In former 1916 , Great Britain kick the bucket the Military Service Act , conscripting all unmarried humanity ages 18 to 41 into military service . exemption were bring home the bacon for several cause , including pitiable health , family hardship , and , notably , painstaking remonstration . A C later , English Heritage , the nonprofit that bring off English historical land site , is fighting to save the written grounds of what encounter to some of those who took the latter route during World War I , asSmithsonianreports .
The brotherly love is spend roughlyhalf a billion dollarsto preserve graffiti scrawled on jail cells of those scrupulous protester who were jail for refusing to do any kind of military service of process , even in non - combatant role .
As per the Military Service Act , conscientious objectors were still required to function in some way . Already thought of as cowards who were avoiding their civic duty at the front , they were typically required to join the Non - Combatant Corps . Those who refused to join the war effort even in a non - combatant role faced prison house . One special group of men , who come to be known as the Richmond 16 , became ikon of the movement for the right wing to say no to going to war .
They were disarmer , include Quakers and socialist , who were isolated in Richmond Castle in northern England before being shipped off to France , where they were tourist court - martialed and sentenced to dying . They were n’t actually shoot , however , but were instead ship back to England to do 10 class intemperate lying-in .
During their time in Richmond Castle , where they often subsistedon bread and pee , they pass the meter in part by doodling on the walls . This graffiti still remains on the castle wall , and English Heritage is restoring and protecting it , finally opening up the cells to the public after the conservation oeuvre is done . In the meantime , you could chit-chat the prison house virtually through an interactional 3D video make by the organization .
Thanks to the precedent set by the Richmond 16 , once World War II descend around , a provision for so - called “ absolutists ” was introduced to selective service rules , allow 3000 mass to ultimately gain freedom from taking part in the war exertion on the reason of their conscience .
[ h / tSmithsonian ]
