Creating the Amateur Soldier: the theory and training of Britain’s Volunteers

The massive expansion of Britain’s volunteers force – locally raised part-time soldiers for national defence – was one of the hallmarks Britain’s mobilisation during the ‘Great War’ with France. Research on this movement has analysed their role in society, in fostering nationalism, and in mass mobilisation, but this reconstruction has ignored their military function and how they were trained to perform these duties. Studying the volunteers’ training, both in theory and practice, provides a new understanding of how these civilian soldiers were thought of both by themselves and by the government and the military. As such, this chapter provides a significant insight into the nature of the revolution in warfare of this period, and furthermore traces an important aspect in the development of Britain’s amateur military tradition. Examining the debate about the training of the volunteers reveals the tensions within these civilian soldiers: at once wanting to perform their duty and be an effective military force yet also to distinguish themselves from full-time redcoats. This debate was expressed through pamphlet literature and political discourse, and by exploring the debate within the political sphere this analysis offers a new approach to understanding the development of Britain’s part-time forces and their relationship to society in a crucial phase of their development.