Toughening Up: Bullying in the British Army during the First World War

Hussar Trooper John Flood, Private C. Niblett and Private Jamie Benjafield are three British soldiers who had similar bullying experiences during their service in the British Army. All three men were antagonised by a fellow serviceman, were punished by the institution they served and felt aggrieved at their treatment. The only particular difference between them is that they served separately between a 150-year span from the 1860s through 2017. Bullying is a complicated and contentious issue that is as important today as it was a century ago. Within the military, the act of bullying demands particular attention as coercive and humiliating tactics, common within cases of bullying, have been actively employed by and within the ranks of the British Military for various reasons ranging from training and indoctrination to hazing and targeted abuse. Using the experiences of the three men and many other accounts, this article considers in detail the role of bullying within the experience and transformation of British servicemen during World War I by examining core areas where this behaviour was evident. This research interweaves the commonly identified aspects of bullying behaviour with enthusiastic civilian encouragement for recruitment, overzealous training regimes, enforced military discipline and barrack-room horseplay that were all visible during World War I. This focus remains central to the argument as the article concludes how British men were targeted, abused and humiliated by their officers, their compatriots and the public as part and parcel of the military experience between 1914-1918.