SOLDIERS Introduction Whatever the technology available in the end all wars are fought by individuals The men and women who served in World War II faced hardship and danger but also often enjoyed camaraderie and excitement Although all the available figures are estimates it is likely that up to 85 million people around the world performed military service during World War II The precise nature of their service varied immensely Although large numbers fought with the army many more also served on naval vessels or in aircraft There were specialized artillery and tank crews Most armies even had cavalry detachments that still relied on horsepower There was a long list of support roles too from medics surgeons and nurses to quartermasters members of the signal corps and drivers The U S Construction Battalions Seebees for example were engineers and builders who constructed the airfields and bases that enabled the American fighting forces to advance across the Pacific Shared Experience Although the individual experiences of the men and women who served varied greatly depending on their roles and what country they came from there were some elements that were common to nearly everyone who took part They all had to leave their homes often traveling to distant countries and continents They exchanged their families and friends for the colleagues in the units in which they served They were subject to new forms of discipline and chains of command that they often found irritating They found that they lost the ability to make their own choices they became part of a larger system Not all of them faced danger and certainly not all of the time but most did to a greater or lesser extent Soldier Life Some people who joined the war were volunteers eager to do their bit for their country others were reluctant conscripts who were ordered into military service Some had specialist skills others were expected to do little more than point a rifle and shoot But all had to be recruited into the services and trained for their duties They all had to be entertained and to have their morale maintained even in the face of adversity They all had to be physically cared for especially if they were wounded or sick And at the war’s end most had to return to their civilian lives This book outlines some of these shared experiences of the men and women who took part in the war This U S poster reflects one of the primary concerns of all fighting forces to make sure that the men and women on active service were fit and healthy enough to do their jobs 4
WORLD WAR II SOURCEBOOK regular check ups keep him on the job 5
SOLDIERS SUPPORT SERVICES Many individuals did not have front line roles The military required a vast infrastructure organizational systems for transportation and care of the fighting men It included for example the famous Seabees or Construction Battalions of the U S Navy in the Pacific Recruitment The number of individuals involved in the war was huge 16 million in the United States military services alone Many were forcibly recruited On all sides the people who fought ended up in the military in one of two ways they volunteered for one reason or another or they were conscripted meaning they were forced to serve by law A Huge Increase in Numbers The war required huge numbers of participants to fight in the front line serve on naval or merchant ships fly and service aircraft run hospitals and medical centers provide support services for front line troops drive trucks and so on Between the start of the war in 1939 and its end in 1945 national armies doubled and tripled in size From fewer than 900,000 men in 1939 the British army rose to 3 5 million by 1945 in all Britain and its empire had 8 7 million people in uniform in Germany the army increased during the course of the war from about 800,000 to something approaching 6 million at the surrender in 1945 by which time its total military services numbered nearly 11 million VOLUNTEERS People volunteered for military service for many reasons One was excitement the chance to see some action Another was the need for a job after the Great Depression Other incentives had more to do with values and beliefs Some volunteers were passionate about defending their country Others believed that they were fighting for a cause particularly the defeat of fascism Young American volunteers wait to join the Y navy two days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 6 6
RECRUITMENT I want you for the U.S. army enlist now The most famous U S Army recruiting poster featured Uncle Sam it was originally designed during World War I by the artist James Montgomery Flagg 7
