. The authorities involved in the conscription also influence the ability of the military to win the wars by forcing a large number of the army to take part in the fights involuntarily. This type of influence has contributed to the outbreak of many wars including the first and Second World War among other wars. This paper analyses the influence of recruiting soldiers involuntarily during wars by providing examples where the practice was used in the past to enhance success in war.
Conscription has raised many arguments among both the public and the Australian government. The Commonwealth government to provide powers to conscript for home defense purposes passed the Defense Act 1903. Alfred Deakin who was the prime minister in 1909 introduced compulsory military training (Brock 38).
The practice was then banned in October 1929, by the Labor government before being reintroduced in 1939 after the outbreak of the world war two. The government realized the role played by the practice in facilitating military success and considered re-establishing the laws to support the practice. The reason behind the re-establishment of the law was the realization of the role the practice would play in influencing the success of the country during the war.
In the case of the First World War, the warring nations influenced their armies to get into wars with their enemies by investing on advancing their weapons to increase the chances of the armies to win the wars. Nations like Britain and German recruited many young people into the army in preparation for the war and invested in advanced weapons (Höhn and Martin 55). When the conflict between the European nations heightened, the armies of the participating countries were forced into war leading to the outbreak of the First World War.
In 1916, Britain passed an act stating that all single men aged between 18 and 40 years were liable for a call to service in the military unless they were religious ministers or widowed and with children. This act expanded the eligibility of the individuals who could be recruited into the service from the range of 21 to 30 as it was before the conflicts erupted (Knorr 72). This conscription played a key role in the outbreak of both the world war one since the war broke after Britain declared war on Germany and directed its army to invade the rivaling nation. The nations who expanded the size of their military bodies were more successful in the war than those with a small number of soldiers.
Austria was engaged in mass conscription before the outbreak of the world war one to acquire enough soldiers in preparation for a takeover war against Serbia. Austria believed that Serbia was responsible for the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and as a result issued a short demand to Serbia urging them to comply with the directions issued. Austria had conducted a mass conscription to recruit armies who were used to attack Serbia during the take-over that Austria had planned (Waltz 45). The high number of soldiers in the Austria army acquired through conscription gave the country confidence of winning the take-over against Serbia, which was an inferior country.
The United Kingdom was the only state that did not practice conscription in the European region. All the other Great Powers like Italy, France, Russia, Austria, Germany and Britain relied on compulsory military service to fight and win wars. The nations believed that with a large number of soldiers, the possibility of winning a war was elevated. In 1913, France enacted a three-year law to facilitate the expansion of its military to match the high number of the German soldiers. The German and British governments were also involved in struggles to increase their military powers by mobilizing the public to join the forces (Knorr 67). The reason behind these efforts is due to the effect of conscription to help major powers to win wars.
In 1917, the US government decided to recruit young men who would be involved in overseas military service since voluntary recruitment failed to maintain the required numbers of soldiers. The decision raised many concerns among the citizens and led to a parliamentary debate that ranged through the last quarter of 1917 until mid-1918. The parliament finally passed the law in late August and legalized the act (Schell 92). The reason behind the legalization of mass conscriptions is due to the ability of the processes to increase the military power of a nation and increase the possibility of the nation to win wars.
During the world wars, the age of conscription was adjusted to facilitate the expansion of the armies of the conflicting countries. The mobilized soldiers took various position during the war including Homefront defense. The old conscripts served in the positions that required less mobility while those who were young and energetic served in areas that required high mobility. During the Second World War, both men and women were conscripted in nations like Britain and the Soviet Union (Brock 45). Mass conscription was used for the first time in history during the French revolution and has had a large influence on the character of war.
During World War II, major conflict of compulsory armed forces, were initiated. World War II is the mother of the modern intelligence and security structures. The war further defined the balance of power in the post-war period and created the framework of cold war. Although the Great Powers had powerful weapons, the victory in the war mainly relied on the ability to recruit and mobilize soldiers. Other factors that determined the success earned during the Second World War include the intellectual ability to organize the troops and invent advanced weapons.
The war affected approximately fifty countries including the Unites States (US), China, United Kingdom (UK), and the Soviet Union countering the Axis countries. Axis is the reference to the geographic straight line amongst the capitals of Berlin and Rome signed by Italy and Germany in 1936. Japan as well became a signatory in 1940 (Knorr 75). Japan and Germany were the principal powers in then alliance although other nations would invest their powers.
The roots of then war were initiated before the 1930s. The war’s hostility began following the invasion of Germany by Poland in 1939 where the war resulted in the surrender of the Japanese to the US in the following six years. Japan was defeated due to its inability to acquire enough soldiers who could handle large US forces. During the attack, Poland had a limited mobilization initially before they upgraded their forces. The upgrade of forces was catalyzed by the constant confrontation with Germany in early 1939. In September 1939, Germany attacked Poland. The attack prompted Britain and France to initiate a war on Germany (Brock 57).
However, Britain and France were gentle to mobilize to an extent that Poland was already paralyzed while only minor operations had taken place courtesy of French. Although mass conscription gave the way to the Authorities of individual countries, the practice leads to many deaths to the citizens of individual States. The World War II together with its attendants exacted an unmatched human toll. Approximately 50 million civilians and militaries lost their lives across Soviet, China, Germany, Japan, US, and the UK. The US and the UK registered the least number of life loss. Nazis and Adolf Hitler facilitated the loss of 15.5 million during the genocide where 6 million were Jews. Another 3 million war prisoners from the Soviet were killed in the process (Hohn and Martin 36). Hitler and Nazi used their authority to kill people following a thirst for power and winning the war. Additionally, the Soviet killed another 7 million.
The group incorporated Soviets that faced the judgment owing to their exposee to the west. Additionally, the Japanese enforced an involuntary labor system, which leads to then deaths of around 14 million individuals. Japanese as well massacred the noncombatants that equaled the number murdered by Nazis in Russia. The World War II was a watershed amongst the nineteenth and twentieth century, as well as, bipolar regions owing to the cold war. The war marked the end of military dominance. The war as well initiated the era of economic power following the investment of the US in the attempt of curbing other opportunities of the European war.
The war reformed the United States to the present superpower from a giant isolated from activities outside the west. The transformation is well illustrated by the Pentagon building that was initiated before the US had taken the floor in the war. The war also brought forward the current intelligence apparatus of the US (Waltz 85). The war pronounced the power of the US to a higher level. Thus, mass conscription won the US the superpower position.
Although the Soviet Union and the United Nations were formed to solve the international crisis peacefully, the cold war would be inevitable where it left merely two super powers. Subsequently, the globe would be indifferent between the US and the allies including Japan, Soviet Union, and West Germany. The group would as well include the emerging economies that are affiliated to the Soviet Union. However, the use used mass conscription to win intellectually the global power over other nations was a powerful military strategy.
In conclusion, mass conscription has proved to be an important emergency tool that nations can use to facilitate success in wars. Most nations applied conscription during major wars such as the Word War I, World War II among other wars. The practice has helped many countries to win wars throughout the history as it provides an effective source of emergency resources required during wars.
Application of this military recruitment method has altered the overall leadership and economic operations of nations to the present state. Nations initiated an effective means of resource use to care for total efforts for wars and emergencies. The practice has raised concern among humanitarian bodies leading to the establishment of human rights and regulations that limit the extent to which the practice is carried out.
Work cited
Höhn, Maria, and Martin Klimke. A breath of freedom: the civil rights struggle, African American GIs, and Germany. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.
Waltz, Kenneth N. "Structural Realism after the Cold War." International Security 25.1 (2000): 5-41.
Schell, Jonathan. The unconquerable world: Power, Nonviolence, and the will of the people. Macmillan, 2003.
Knorr, Klaus Eugen. War Potential of Nations. Princeton University Press, 2015.
Brock, Peter. Pacifism in the United States: From the Colonial Era to the First World War. Princeton University Press, 2015.
