This website is being archived!
As the ten year anniversary of the Voices Against War website approaches we are delighted to announce that the website will be permanently archived at the 'National Digital Heritage Archive' hosted by the National Library of New Zealand Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa.
The closing date is 31 August 2026 which means that from that date you will need to use a different URL to reach the site: https://ndhadeliver.natlib.govt.nz/webarchive/20260204020549/https://voicesagainstwar.nz/. Please bookmark the new link so that you can still read the website once this site is closed down.
Note that because the archived site will be static, the search box will no longer work, but you will still be able to browse through the stories and items using the Browse tabs.
Thank you to all those who have supported and contributed to the website over the past ten years.
For more about the story of the website, see our About page.
Recent Stories
Pre-War Anti-Militarism and the Passive Resisters Union
The pre-war peace movement began in response to the 1909 Defence Act which introduced compulsory military training or ‘Peacetime Conscription’....
Conscription, and those who objected for religious, ethical or humanitarian reasons
As the war continued and the high number of casualties became known, volunteers were less keen to enlist. The New...
Women peacemakers
Women were not directly affected by compulsory military training or conscription, but many mothers, wives, aunts, sisters and grandmothers had...
The response of the Labour Movement to conscription: political objectors to military service
In the early part of the 20th century Christchurch was a hotbed of socialism, and the advent of the First World...
The legacy of the World War I peace movement
The end of the war did not mean the end of the peace movement. Instead, in the interwar years there...
Recent Items
'New Zealand and Conscription: The Sellar Case' pamphlet
A four-page pamphlet published by T. C. Gregory of Bristol which features the Sellar family who returned to Britain after their two sons resisted…
'Don't Emigrate to New Zealand! Why?' Leaflet
A one-page leaflet published by T. C. Gregory of Bristol which warns against emigrating to New Zealand on one side, with warnings about Australia and…
'Conscription in New Zealand and Australia' pamphlet
The front page of a pamphlet compiled and published by T.C. Gregory of Bristol which contains writing from both Britain and New Zealand. Included are…
'Warning to Emigrants' pamphlet
The front cover of a pamphlet published by T. C. Gregory of Bristol. It was compiled from writing by New Zealanders and included extracts from C.…
First 'Annual Meeting' New Zealand Friends, Christchurch
A photograph of a large group of people sitting outside a building. English Quaker Percy Fletcher attended this first Annual Meeting of the New…