National Service

Yes, I'm there somewhere.


Army Book 111 Page 1
Surname and Initials A Name
Army No. 25171823
Group No. 53.12
Discharge from Whole-Time and Entry upon Part-Time Military Service of a National Service Soldier
Designation of HQ or TA Unit to which the soldier will report
459 LAA Regt. RA/TA
Drill Hall, Tilehurst Rd., Reading, Berkshire.
Date due to report 29th August 57.
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So reads page 1 of the discharge document of a National Service conscript in 1957. Mine was very similar. I served nearly 2 years at a Royal Artillery training camp near Rhyl in North Wales. At the beginning of my service I was posted to Oswestry to a training camp where the first fortnight was absolute hell. The whole exercise was a systematic programme of indoctrination calculated to make new conscripts obedient, so that they would jump to a command without question. Absolute obedience to authority was to become a knee-jerk reaction. Looking back on the experience I can understand why this had to be, but for a conscript who didn’t want to be there, it hurt.

On the front line there was no time for debate or hesitation, neither was there a place for individuality. Hence, everyone was made to obey commands and wear uniforms. Hair was cut short, and no one was allowed to have a beard or a moustache. Marching drill was part of the process of inculcating group obedience, and it was also a means of encouraging corporate identity, coupled with pride of performance.

Individual obedience was achieved by making new conscripts do certain tasks, irrespective of sensible reasons for not doing them; for example, we all had to make the pimpled surface on the toecaps of our boots so smooth and shiny that we could see our faces in them. To do this, we had to use a hot iron to smooth the leather before rubbing boot polish on it. Next, we had to spit on the polish and apply more polish repeatedly, until a thick layer was built up. Finally, it had to be rubbed lightly with a clean duster until the required mirror-like surface was obtained. Uniforms had to be ironed until the creases were as sharp as knife blades. To make trouser creases straight and sharp, small lead weights on lengths of string were placed in the bottoms of the trousers where they hung over the gaiters. Gaiters and belts had to have Blanco rubbed into them to keep them clean and smart. Brass buckles, buttons and badges had to be polished with Brasso. Berets were worn on the head when the soldier was out-of-doors, and they had to be worn straight across the forehead, but the right side of beret had to be pulled over the ear.

Under this regime, depersonalization and unquestioning obedience was achieved within two weeks, after which one was allowed to go home for a weekend, before reporting for duty at a specialized training unit. In my case, I was trained for 3 months to be a wireless operator for the Royal Artillery.

On the whole, I disliked being in the army as a conscript who was essentially a pacifist, but the experience was not totally negative. I learned to stand on my own two feet, and through it I gained independence from my family. I also learned to be responsible for myself and to accept responsibility for those who were placed under my care.