Trenches were common throughout the Western Front. Long, narrow trenches dug into the ground at the front, usually by the infantry soldiers who would occupy them for weeks at a time, were designed to protect World War I troops from machine-gun fire and artillery attack from the air.
In this post
How did the trenches help the soldiers?
Trenches provided relative protection against increasingly lethal weaponry. Soldiers dug in to defend themselves against shrapnel and bullets. On the Western Front, trenches began as simple ditches and evolved into complex networks stretching over 250 miles (402 kilometres) through France and Belgium.
Did trench warfare help the troops?
Trench Warfare
Trenches provided a very efficient way for soldiers to protect themselves against heavy firepower and within four months, soldiers on all fronts had begun digging trenches.
What 3 things would soldiers do in the trenches?
A typical day in the trenches
Soldiers sleeping and writing letters. Soldiers only got to sleep in the afternoon during daylight and at night for an hour at a time. During rest time they wrote letters and played card games.
What impact did trench warfare have on the lives of soldiers?
The enemy remained largely hidden from view and soldiers often felt powerless against arbitrary and sudden death. The inability to defend oneself against shelling or snipers, and the constant hardships of trench life, contributed to extreme stress and exhaustion.
Why did soldiers build trenches?
After the early war of movement in the late summer of 1914, artillery and machine guns forced the armies on the Western Front to dig trenches to protect themselves.
What was life like for soldiers in the trenches?
Trench life involved long periods of boredom mixed with brief periods of terror. The threat of death kept soldiers constantly on edge, while poor living conditions and a lack of sleep wore away at their health and stamina.
Why did they use trenches in ww1?
During World War I, trench warfare was a defensive military tactic used extensively by both sides, allowing soldiers some protection from enemy fire but also hindering troops from readily advancing and thus prolonging the war. Trench warfare was the major combat tactic in France and Belgium.
What were trenches like 3 facts?
Top 10 Facts about The Trenches
- Trench warfare was started by the Germans in The First World War.
- There was 2,490 kilometres of trench lines dug during the First World War.
- Most trenches were between 1-2 metres wide and 3 metres deep.
- Trenches weren’t dug in straight lines.
Who has the best trenches in ww1?
Differences Between German and British Trenches:
Main difference between the two trenches was that the Germans dug their trenches first, which meant they got the better soil conditions because they dug their trenches on higher ground compared to the British trenches.
Do WWI trenches still exist?
A few of these places are private or public sites with original or reconstructed trenches preserved as a museum or memorial. Nevertheless, there are still remains of trenches to be found in remote parts of the battlefields such as the woods of the Argonne, Verdun and the mountains of the Vosges.
Where did ww1 soldiers go to the toilet?
These latrines were trench toilets. They were usually pits dug into the ground between 1.2 metres and 1.5 metres deep. Two people who were called sanitary personnel had the job of keeping the latrines in good condition for each company.
What did the trenches smell like?
The stink of war
Then there was the smell. Stinking mud mingled with rotting corpses, lingering gas, open latrines, wet clothes and unwashed bodies to produce an overpowering stench. The main latrines were located behind the lines, but front-line soldiers had to dig small waste pits in their own trenches.
How many soldiers survived the trenches?
In Britain around 6 million men were mobilised, and of those just over 700,000 were killed. That’s around 11.5%. Or to put it another way 88.5% survived, that is nearly 9 out of 10 British ‘Tommies’ survived the trenches.
How does war change a soldier?
Death, injury, sexual violence, malnutrition, illness, and disability are some of the most threatening physical consequences of war, while post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety are some of the emotional effects.
What jobs did soldiers do in the trenches ww1?
Men who worked with horses were useful recruits as the Army had thousands of horses. Men who knew how to drive could transport supplies in buses and lorries. Or even drive a tank! Artillery soldiers, or ‘gunners.
What were the duties in the trenches?
Following morning stand-to, inspection, and breakfast, soldiers undertook any number of chores, ranging from cleaning latrines to filling sandbags or repairing duckboards. During daylight hours, they conducted all work below ground and away from the snipers’ searching rifles.
When were trenches first used in war?
In the wake of the Battle of the Marne—during which Allied troops halted the steady German push through Belgium and France that had proceeded over the first month of World War I—a conflict both sides had expected to be short and decisive turns longer and bloodier, as Allied and German forces begin digging the first
What did soldiers in ww1 eat?
By the First World War (1914-18), Army food was basic, but filling. Each soldier could expect around 4,000 calories a day, with tinned rations and hard biscuits staples once again. But their diet also included vegetables, bread and jam, and boiled plum puddings. This was all washed down by copious amounts of tea.
Did soldiers sleep in the trenches?
Daily life. Most activity in front line trenches took place at night under cover of darkness. During daytime soldiers would try to get some rest, but were usually only able to sleep for a few hours at a time.
What did soldiers eat while in the trenches?
The bulk of their diet in the trenches was bully beef (caned corned beef), bread and biscuits. By the winter of 1916 flour was in such short supply that bread was being made with dried ground turnips. The main food was now a pea-soup with a few lumps of horsemeat.