Recruitment 1700-1850

• professional soldiers

  - by 1700, soldiers were considered to be professional, meaning it was their job and ( for most) their only source of income.(This was because of England's move toward a permanent standing army which was established in 1660. This army became the British army after the unification of the kingdom's of England and Scotland)
• size of the British army (timeline)

  1700 - 40,0001813 - 250,00 ( during the Napoleonic wars)1817 - 92,000 (after the Napoleonic wars)1855 - 250,000 (during the Crimean war)1883 - 125,000 1899- 350,000 (Boer wars)
• reasons for changes in army size

  - people were suspicious of a large army and feared the king would use it against the people like during the English Civil Wars (1642-49)- despite the growth in basic size, it was small compared to other countries in Europe as the Royal navy was regarded as the main most useful defense as it was also used to control the empire- peaks in army size occurred during wartime
• reasons why people joined the infantry 1700-1850

  lack of education- over 90% of recruits in the British Army were illiterate in the 1st half of the 19th century- about 30% of the male population were illiteratepersuasive recruiting parties- recruiting parties of about 3 soldiers, were sent to local fairs and public houses to get recruits. Bounties- people were given bounties which them an incentive to hand people over (usually 2 guineas)- recruits were also given bounties for enlisting (varied but usually 5 guineas, eventually by 1806 it became 12 guineas which was about 40% of the income of an agricultural labourer) which provided them with an incentive to join-these were usually spent immediately on drink and entertainmentPoor treatment in other occupations- apprentices were one of the few occupations which were not allowed to join the army and they were often mistreated so lied about their occupation to escape to the army
• post-enlistment 1700-1850

  - those elisting had to swear an oath of loyalty before committing to army service - this had to be done within 4 days of enlisting but not allowed in 24 hours incase of a recruit being drunk and changing their mind afterwards- if a recruit changed their mind they would have to pay back the bounty money and also pay an additional 20 shillings ( known as smart money), many people were unable to pay so had to enlist.- Service time was 21 years
• Why was attracting recruits difficult?

  - low pay- monotonous drill training- disease- harsh, strict discipline - floggings- enlisting was a life commitment - army seen as a last resort for those in extreme poverty
• working background of recruits 1806-29

  53% labourers26% weavers21% other (shoemakers, tailors, butchers, blacksmiths and painters)
• The militia


  - a group of civilians trained to provide basic local defense- from 1757, counties were required to provide lists of men aged 18 to 45. Those selected by ballot had to serve for 5 years- The militia weren't an army so they weren't deployed overseas- 1809 saw reduced parliament control over recruiting a militia as it became more common- Militiamen were often encouraged to join the regular army by a bounty larger than that given to a regular civilian- between 1805 and 1815 100,000 militiamen joined the regular army
• kidnapping


  - some civilians were forced to join the army through kidnapping- they were made drunk and held captive until they swore to enlist- the kidnappers were known as crimps, their incentive was the bounty money given to those who brought forth a recruit- Crimps were most active in the 1790s and 1800s (during the Napoleonic wars)
• desertion

  - desertions usually occurred soon after enlistment- between 1803 and 1812 over 53,000 men deserted- in 1805 there was one desertion for every 157 recruits- desertion was an offence punishable by death (but this was usually carried out when a soldier had deserted to the enemy side)- the public sympathized with deserters
• recruitment of officers

  The purchase system- officer positions were traditionally bought- aristocratic parents, or those who were members of the gentry, saw an officer as the appropriate career for their sons- The position of Lieutenant could be purchased for around £1000- this system meant that many officers were not adequate in skill or bravery as they bought their way in- no formal training or qualifications were needed- officers were expected to learn on the job- nepotism was common- this system was reformed in the 1870s