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Welcome to the Ramsbottom Branch of The Royal British Legion | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Military Crimes and Discipline - The Great War 1914 - 18 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The
maintenance of discipline in the army has always been considered a very
serious affair. Whilst it is clear from statistics that there was much
ill-discipline in the army throughout the first world war, most of it
was of a non-serious nature. The instances of failure to obey orders are
relatively few, and the number of men convicted and suffering from
serious punishment was miniscule as a proportion of the whole. The acts
of discipline outlined on this page were defined by the Army Act and the
Field Service Regulations. Small scale misdemeanours These crimes included everything from matters of individual presentation such as being unshaven, untidy or losing kit; not saluting or addressing superiors correctly; dirty or incorrect equipment; being late on parade or after curfew, etc. They would be detected and dealt with by the NCOs and officers of a man's own unit. NCOs often gave men extra fatigues or exercise as punishment for small matters. Being confined to barracks or losing a day's pay was a torment too, for men who were eager for rest and amusement. Moderately serious offences For moderately serious crimes, a man could elect to be tried by a district court-martial, or be 'convicted' and sentenced by his Commanding Officer. The CO could sanction maximum punishments as follows: detention up to 28 days; field punishment up to 28 days; forfeit of all pay up to 28 days; for drunkenness, a fine up to 10 shillings. The CO could inflict minor punishments, with the offender having no right to a court-martial: confinement to camp for up to 14 days; extra guard duty; reprimand, severe reprimand or admonition. Serious matters These were tried by Courts-Martial. Some of these offences were ones that would have been tried by a civilian court if the man had not been on active service e.g. murder or rape. Other offences were purely military in nature, such as desertion. |
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Offences tried by Court Martial | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notes to this table: (1) offences where cashiering is shown as maximum punishment applied to officers only; (2) in order to enable a court-martial to award a field punishment, it was essential to allege 'when on active service'. |
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Types of Court-Martial The courts-martial process was meant to be thorough, well-documented and carried out in accordance with law expressed in the Army Act which was subject to annual re-consideration by Parliament. Men on trial were supposed to be represented, and much evidence gathered and considered. In practice, especially at times of stress due to action, both of these principles were ignored or only barely adhered to. Documentation was often scanty, the process quick; men were often not represented, and indeed were often tried by officers of their own regiment or corps. Officers could only be tried by GCM or FGCM. NCOs above rank of Corporal could not be tried by a court inferior to a DCM |
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The Outcomes of Courts
Martial
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