Conscription in the Twentieth Century

"Beautifully written, intellectually stimulating and increasingly relevant, Conscription in the Global Twentieth Century speaks to the perennial question of ‘who serves.’ With chapters from contemporary and historical cases written by experts in their disciplines, the book connects conscription to vital issues of citizenship, state authority, politics, society and the armed forces’ effectiveness in wartime. I simply cannot wait to share this book with my colleagues and students."—Risa Brooks, coeditor of Creating Military Power: The Sources of Military Effectiveness

"Amy Rutenberg has assembled the first historical analysis of conscription and resistance across different nations across the twentieth century. The range of these essays is remarkable, particularly for the global South, as is the attention to the varying contexts, paradoxes, and consequences of conscription, for armies, societies, and their politics. Framing by political scientists adds further value to the many nuanced perspectives."—Samuel Watson, editor of The Oxford Handbook of American Military History

"Amy J. Rutenberg and her team of exceptional contributors have produced the most definitive analysis of conscription to date. This essential collection explores the pivotal question of who serves and reveals why it matters through an impressive array of case studies, detailing numerous nations around the world and various chronological eras throughout the twentieth century. It should be required reading for those interested in the powerful yet complex implications of conscription for individuals and societies alike."—William A. Taylor, author of Military Service and American Democracy: From World War II to the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars

"A fascinating collection on the experience of military conscription in the long twentieth century. These rewarding and nuanced essays, marked by impressive global and historical scope, complicate our understanding of the origins, politics, and consequences of military service. Anyone interested military service—scholars and general readers alike—will want to read these rich essays."—Ronald R. Krebs, Distinguished McKnight University Professor, University of Minnesota, author of Fighting for Rights: Military Service and the Politics of Citizenship

"Although the chapters in this volume are wide-ranging, themes including economics, gender, and access to citizenship rights are woven throughout the chapters, knitting them together. This collection isn’t just about conscription—it also teaches us about state efforts to control populations, the role of military service in national identity formation, and the ways in which citizens throughout the world have asserted claims to citizenship and social status by either embracing or resisting compulsory military service. By including the work of experts in history, sociology, and political science, this book highlights the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in advancing knowledge about civil-military relations."—Heather Stur, Senior Fellow, Dale Center for the Study of War & Society, and coeditor of Integrating the US Military: Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation since World War II