Young Pacifists, 1934–1945

Eleven years of rising international tensions followed by the Second World War (1934–1945) are addressed in this chapter. The period 1934 to 1945 saw increased popularity of a fully pacifist stance, represented most prominently by the Peace Pledge Union, then popular mistrust of such a stance during the War. I examine the ways in which young people sought out, encountered, and enacted pacifism, in a range of contexts—at home, at church, at work, at school. This was against the backdrop of ambivalence within the Peace Pledge Union (and potentially other pacifist organisations too) about the ways in which young people could or should be included in their activities. Young people, nonetheless, found ways to engage with the PPU and other pacifist groups, mainly by joining in with “adult” activities. In a third section I discuss the experiences of young pacifists between 1939 and 1945. They had to navigate, from a minority position, the structures and processes of a wartime state as they affected their lives at school, at home, in local communities, and for teenagers of conscription age, the tribunal room.