Anti-Conscription Poster
The Conscription Debate: A divided nation. In World War 1
The Conscription Debate divided the Nation in 1916, though the beginnings of why the debate occurred in the first place go back a few years, to the start of World War 1. In 1914 when the First World War broke out, there was no shortage of
volunteers. The young men were eager and ready to fend for their country. By the time the war had raged on for 2 years enlistments where rapidly declining in 1916. People were beginning to understand the horror and hopelessness of this war there was a feeling of desperateness by 1916, money was tight and most of the able bodied men where away at war. Billy Hughes was Prime Minister at the time, and leader of the Labor party.
Billy Hughes Prime Minister of Australia and leader of the Labor party, in 1916, proposed for a change to the Boys Conscription (all boys 10-20 years old, had to undertake basic military training but didn’t have to join up or serve overseas) to a Full conscription where any able bodied man between 18-40 must serve overseas. A large majority of the Labor party did not support Conscription so Billy rallied and held a plebiscite on the 28 October 1916. The proposal was narrowly defeated 49%-51%, Billy was then crossed the floor with some of Labors’ best politicians, to create the National Labor party, where he remained Prime Minister.
Billy Hughes than tried again to get enough votes change the law. He then held another plebiscite on the 20th December 1917. This was Billy’s last chance to get enough votes to make full conscription law in Australia during World War 1. This time the proposal was severely defeated, that was the final vote on conscription during World War 1 but the debate raged on and still
continues today.
It has been said that the majority of people that voted against conscription where in Victoria. Strangely enough in the centre of Victoria, Australia’s Main Activist against Conscription was in Melbourne, he was the Arch-Bishop of Melbourne Daniel Mannix. Due to the newly appointed bishop’s being so strongly against conscription, the whole of the Catholic Church was strongly against Conscription in World War 1. Another huge Anti-Conscription group was the Women’s Peace Army which organised rallies and speakers against Conscription in Australia.
Conscription was and is the controversial subject that tore a nation in 2. Conscription did not occur in World War 1 and many believe that this is the reason why many of us are here today.
A Poster Supporting Conscription
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