Voluntary recruitment in Scotland, 1914-1916

Young, Derek Rutherford (2001) Voluntary recruitment in Scotland, 1914-1916. PhD thesis, University of Glasgow.

Abstract

The belief that Scotland showed undue patriotism by providing a high proportion of volunteers in 1914-16 needs to be looked at in a new light. While the New Armies of 1914-16 may have been volunteer in concept, they were not volunteer in actuality, and, while there was no doubt a proportion of men in Scotland, as elsewhere in the British Empire, who were prepared to come forward for purely altruistic or 'patriotic' ideals, the majority enlisted for more practical or realistic reasons. External forces either pushed or pulled those men and enticed or forced them to enlist. Previous analyses have been primarily top down. We know how many men served, and with what units, but not why. This thesis is an investigation of Scottish recruitment from the bottom up, to determine whether or not those who enlisted came from any particular section of Scottish society. This investigates and explains the driving forces behind voluntary recruitment in Scotland, August 1914 - December 1915, its methods, course taken, and its impact on the country as a whole.

• Item Type: Thesis (PhD)
• Qualification Level: Doctoral
• Subjects: D History General and Old World > DA Great Britain; U Military Science > U Military Science (General)
• Colleges/Schools: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Humanities > History
• Supervisor's Name: Strachan, Prof. Hew
• Date of Award: 2001
• Depositing User: Mrs Marie Cairney
• Unique ID: glathesis:2001-8202
• Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
• Date Deposited: 19 May 2017 13:17
• Last Modified: 12 Aug 2022 11:52
• Thesis DOI: 10.5525/gla.thesis.8202
• URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/8202