Good article James. I’d just add some context on contemporary British military workforce woes:

The issue is often couched in terms of people not wishing to join. This is actually a little bit of a misconception, as applicant interest in the Forces is reasonably high. The huge blocker to recruitment is the torturous process of joining the Forces, not helped by exceptionally poor practices by Capita and over-prescriptive medical requirements.

The other huge issue is retention - far more people leave than are joining, due to a whole host of issues. The recent boost to salaries by the Labour government was very welcome, but it is far more than a monetary problem. Keeping servicepeople in beyond their minimum terms of service is increasingly the most difficult task facing MOD personnel planning.