The War on Land Trench Warfare in WWI

The Beginning Troop movements began in August 1914 Germany wanted to capture Paris before the British and French could fully mobilize Within weeks, German forces had advanced almost to the outskirts of Paris! However, French troops rushed to the front, and the British joined them They had stopped the German advance!

In the Trenches October 1914: both sides began to “dig in” Deep rows of trenches, which were protected by machine guns and barbed wire Lines of trenches stretched from the English channel to the border of Switzerland! Many lines of trenches for different purposes

Trench System

Trench System Laid out in a zigzag pattern to prevent enemy fire from taking out everyone inside so easily Front-line trenches were about 2m deep and protected by sandbags Communication trenches were dug back to a line of support trenches In the support trenches: Command posts, reserve companies of soldiers, etc.

Trench Side View

The Trenches In wet weather, the trenches became slippery and waterlogged Wooden floorboards (duckboards) were placed in the bottom of the trenches Troops still often stood in water up to their knees Soldiers slept when (and where and how) they could, often standing up or leaning against sandbags

The early days there, for the first winter, oh boy, I want to tell you, primitive living alright. [The soldiers] were packed into a lot of dugouts, six or seven or eight men all pushed in together as tight as they could go, and wet right through. We never took off our shoes or our clothes, we just slept in them. But we’d take any sandbags that were halfway dry and pull them over our feet and tie them one of top of the other, four or five on each leg. Your body heat and that of the other men would more or less heat the place, provided it wasn’t too drafty. And in the morning when you woke up, why the outside sandbag would be soaking wet…

In the Trenches Soldiers were constantly wet, cold, and dirty Sickness and disease spread rapidly Trench foot: rotting of the flesh between and around the toes Trench mouth: painful infection of the gums Everyone had body lice living in their uniforms Rats ran through the trenches feeding on garbage and human waste Shell shock occurred often

No Man’s Land The corridor between the enemies Armed with buried land mines Covered with barbed wire Walking through here? Easy target. Sometimes the wounded in this stretch of land could not be brought back to safety. Sometimes about 1km wide; sometimes only 25m.

Duties and Rotations Nighttime was the worst for those in the frontline trenches Tense, watchful for any signs of an attack Raiding parties crept across No Man’s Land Cut through barbed wire Make a surprise attack with their bayonets

Duties and Rotations After a month or so in the trenches, units would be allowed to go to the supporting trenches for rest, decent meals, dry sleeping place, and a chance to bathe and clean up. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvHEUxIok00 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXtsiqrhqsU

A Soldier’s Perspective It seemed that the Germans didn’t want to be there any more than we did. But it seemed to be that somebody else was manipulating the strings behind the line, and we were just put there to work out a game. It wasn’t really hatred. Only sometimes did you hate, when you see your chums and your friends get shot. It would be pretty hard on you that way, and you could say you’d hate for a while, but not necessarily hate that you wanted to kill. But you had to kill or be killed, if you wanted to survive…

Sometimes at that time I felt, well, it’s so unnecessary Sometimes at that time I felt, well, it’s so unnecessary. A bunch of men… a hundred yards away… you could talk to them and you could hear them talking, hear them working, and here you was [sic], you’ve got to make an attack. And you had to kill them or be killed. And you would sometimes wonder what it was all about.

The Christmas Truce, 1914 Canadian and German soldiers join in singing “Silent Night” across the shell-torn No Man’s Land. German and British soldiers ventured into No Man’s Land to share from their care packages Some enemies got together and shared funerals too, mourning their dead and celebrating their lives In some regions, fighting continued “as normal” After this Christmas Truce, orders were received from commanding officers for this to not happen again  in 1915 and the years following, there was never again a Christmas Truce like in 1914