The Bill which became the Act was introduced by Prime MinisterH. H. Asquith in January 1916. It received royal assent on 27 January, and came into force on 2 March 1916. Previously the British Government had relied on voluntary enlistment, and latterly a kind of moral conscription called the Derby Scheme.
The Act specified that men from 18 to 41 years old were liable to be called up for service in the army unless they were eligible for exemptions listed under this Act, including men who were married, widowed with children, serving in the Royal Navy, a minister of religion, or working in one of a number of reserved occupations, or for conscientious objection. A second Act in May 1916[3] extended liability for military service to married men, and a third Act in 1918[4] extended the upper age limit to 51.
Men or employers who objected to an individual's call-up could apply to a local Military Service Tribunal. These tribunals had powers to grant exemption from service, usually conditional or temporary, under the eligibility criteria which for the first time in history included conscientious objection. There was right of appeal to a County Appeal Tribunal, and finally to a Central Tribunal in Westminster in London.
The Conscription Crisis of 1918 occurred when the British Government tried to impose conscription on Ireland. Sinn Féin was publicly perceived to be the key instigator of anti-conscription feeling, and on 17 May the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord French, claiming there was a treasonable plot between Sinn Féin and the Germans, ordered the arrest of 73 Sinn Féin leaders. The outcome was greater public support for Sinn Féin.[6]
^ abShort title as conferred by s. 4 of the Act; the modern convention for the citation of short titles omits the comma after the word "Act"
^Cook, Chris (2002). A short history of the Liberal Party, 1900-2001. Cook, Chris, 1945- (6th ed.). Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave. p. 67. ISBN033391838X. OCLC48170857.
