Question: Why were people court martialed during the war? At the end of the novel Private Peaceful written by Michael Morpurgo, Thomas Peaceful's brother, Charlie, is trialed and sentenced to a firing squad for insubordination and cowardice while in the readers eyes he is a hero. This sparked my interest in why people were court martialed and what for. During World War One, hundreds of men were court martialed for reasons that are very questionable in today’s society. These consisted of cowardice or even just disagreeing with their commanding officers over a simple matter. Between August 1914 and 31 March 1920, 3,000 men were sentenced to the death penalty, the most common cause being desertion. “A court martial has the authority to try a wide range of military offences, many of which clearly resemble civilian crimes like fraud, theft and perjury.” (Wikipedia) More common ones found in military instances are desertion, cowardice and insubordination. Usually, a court martial consists of a presiding judge, a prosecutor and defensive counsel, and in some cases a panel of
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There was no doubt that if a war came, they would have to face it. It was the only way for their side to prevail. But this war had quickly become the most violent war in history and no soldier was prepared for the demolition that faced them. For a large amount of men the horror was overwhelming. Hundreds were unable to cope and a good number went insane. In World War One, the executions of 307 British and Commonwealth soldiers took place. These remain a source of arguments with some stating that many of those executed should be pardoned as they were suffering from what is now known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or more commonly known as shellshock or PTSD. “Those shot brought such shame on their country that a century on, their names still do not appear on official war memorials.”
There was no doubt that if a war came, they would have to face it. It was the only way for their side to prevail. But this war had quickly become the most violent war in history and no soldier was prepared for the demolition that faced them. For a large amount of men the horror was overwhelming. Hundreds were unable to cope and a good number went insane. In World War One, the executions of 307 British and Commonwealth soldiers took place. These remain a source of arguments with some stating that many of those executed should be pardoned as they were suffering from what is now known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or more commonly known as shellshock or PTSD. “Those shot brought such shame on their country that a century on, their names still do not appear on official war memorials.”