動員，在軍事術語中，是為戰爭集結和準備軍隊和物資的行為。動員這個詞最初是在軍事語境中使用的，用來描述19世紀50年代和60年代俄羅斯帝國軍隊的準備工作。此后，動員理論和動員策略不斷發生變化。動員的反面是復員。19世紀，隨著征兵制度的引入和鐵路的引入，動員成為一個問題。動員使法國大革命期間首次實行的大規模征兵制制度化，并改變了戰爭的性質。若干技術和社會變革促進了向更有組織的部署方式邁進。其中包括電報提供快速通訊，鐵路提供快速移動和集中部隊，征兵提供訓練有素的后備士兵以防戰爭。

Mobilization, in military terminology, is the act of assembling and readying troops and supplies for war. The word mobilization was first used, in a military context, to describe the preparation of the Imperial Russian Army during the 1850s and 1860s. Mobilization theories and tactics have continuously changed since then. The opposite of mobilization is demobilization.Mobilization became an issue with the introduction of conscription, and the introduction of the railways in the 19th century. Mobilization institutionalized the mass levy of conscripts that was first introduced during the French Revolution, and that had changed the character of war. A number of technological and societal changes promoted the move towards a more organized way of deployment. These included the telegraph to provide rapid communication, the railways to provide rapid movement and concentration of troops, and conscription to provide a trained reserve of soldiers in case of war.