Escape to War?

United States
February 8, 2016 8:39pm CST
I don't know about you but I wouldn't want to lie about my age and enlist just to get away from home life. Just read an "amazing" fact. A 12 year old boy lied about his age and joined up to fight in World War I. Now I am not saying that he joined up to get away from home life, but according to the website I'm looking on, he is only one of thousands that joined up to either get away from their dull lives or show their patriotism. Oh and the boy's name was Sidney Lewis. I read about it here : A couple of the other facts I had actually heard of. Any you haven't?
For a better experience on your device, try our mobile site. Accessibility links BBC iDSign in BBC navigation Search term: History Knowledge & Learning Beta 3 June 2014 Last updated at 14:17 GMT Share this page The secret tunnelers of WW1 Continue reading
5 people like this
6 responses
Mike
@Mike197602 (15504)
• United Kingdom
9 Feb 16
Many underage people enlisted for ww1. Mainly through patriotism but also through complex forms of peer pressure. People thought the war would be over fast and had no concept what the fighting would involve. You may have heard about women distributing the white feathers in the UK...I think that pushed a lot of people to enlist. I've been to loads of famous estates in the UK and they've all got ww1 memorials to their workers who enlisted en masse to local regiments. WW1, in my opinion, is particularly tragic because it could have been avoided. How it started is way more complex than WW2 but involved treaties and the naval arms race and lots of other stuff. What is MOST tragic about ww1 is that the issues weren't resolved and led, in no small way, to the start of ww2 which was a far more destructive conflict.
1 person likes this
AmberLynn
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
9 Feb 16
It's been awhile since I've had to study The World Wars. They weren't wars that I particularly found interest in to be honest. I do remember reading somewhere about the white feather but can't recall all that it entailed.
1 person likes this
Mike
@Mike197602 (15504)
• United Kingdom
9 Feb 16
of all those facts I didn't realise 9 out of ten survived the trenches. I'm not at all sure of that statistic so will have to look into it more. I think it's a bit of a weird one as it's a statistic so covers a number of factors.
Mike
@Mike197602 (15504)
• United Kingdom
9 Feb 16
@ScribbledAdNauseum I'm not big on the first war and the reasons for it were very complex. I'm very interested in the second world war but primarily in the Nuremberg Laws and the Holocaust. Outside UK history the Holocaust is the period of modern history I'm most interested in.
1 person likes this
The Horse
@TheHorse (238306)
• Walnut Creek, California
9 Feb 16
I've never been around for a war I believed in. My dad was a kid during WWII, and wished he was old enough to have fought.
1 person likes this
AmberLynn
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
9 Feb 16
Honestly? I think for the most part that War is just Political Chess.
2 people like this
Mike
@Mike197602 (15504)
• United Kingdom
9 Feb 16
@ScribbledAdNauseum I liked your comment for some reason although I utterly disagree Some wars are political chess, I agree with that. WW1 was maybe political chess...that's still a matter of debate amongst people who know a lot more than me. WW2 was a matter of survival for Britain....no political chess there...it was their way or our way. WW2 is the only war of survival in modern times....every other war pales into insignificance in comparison.
1 person likes this
celticeagle
@celticeagle (189833)
• Boise, Idaho
9 Feb 16
I have heard that that happened a lot in the Civil War.
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OtakuNerdyChica
@DanieGirl80587 (2724)
• United States
9 Feb 16
If it is true that the boy enlisted just to get away from his life then he must have been pretty sad and desperate. I just don't think at 12 years old you really know what patriotism really mean honestly. I could never enlist. I have high respect for those that are brave enough.
Sheila Brown
@sgbrown (1638)
• United States
9 Feb 16
My dad joined the CCC camps when he was 16, to get away from the poor life of picking cotton with his parents, brother and sister. He sent money back to his family every month.
1 person likes this
Shiva
@Shiva49 (28380)
• Singapore
10 Feb 16
I don't know how his parents could take it as he was too young to take a decision like that - siva
AmberLynn
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
10 Feb 16
The world was different at that time. I am sure his mother would have been quite worried about him though.
1 person likes this