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There have been numerous campaigns against compulsory military training or service in Australian since compulsory training for boys was first introduced in 1911.

The Labor government of Billy Hughes during the First World War attempted to introduce conscription; an attempt which split the party. Two referendums were held: in October 1916 and November 1917. Both were rejected.

During the Second World War the United Australian Party reintroduced conscription; men were drafted into the Citizen’s Miliary Forces, a policy which Labor continued and then extended. Conscription ended after the war but the Menzies government reintroduced compulsory training from 1951-59. In 1964 compulsory military service was introduced, in April 1966 the first Australian conscripts were sent to Vietnam. There was bitter opposition to this conscription. National service ended in 1974.

Resources

Books

• Hills, John Francis, Child conscription; our country's shame, Burmeister & Co., Adelaide, 1912. Image PDF Details
• Judd, E, E., The War: and the Sydney Labor Council, Socialist Labour Party of Australia, Sydney, 1917. Image PDF Details
• Kirkpatrick, George Ross, War and the working class, F.A. Holland, Fitzroy, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Marshall, Vance, World of the Living Dead & Jail from Within, Wentworth Press, 1969. Image PDF Details
• Walker, Bertha, How to Defeat Concription: A Story of the 1916 and 1917 Campaigns in Victoria, Anti-Conscription Jubilee Committee, Melbourne, 1968. Image PDF Details

Cartoons

• Marquet, Claude, 'Blood Vote', 1916. Image PDF Details
• Marquet, Claude and Cassidy, R.J., 'The mothers', No-conscription Council Campaign Committee, Sydney, 1916. Image PDF Details

Constitutions

• Australian Union of Democratic Control. Image PDF Details

Journals

• Communist Review, Central Committee Communist Party of Australia [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sdyney, August 1935. Image PDF Details
• Communist Review, Central Committee Communist Party of Australia [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, December 1935. Image PDF Details

Journal Articles

• 'Free Religious Fellowship; Anti-Conscription Committee', Fellowship: a monthly magazine of undogmatic religion and social and literary criticism (Melbourne), vol. 4, no. 6, 1918. Image PDF Details

Lectures

• Richardson, Bill, Labour Day - Its significance and the life and times of E.J. [Edward John] Holloway, 1971. Image PDF Details

Manifestos

• Manifesto of the Australian Freedom League, n.d.. Image PDF Details
• Australian Peace Alliance, Election manifesto to the people of Australia, 1917. Image PDF Details
• Australian Trade Union Anti-Conscription Congress National Executive, Manifesto to trades unionists, Melbourne, 6 November 1916. Image PDF Details
• Political Labor Council of Victoria Central Executive, Anti-conscription manifesto, 1916. Image PDF Details

Newspapers

• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 1, no. 6, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, June 1, 1914. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 35, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, August 15, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 38, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, October 1, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 39, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, October 2, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 40, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, October 9, 1915. image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 41, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, October 16, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 42, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, October 23, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 43, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, October 30, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 44, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, November 6, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 50, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, December 18, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 51, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, December 25, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 34, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, August 1, 1915. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 3, no. 95, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, November 4, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 3, no. 97, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, November 18, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 3, no. 96, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, November 11, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 56, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, February 5, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 55, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, January 29, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 52, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, January 8, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 3, no. 98, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, December 2, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 3, no. 94, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, October 28, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 3, no. 93, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, October 21, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 53, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, January 15, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Direct Action: Paper of the Industrial Workers of the World, vol. 2, no. 54, Industrial Workers of the World [This scan courtesy of the State Library of Victoria], Sydney, January 22, 1916. Image PDF Details

Newspaper Articles

• Goldstein, Vida, 'Open Letter of Members of the Commonwealth Parliament', The Woman Voter, 1916. Image PDF Details
• Goldstein, Vida, 'Manifesto. Australian Women's Peace Army. Conscription. Vote NO.', The woman voter, 5 October 1916. Image PDF Details

Pamphlets

• Free-citizenship or Military Tyranny. Image PDF Details
• An open-letter to women, Melbourne, 1917. Image PDF Details
• Citizens' Defence League, Open letter to Australian citizens, Melbourne, 1917. Image PDF Details
• Holloway, E. J., The Australian Victory over Conscription in 1916-1917, Anti-Conscription Jubilee Committee, Melbourne, 1966. Image PDF Details
• McKellar, John, Maurice Blackburn and the struggle for freedom, Anti-Conscription Campaign, Melbourne, 1945. Image PDF Details
• Returned Soldiers' No Conscription League, Manifesto, Melbourne, 1917. Image PDF Details
• Ross, R.S., The No-conscription Fellowship, 1916?. Image PDF Details
• Wilson, Alf, What conscription is wanted for, Adelaide, 1916. Image PDF Details