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National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939

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Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom

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National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939[a]
Act of Parliament
coat of arms
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act to make provision for securing and controlling the enlistment of men for service in the armed forces of the Crown; and for purposes connected with the matter aforesaid.
Citation2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 81
Territorial extent
Dates
Royal assent3 September 1939
Commencement3 September 1939[c]
Repealed1 January 1948
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Other legislation
Amended by
Repealed byNational Service Act 1948
Relates to
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted
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National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1940[d]
Act of Parliament
coat of arms
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act to provide that persons shall not be exempted from liability under the National Service (Armed Forces) Act, 1939, by reason of their being members of the Local Defence Volunteers.
Citation3 & 4 Geo. 6. c. 22
Territorial extent United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent23 May 1940
Commencement17 May 1940[e]
Repealed1 January 1949
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Other legislation
AmendsNational Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939
Repealed byNational Service Act 1947
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted
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National Service Act 1941[f]
Act of Parliament
coat of arms
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act to make provision for calling up men for civil defence and to amend the National Service (Armed Forces) Act, 1939.
Citation4 & 5 Geo. 6. c. 15
Territorial extent United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent10 April 1941
Commencement10 April 1941[c]
Repealed1 January 1948
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Other legislation
Amends
Amended by
Repealed byNational Service Act 1948
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted
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National Service Act 1942[g]
Act of Parliament
coat of arms
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long titleAn Act to authorise the making of preparatory arrangements for the calling up of male persons who are about to become liable to be called up for service under the National Service Acts, 1939 to 1941, to simplify the making of proclamations for the purposes of those Acts, and to amend the provisions of those Acts relating to exemptions.
Citation6 & 7 Geo. 6. c. 3
Territorial extent United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent17 December 1942
Commencement17 December 1942[c]
Repealed1 January 1948
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Other legislation
Amends
Amended by
Repealed byNational Service Act 1948
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted

The National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939 (2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 81) was enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom on 3 September 1939, the day the United Kingdom declared war on Germany, starting the Second World War.[1] The act, which superseded the Military Training Act 1939 (c. 25) of May 1939, enforced full conscription on all male British subjects between 18 and 41 who were present in Great Britain, subject to certain exemptions,[2] and lasting until the end of "the present emergency".[3] By a royal declaration in January 1941, the term Great Britain was extended to include the Isle of Man.[4]

After the war ended, in September 1945, the act remained in force until 1948, when it was superseded by the National Service Act 1948 (11 & 12 Geo. 6. c. 64), which extended conscription to times when the country was not formally at war, thus covering the Cold War and the Malayan Emergency.

Exemptions

  • The medically unfit, blind, disabled, and those with mental disorders
  • British subjects who had previously lived outside Britain (including the Isle of Man), and had lived in Britain for less than two years
  • Students
  • Persons employed by the government of any country of the British Empire except the United Kingdom
  • Clergy of any denomination
  • Conscientious objectors
  • People working in reserved occupations such as baking, farming, medicine, and engineering.
  • The act applied only to men present in Great Britain and the Isle of Man, exempting those living overseas.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Section 24.
  2. ^ Section 23.
  3. ^ a b c The Acts of Parliament (Commencement) Act 1793.
  4. ^ Section 2(1).
  5. ^ Section 2(2).
  6. ^ Section 16(1).
  7. ^ Section 5(2).

References

  1. ^ "On This Day - 3 September - 1939: Britain and France declare war on Germany". BBC. 3 September 1939.
  2. ^ Marcus, Philip (1941). "Some Aspects of Military Service". Michigan Law Review. 39 (6): 913–950. doi:10.2307/1282941. JSTOR 1282941.
  3. ^ "4 (1)", National Service Cu. 81, (Armed Forces) Act, 1939 (text of Act) (PDF), UK Government, 3 September 1939, p. 6
  4. ^ The London Gazette, 31 January 1941, p. 622
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