A lasting impact…
National Service wasn’t without its sacrifice for the 2 million men who served.
In total 395 men lost their lives while on active duty, with many more injured. The names of the fallen are inscribed on the Armed Forces Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum, in Alrewas, Staffordshire.
In Korea, a very small number of conscripts serving in the British Army became prisoners of war.
Charlie Daynes remembers the uncertainty and fear of being captured.
“We were taken down in a trench covered in dead bodies… we were interrogated and all personal possessions were taken from us.
“They called us ‘Yankee cannon fodder’ besides many other names, and to make us nervous they set up a machine gun and pointed it at us, with guards moving to a safe distance.”
Charlie Daynes, Duke of Wellington’s Regiment, National Service 1952–1954
Tragically, although uncommon, a small number of recruits also took their own lives.
Affecting a whole generation, the impact of peacetime conscription is something that would have a lasting impact on society.