For over 15 years after the second world war young men between the ages of 18 and 20 were conscripted by law to serve in Britain’s armed forces for two years. This was officially in order to man the army, navy and air force sufficiently for them to be able to perform the roles which government assigned to them, mainly in the management of British colonies and, after the formation of Nato, in opposing the feared westward expansion of the Soviet Union.
Some serious fighting was done in Korea and later in Malaya, which was surprisingly successful from the colonial point of view. Others of us disported ourselves in the Middle and Near East, in Cyprus, in Africa and — reputedly the most boring — in the British Army on the Rhine. Some were just stuck in Britain.
Colin Shindler has done a timely and invaluable job in bringing together the recollected experiences of one sailor, seven airmen and 19 soldiers who did their stint. Their first-hand memories will not be around for ever; and there are some lessons to be learnt.
The most important for the military is that conscription in peacetime is disastrous for morale. The presence in a barracks, camp or ship of men who do not want to be there, who are counting the days until their release and who have no belief in the purpose for which they are compelled to give up their time and freedom is corrosive; and bad morale drives out good.
When well-meaning old soldiers urge a reintroduction of military service as some kind of remedy for the supposed ills or inadequacies of the young, they make a great mistake. It might benefit some individuals, while ruining others; but it would do far more damage to the services than could ever be justified by its supposed value as social therapy.
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