Deserters / Conscription

» LunarEVA - Deserters / Conscription

Good day Mr. Barnham,

This is a follow-up to my earlier questions about possible prisoners of war from Corsica.

You had recommended the book "The Prisoners of Voronesh" which is an excellent account of the long march up through the Crimean peninsula to Russian territory.

The book said (page 200) "... it is impossible to say how many prisoners there were at Voronesh, but no more than ninety returned. Allowing for deserters, who generally did not return, and the relatively small numbers of allied soldiers actually taken by the Russians, it is doubtful if the total number imprisoned there was more than 200."

My question is...is the 200 number of POWs during the war correct (given that Voronesh was the primary location for POWs)?

Are there any estimates on the number of deserters during the war? (I am particularly interested in French deserters).

How were deserters punished after the war (if indeed they made it back to the Allied side)?

What happened to deserters after their desertion? I understand the Russians treated them badly because they felt deserters couldn't be trusted.

...and (this may be a stupid question, but...) was service in the French Army mandatory? Would a soldier from Corsica have been conscripted to fight the Crimean War?

Sorry for all the questions, but perhaps you could direct me to a book or source which may have some of these answers.

Thanks

Fraser Mooney, Nova Scotia

-- posted by LunarEVA

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» John_Barr - Re: Deserters / Conscription

In response to message posted by LunarEVA:

Hi Fraser,

please note I am Barham not Barnham, you've no idea how much that 'n' seems to fascinate people convinced that my surnane must be a misprint. Actually we are of Norman origin, settlers in Kent. Reginald FitzUrse, one of the murderers in the cathedral, was a Barham family founder, but we are a couple of links away from proving a direct link. Since the blind spot is in the Great Plague period, it is likely to remain a tantalising possibility. But I digress...

I don't have any figures for total POWs - 200 I feel is bound to be too small a figure, particularly if you consider Kars, where thousands were captured.

I've never seen any estimates for deserters in any war - it's not something that armies want to admit to. The First World War is only an exception because its firing squad executions have become a popular issue, and researchers from the media and agencies have felt it worth their while to spend an inordinate amount of time researching the subject.

British deserters were tatooed with the letter 'D' under their arm. This was administered by an iron stamping tool which encased forty or so sharp spikes which formed the letter. They also would receive a substantial number of lashes, probably the maximum permitted fifty. Army prisons were a relatively new development - in the 1840s - and deserters might also receive a custodial sentence, dependant on the active service need for manpower. I don't know what the punishment was in other armies - can anyone help?

The Russians indeed did not see deserters as POWs - they treated them as normal convicts.

Service in the French Army was by ballot - conscripts had to serve for six years. You could buy out, but the cost was beyond most working class families. Corsicans were French citizens and treated no different to anyone else.

-- posted by John_Barr

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