Lawrence and the Great War

[ELizabeth McC]

Hi all, just wondering, why didn't Lawrence fight in WW1? I know he was married to a German woman and that caused some difficulty with travel and passports and such but why wasn't he drafted? There's probably a very obvious answer to this, so obvious I can't find a reference to it anywhere!

[Virgil]

I think he physically failed the phisical exam. He was not a healthy person.

[Janine]

Hi all, just wondering, why didn't Lawrence fight in WW1? I know he was married to a German woman and that caused some difficulty with travel and passports and such but why wasn't he drafted? There's probably a very obvious answer to this, so obvious I can't find a reference to it anywhere!

Hi Elizabeth McC, I have read much about Lawrence's life. He was quite ill his entire life. He had contracted very bad pnemonia in his late teen/early 20's and he nearly died. His lungs were greatly weakened from this. He was born very ill also and had frequent bouts of bronchitis as a child. He was very delicate healthwise. After the major illness I listed first his lungs were never right. Most likely he carried TB in his body his entire life - he would only refer to it as his broncials. He defied death many many times over. In fact he was called up before the draft board and had to report for several physicals. After one of those traumatic trials he was made to report for some type of light office work. He was exempt from any active type duty due to his physical conditon which was quite delicate. One book I read said that every Christmas holiday season, he was usually ill with his lungs and colds. He sought warmer/dryer climates because of his persistent health conditions. His lungs were best in New Mexico and Mexico and later in Italy in the south. One reason Lawrence was such a wanderer was his physical conditon. He could not endure harsh winter or cold weather systems.
I hope this answers you question fully. If you want to learn more about Lawrence please come and join in with any of the group discussions now currently active - "Women in Love", "Sons and Lovers", the Tortoise Poems , or the Lawrence Short Story thread, last would be most realistic since we just started reading the story and discussing it. It is short and takes little time to read.

[ELizabeth McC]

Thanks so much guys! That's really helpful. And It explains quite a bit on a more general level. Excellent! :)

[Janine]

Thanks so much guys! That's really helpful. And It explains quite a bit on a more general level. Excellent! :)

Elizabeth, you are quite welcome! Glad to be of service. Any other Lawrence questions feel free to ask - in this thread would be fine.