Chemical Weapons Experiments as Sexual Violence

From the advent of large-scale gas warfare in 1915 until the elimination of the last of its chemical weapons in 2007, the United Kingdom produced, stored, and experimented with a wide range of toxic chemicals that were intended to harass, incapacitate, or kill its enemies. The weaponization of chlorine, phosgene, and sulfur mustard on the battlefields of the First World War generated considerable experience in the offensive capabilities of these chemical agents and ways to protect against them, but it also prompted the belligerents to embark on laboratory research, field trials, and training exercises to enhance their capacity to wage offensive chemical warfare and to defend against chemical attack. Many of these experiments took place without the informed consent of the participants, either because officials misrepresented or obfuscated the goals of these studies, the substances to which participants would be exposed, or the short- and long-term consequences they might experience--or because individuals did not feel free to say no for fear of appearing weak, cowardly, or selfish. Ideologies of masculinity, and unequal power relations structured along hierarchies of rank, class, education, and race (particularly in tests conducted in Asia and Africa), furthered the potential for coercion and harm. Frequently, these experiments caused excruciating pain and chemical burns to the most sensitive parts of the body, particularly the genitals. Drawing on my own archival research and theoretical insights from scholars of gender, sexuality, war, and medicine, I argue that the concept of military sexual violence can help to illuminate what was at work in some of these experiments, why they occurred, and how they affected those whose bodies and minds were subjected to this abuse in the name of science and military training.