No-Conscription Fellowship facts for kids

The National Committee in 1916.
Front row (left to right): C.H. Norman, Alfred Salter, Aylmer Rose, Fenner Brockway, Clifford Allen, Edward Grubb, Will Chamberlain, Catherine Marshall.
Back row (left to right): Rev. Leyton Richards, Morgan Jones, John P. Fletcher, Alfred Barratt Brown and Bertrand Russell.

The Tribunal was the newspaper of the NCF. The authorities tried to stop it during the war, but it kept publishing in secret.

The No-Conscription Fellowship (NCF) was a British group that believed in pacifism. This means they thought war and violence were wrong. The NCF was started in London on 27 November 1914 by Fenner Brockway and Clifford Allen. This happened after Lilla Brockway suggested it, as World War I was not ending quickly.

Many important people supported the NCF. These included John Clifford, Bertrand Russell, and Philip Snowden.

What Was Conscription?

The NCF worked against a law called the Military Service Act. This law, passed in 1916, brought in conscription. Conscription meant that men had to join the army, even if they did not want to.

The NCF opened branches all over the country. They handed out leaflets and talked to members of Parliament. They managed to get a rule added to the law. This rule allowed people to be conscientious objectors. A conscientious objector is someone who refuses to fight in a war because of their beliefs. However, the NCF did not like that these objectors might still have to join the army's Non-Combatant Corps, which did non-fighting jobs.

How the NCF Fought for Peace

Many of the NCF's founders and members were sent to jail because they spoke out against conscription. While Clifford Allen was in prison, Bertrand Russell became the chairman of the group. Catherine Marshall took over from Fenner Brockway as secretary. She worked very hard, and later, Lilla Brockway became secretary in 1917.

The NCF's main committee in 1916 included: A. Barratt Brown, Alfred Salter, Aylmer Rose, Bertrand Russell, C.H. Norman, Catherine Marshall, Clifford Allen, Edward Grubb, Fenner Brockway, John P. Fletcher, Morgan Jones, Rev. Leyton Richards, and Will Chamberlain.

National Meetings

The NCF held its first big meeting on 27 November 1915. It took place at the Congregational Memorial Hall. The next year, on 8 April, they had another meeting at Devonshire House. This was a meeting place for Quakers, another group who believed in peace.

A writer named Beatrice Webb visited this meeting. She wrote that about 2,000 young men were there. She described them as thoughtful and strong in their beliefs. Many older peace activists and rebels also supported the meeting. These included Bertrand Russell, George Lansbury, and Mr. and Mrs. Snowden.

The Tribunal Newspaper

Starting in March 1916, the NCF published its own newspaper called The Tribunal. The police tried to stop this newspaper. They raided the National Labour Press and broke the printing machines. But the NCF had a secret printing press. This allowed them to keep publishing their newspaper and share their message.

Historians say that the NCF was a small but annoying problem for the authorities during the war. The group used its strong way of spreading information to show when conscientious objectors were treated badly. They also encouraged working-class people to push for the war to end.

See also

• List of anti-war organizations