One in four British civilians would be prepared to fight for their country, a survey has revealed.

The research by polling organisation WIN/Gallup found that only 27 per cent of respondents said they would take up arms, against a global average of 60 per cent.

With 2014 marking the centenary of the start of the First World War the company decided to include the question in its annual global end of year study.

The trend among Britons was mirrored across Western Europe, with Germany scoring particularly low at 18 per cent.

These figures were in sharp contrast to those in Arab countries of the Middle East and North Africa, where 77 per cent of people would be prepared to fight for their nation. The USA result was 44 per cent.

Reference

Soldier (2015) No Appetite to Fight. Soldier: Magazine of the British Army. February, 2015, pp.16.