“Vote Yes!” – Kapunda’s WWI Conscription Battle

“Vote Yes!” – Kapunda’s WWI Conscription Battle

Kapunda Herald, 13 Oct 1916

In August 1916, Australian Prime Minister William Morris Hughes announced that the question of compulsory overseas service would be put to the people in a referendum.
Hughes was under pressure from the British to provide extra reinforcements from Australia in Europe.

In Kapunda, conscription meetings were held for the yes vote and the no vote. A No vote meeting, held at Kapunda institute and hosted by Kapunda mayor S.E. Hancock, saw a very large turnout of Kapunda’s population, with a large base of women.
Arguments for either side were very heated. Those who opposed conscription were labelled as disloyal to Australia.


The feeling toward those who were voting yes to conscription in Kapunda was much worse. Posters and banners promoting the yes vote were torn down by no voters. Eggs were thrown at shop fronts and townsfolk chose to vote with their money, with shops that displayed a “vote yes” banner feeling the economic pinch when “no voters” refused to use their services or buy their goods.


The referendum was held on 28 October 1916 and resulted in 1 087 557 votes for and 1 160 033 against. New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia voted ‘No’.

Researched and written by Allen Tiller ©2019

References:

1916 'National Service Referendum. Alleged Victimization.', Kapunda Herald, 13 October, p. 2. , viewed 06 Mar 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article124986543

1916 'National Service. Anti-Conscription Meeting at Kapunda.', Kapunda Herald, 20 October, p. 3. , viewed 06 Mar 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article124986644

1916 'National Service.', Kapunda Herald, 27 October, p. 3. , viewed 06 Mar 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article124986721

State Library of New South Wales (2014) Australia’s Conscription Debate, https://ww1.sl.nsw.gov.au/stories/australias-conscription-debate