Warfare: Changes To Recruitment 1793-1914

Question 1

Why did the french wars put a strain on resources in terms of men?

Answer 1

Manpower was needed for the Royal Navy ships as well as as army battalions

Question 2

In the french wars, Britain continued to fight with volunteer forces, whilst other continental powers relied on conscription. Why did britain not have conscription?

Answer 2

Voters wouldn’t support a government that introduced conscription because they believed it was too severe

Question 3

How were shortages in the armed forces dealt with during the french wars?

Answer 3

Borderline illegal methods

Question 4

Give 3 methods of recruitment in the french wars

Answer 4

Press gangs
Quota system
Recruiting sergeants

Question 5

What were press gangs?

Answer 5

When a group of seamen were sent ashore to port towns to seize and ‘impress’ men for service
Men could be legally ‘pressed’ into service
Any sailor or even men who had never been to sea could be targeted
Captains usually preferred experienced seamen
Men knew that they had to go peacefully if approached

Question 6

Where were most men pressed from?

Answer 6

Most taken from merchant ships which was legal as long as the navy captain replaced the man taken
Most captains would take the most experienced sailors and leave the poorest quality on the merchant ship

Question 7

How did merchant captains protect their best crews from being pressed into the navy?

Answer 7

They dropped them off in Ireland before approaching home, or hid their best sailors onboard

Question 8

How did the authorities further the press gangs?

Answer 8

Using the quota system

Question 9

What was the quota system during the french wars?

Answer 9

It forced each county to provide a set number of volunteers based on the size of the county and number of seaports
E..g London had to provide 5704 seamen whist Yorkshire was 1081
If counties couldn’t fill them they offered criminals the possibilities of serving out their sentences in the navy

Question 10

Issues with the Quota system

Answer 10

Criminals- in poor physical condition so reduced the warships effiency
Counties offered large bounty rewards for volunteers which led to inexperienced land men joining the navy which created resentment among existing sailors

Question 11

There was no lawful way to ‘press’ men into the army like there was in the Navy. How were men recruited into the army instead?

Answer 11

Recruiting sergeants

Question 12

Who did recruiting sergeants tend to be?

Answer 12

Experienced veterans approaching retirement but with the ability to persuade and convince others to join up
Less fashionable units had to use recruiting sergeants to maintain a constant supply of new recruits at all

Question 13

Tricks used by recruiting sergeants

Answer 13

Kings shilling
Tales of adventures enticed naive young men
Soldiers pay, without revealing ‘stoppages’

Question 14

What was the Kings shilling

Answer 14

A legally binding indication a man had volunteered to to serve
Recruiting officers gave potential recruits alcohol in order to get them to take it

Question 15

How did Recruiters trick soldiers by telling them about pay?

Answer 15

Well paid,steady employment was appealing
They told recruits the pay of a private without revealing stoppages which reduced this by 80%
Recruiting sergeants used criminal courts as a source of men, and offered to pay their fines, which would also be deduced from their pay, this pleased judges because it removed criminals from the local area
So soldiers might not get paid for years

Question 16

Why were alcoholics prepared to serve in the french wars?

Answer 16

Part of the army ration was rum or gin

Question 17

What did the authorities feel about an army of pressed men and how did this lead to the end of impressment?

Answer 17

More pressed men= more need for discipline and punishment
The successes of the french army had shown that the enthusiasm and commitment to the cause led to high moral and good performance
The idea for britain was a professional armed service filled with volunteers who wanted to serve

Question 18

What about the army did the public become less willing to accept as the 19th century progressed?

Answer 18

Flogging and branding
Political pressure grew for them to be abolished

Question 19

When did impressment in the Navy end and why?

Answer 19

1815
It now had too many men as battleships were being decommissioned

Question 20

How were men in the navy treated after 1815 as battleships were being decomissioned and crews released?

Answer 20

Officers not on active duty were on half pay
Seamen not needed were dismissed

Question 21

Throughout the rest of the 19th century, there was a steady stream of recruitment in the navy, so no force was required.
Why did recruitment improve in the navy?

Answer 21

It was a very successful branch of the armed forces so a more attractive proposition to a young man wanting to join the military
Pay was higher than in the army
Seamen given fixed terms of service and a pension
The expansion of trade meant there may be experienced seamen willing to transfer to the Navy

Question 22

What was created to ensure the navy would have enough recruits in the event of another major war after the french wars?

Answer 22

Royal Navy Reserve in 1859
Manned by merchant seamen,fishermen
They were given gunnery training for one month every year
In 1862, merchant officers were included
They could be drafted into the Royal Navy in war

Question 23

Problems of army recruitment at the end of the french wars

Answer 23

Dubious forms of recruitment continued until the end of the french wars until public and authority opijjn were strongly against forcing men into the Amy
All volunteers had to be willing
Problem for the army that had struggled to maintain itself at full strength on voluntary recruitment alone

Question 24

4 ways men were encouraged to volunteer after the french wars?

Answer 24

Specialist recruiters
The print media
Terms and conditions
The economy

Question 25

Explain specialist recruiters as a way men were encouraged to join the armed forces after the french wars

Answer 25

Recruiting sergeants still existed but were limited to the geographical region their regiments covered- recruiters had it easier in towns than in the countryside
By the end of the 19th century, they had their own offices, open to the public
The specialist recruiting officers were the navy’s replacement of press gangs

Question 26

Explain the print media as a way men were encouraged to join the armed forces after the french wars

Answer 26

As literacy increased, people were easier to reach by printed material
Newspaper adverts were read by thousands
Regiments could select the publication best suited for their target audience
Army regiment would advertise in local press
Posters grew in usage, improved technology meant cheaper, and coloured versions could be produced

Question 27

Explain terms and conditions as a way men were encouraged to join the armed forces after the french wars

Answer 27

Cardwell reforms encouraged men to join up e.g. abolishment of punishment and general service
Introduction of medals, recognising men made it more popular
Servicemen’s began to be seen as respectable nd wore uniforms proudly in public
Soldiers were associated with the growth of empire so a symbol of national pride

Question 28

Explain the economy as a way men were encouraged to join the armed forces after the french wars

Answer 28

Poverty an effective recruited
Economic downturns made it easier to recruit soldiers
The economy did lead to differences in recruiting areas e.g. poverty in Ireland meant regiments almost always at strength and recruitment was steady in cities
Regiments in rural areas struggled more because families would move to the cities for better employment