Key figures such as Archibald Baxter and Mark Briggs remained firm to their ideals against war even through extreme punishment.
ARCHIBALD BAXTER
Archibald Baxter is one of New Zealand's most well known pacifists from the First World War. He rejected the First World War both as a pacifist and as a Christian socialist. He was not a member of a group or organisation, but instead was his individual choice. Baxter's family shared his beliefs, where six of the seven Baxter brothers refused to enlist when conscripted, and were imprisoned. He was balloted for service and arrested soon after conscription was introduced in November 1916. Baxter was denied exemption because he was not a member of a church that had, before the outbreak of war, declared military service 'contrary to divine revelation'. By the end of 1917 Baxter was in the prison attached to Trentham Military Camp near Wellington, and was one of over 100 objectors being held in prison and prison camps throughout New Zealand. More punitive measures were enforced, where Baxter was one of fourteen that was sent to the Western Front in France after finishing his prison sentence. On arrival, Baxter refused to put on a uniform or partake in any work for the army. He was kept in detention, and British newspapers of the time reported that because he had been sent to the front he could be shot for disobeying orders. There he remained under detention and continued to refuse any involvement. Baxter was told that if he did not obey his orders more extreme punishment would ensue. Eventually Baxter was punished with 28 days of Field Punishment No.1 at Oudredoum. Archibald Baxter was one of the last of the fourteen who refused to submit to discipline, and stood by his pacifist ideals through the pain and punishment that was enforced onto him. Weakened from beatings and lack of blood, he was forced to the front line where he became separated from the soldiers he was with. Found by British soldiers, he was hospitalised and declared 'insane' and unfit for trial or further punishments. Archibald Baxter wrote an autobiography titled "We Will Not Cease", which detailed the punishments and brutality that he suffered simply from being a conscientious objector of this time. MARK BRIGGS
Mark Briggs was a flax worker, who had taken on a leadership role in the flax miller's trade union, advocating for better pay and conditions for flax. Briggs held left wing views, and was balloted for service in December 1916. Briggs declared himself a conscientious objector due to his socialist beliefs. On the 23rd of March 1917, he was sent to Trentham Military Camp for refusing to attend the appeal hearing or an Army medical examination. He refused all military orders to drill, and was court martialled and sentenced to 84 days hard labour. Like Archibald Baxter, Briggs was one of the fourteen who were sent to the Western Front in France. Upon arrival at Etaples in October 1917, he refused to walk, stand, salute or wear uniform. Briggs in turn spent a lot of time in solitary confinement where he was handcuffed and in leg irons. Field Punishment No. 1 did not break his stance, and he joined Archibald Baxter in the trenches in 1918. Every morning they were forced to walk 1000 yards up to the front line, where Briggs refused. On the first day he was carried by sympathetic soldiers, but on the second day military policemen tied wire around his chest and dragged him to the front line, tearing his clothing and skin. At the line he was pulled through puddles of freezing water and told to 'Drown yourself, now, you bastard.' Dragged back to camp, he was denied medical treatment. In mid April, Briggs returned to Etaples. It was now considered highly unlikely that he would submit to follow orders, and in June he was declared as unfit for active service. Along with Baxter, Briggs was one of the last conscientious objectors in France who refused to submit and suffered through the extreme measures to try and break his will, but who stood firmly to his beliefs. |
Sir James Allen, New Zealand Minister of Defence, was a main catalyst for the harsh punishments enforced onto conscientious objectors.
SIR JAMES ALLEN
Sir James Allen was the minister of defence before and during the World War One campaign. He was responsible for the development of Compulsory Military Training (CMT) and the following Conscription in 1916. He openly believed that conscientious objectors were unpatriotic towards society and inflicted penalties such as imprisonment and hard labour onto conscientious objectors. It was James Allen who suggested that the 14 objectors should be forced to go to war despite their beliefs on the matter. As minister of defence, Allen told parliament that those who were to go to war would 'come back to as good an occupation as they had before and if possible, a better one'. However, he never talked about the consequences that would indefinitely occur as a result of war, including the potential injury that could prevent people from re-joining the work force, the mental instability as a result of the conflict that would stop people being able to work efficiently, or even the severe risk of death that would destroy the livelihood of dependent families and the surrounding community. These were consequences that were often recognised by conscientious objectors in their protests, but were completely ignored by the Minister of Defence, as Allen was determined to fulfill quotas set by Britain, to whom he believed needed to be supported no matter the cost to New Zealand. |