While we were studying World War I, one of the things that interested me the most was life in the trenches: how did the soldiers fight in the trenches? How were the trenches designed? And how miserable really were the people fighting?
According to longlongtrail.co.uk, only a very small portion of the army actually served in the trenches. The trenches were just the front lines, with the majority of people employed in supply lines, workshops, and headquarters behind the trenches. The trenches were designed for a first line of infantry and defense, being armed with mortars, machine guns, and other artillery. Unsurprisingly, digging the trenches was not an easy task. In parts of Italy, people were forced to dig trenches into rock and in Palestine the trenches were dug in the desert. In France, part of the towns were built into the trenches. The living conditions were highly unsanitary. Maggots, flies, corpses, and other vermin ran rampant through the trenches. Men stayed in the trenches for weeks without washing, leading to the spread of disease. The weather was also horrid and caused the death of many. For example, troops in France froze to death and many were prone to frostbite, a disease called frost foot, and other crippling illnesses caused by the living conditions in the World War. So, why did troops agree to fight in the trenches, and why were the trenches such an important part of warfare even though such a small minority of people lived in the trench?
That makes me wonder how they built the trenches without getting caught by the enemy. Say you were a German and around that area, and you saw people with digging tools digging a really long hole, you would think that they must be digging a trench, and preparing for battle. How did people not get caught?
ReplyDeleteFighting in the trenches had many pros and cons to it, a couple mentioned by you already. To add on, I feel like trenches were an extremely important part of warfare in that time period was because their technologies at that time weren't as improved so they had to rely mostly on nature to shield them from enemy attacks. I mean, there are probably inventions to do so, but it wasn't as widespread nor big enough to fit so many people without cramming and making discreet movement hard. Aside from the pro side of the trenches, there were obviously cons as well, another being the amount of soldiers that could serve. There would only be a couple of soldiers at work, compared to an actual war, where everyone is basically going all out. This particular type of warfare only serves to prolong war rather than shorten it, even though there are less lives lost in a period of time.
ReplyDeleteI think the idea of trench warfare seems very beneficial, however once troops began to experience the consequences of living in the trenches, the cons started to take over some of the pros. For example, it must have been very challenging to remain productive in the trenches with so many people, and the constant disease that spread throughout. But, I think the discreetness of trenches made them a very desirable part of warfare because you would not be causing much attention before attacking.
ReplyDeleteTo add on to the blog post above, another disease soldiers suffered from in the trench was a painful foot infection called trench foot. Trench foot occurred when soldiers stood for too long in the mud and cold water that pooled up in the bottom of the trenches. Another point regarding trench warfare is that the open space between opposing trenches is called no-man's land. Crossing no-man's land was highly lethal because any moving object was an easy target for sharpshooters and machine gunners to hit.
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