Conscription crisis - Definition and Overview

A conscription crisis is a public dispute about a policy of conscription, or mandatory service in the military. Also known as a "draft," a dispute can become a "crisis" when submission to military service becomes highly controversial and popular revolt ensues. From the point of view of military officials, the "crisis" is one of supply; where they may claim to lack enough "troops" to accomplish a military objective, and have, to some degree, "lost control" of their political ability to enforce existing conscription law.

When conscripted soldiers are sent to foreign wars that do not directly affect the security of the nation, or under pretexts and contexts that are otherwise controversial, conscription has historically been highly politically contentious within democracies.

There were a number of conscription crises in history.

• The New York Draft Riots of 1863 represented protests in response to President Abraham Lincoln's Enrollment Act of Conscription to draft men to fight in the ongoing Civil War.
• The Conscription Crisis of 1917 was a political and military crisis in Canada during World War I.
• During 1917 and 1918, Britain tried to impose a conscription on Ireland, leading to a conscription crisis and to an increased support for Sinn Féin. For details see History of Ireland.
• Other conscription crises during World War I happened in Newfoundland, Australia and New Zealand
• The Conscription Crisis of 1944 was a political and military crisis in Canada during World War II.
• Protests against the Vietnam War in the late 1960s and early 1970s to a large degree dealt with the issue of conscription.