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Slide 1
Slide 2
Trench Warfare World War One Total War/Modern Warfare
Slide 3
Left Side Activities Ms. Barben will have some planned
activities that she wants everyone to do. Others will be your
choice.
Slide 4
Myth
Slide 5
Reality
Slide 6
Slide 7
War Is HELL !!
Slide 8
Real life in the trenches was MISERABLE
Slide 9
If you survived the fighting and didnt get shell shock THEN
there was.
Slide 10
Slide 11
This WAS a beautiful forest!
Slide 12
Sacrifices in War
Slide 13
The reality of going over the top was very different!
Slide 14
Boredom, daily duties, grinding routine and more waiting. Then
there were moments of sheer TERROR.
Slide 15
A Multi-Front War
Slide 16
By Miss Boughey
Slide 17
The Western Front
Slide 18
Mud by Gilbert Rogers Questions: Respond on your Left Side.
1.What does the painting show? 2.Look at the colours the artist has
used. How do they make you feel? 3.What do you notice about the
colour of the soldiers uniform? 4. Look at the type of paint the
artist has used. Does it make the picture look realistic or not? 5.
Where do you think the artist was when he painted this
picture?
Slide 19
This picture shows Canadian machine gunners on Vimy Ridge
during the 1917 Battle of Arras What do you think might be
happening around the soldier?
Slide 20
On your Left Side: As Ms. Barben goes over the design of the
trenches, you are to: Sketch out a diagram of how the trenches were
set up and label the key aspects. Then you will turn to your
partner and double-check when we finish this section
Slide 21
Trench Warfare
Slide 22
Trench Warfare: Reasons It Developed Developed due to the
machine gun Traditional military charges on open land no longer
worked; thousands gunned down Needed protection from the machine
gun fire, so they dug the trenches Development of modern
warfare
Slide 23
Trenches and Shovels At the beginning of the war, the British
army owned 2500 shovels. By the end of the war, the British army
owned over 10.5 million shovels. All of this was due to the
development and reliance on trench warfare. By the end of the war,
both sides had dug 15,000 miles of trenches. That is the equivalent
of digging across the United State five times.
Slide 24
Soldiers digging trenches while protected against gas
attacks
Slide 25
Trenches Were not newused in ancient and medieval times and
during the American Civil War But trenches was not used as the main
source of fighting until World War One It was at the Battle of the
Marne that the Germans were the first to dig trenches to find
protection from the pursing British forces. By the end of 1914, two
lines of trenches reach across 500 miles from Switzerland to the
North Sea.
Slide 26
Trench WarfareTrench Warfare type of fighting during World War
I in which both sides dug trenches protected by mines and barbed
wire Trench Warfare Cross-section of a front-line trench
Slide 27
Germany was going to have to fight a long war on 2 fronts.
Realizing this, the German command sent thousands of troops from
France to aid its forces in the east. Meanwhile, the war on the
Western Front settled into a stalemate. By early 1915, opposing
armies on the Western Front had dug miles of parallel trenches to
protect themselves from enemy fire. This set the stage for what
became known as trench warfare. The German commander, General Erich
von Falkenhayn, decided that his troops must at all costs hold onto
those parts of France and Belgium that Germany still occupied.
Slide 28
War of Attrition What was the War of Attrition? It was a war
based on wearing the other side down by constant attacks and heavy
losses. Where did this war take place? Europe When did it take
place? 1916 Why was it called this? It was called war of attrition
because they lost millions of people. What was the significance of
the war? Its what WWI turned into after losing all those men, due
to the ongoing attacks.
Slide 29
General Erich von Falkenhayn ordered his men to dig trenches
that would provide them with protection from the advancing French
and British troops. The Allies soon realized that they could not
break through this line and they also began to dig trenches. After
a few months these trenches had spread from the North Sea to the
Swiss Frontier. As the Germans were the first to decide where to
stand fast and dig, they had been able to choose the best places to
build their trenches. The possession of the higher ground not only
gave the Germans a tactical advantage, but it forced the British
and French to live in the worst conditions. Most of this area was
rarely a few feet above sea level. As soon as soldiers began to dig
down they would invariably find water two or three feet below the
surface. Water-logged trenches were a constant problem for soldiers
on the Western Front.
Slide 30
How they built the trenches Built all along the Western
Front---476 miles of trenches Also used in Battle of Galliopoli;
however the design was differentmuch more shallow and little space
in no-mans land Dug several trenches; each serving a different
purpose Used barbed wire to protect the top as an obstacle for
charging men to gain entrance into the trench
Slide 31
Trench Warfare
Slide 32
Slide 33
Building of Trenches
Slide 34
Anatomy of a Trench Typically reached 10 feet deep, so soldiers
could walk around without being seen by the enemy. In areas where
trenches were more shallow, a careless soldier could let his head
rise above the top for enemy snipers to target. Trenches had
duckboards, or wooden planks at the bottom, which kept feet dry and
out of the mud.
Slide 35
Slide 36
Anatomy of a Trench Trenches contained saps, short cul-de- sacs
dug forward and connected to the front line trench by a little
tunnel. Each night, two guards crawled out to the sap and sat for
hours. They listened for sounds from the enemys line or any
movement or noise that could signal attack preparations.
Slide 37
Slide 38
Trench Warfare in France
Slide 39
Building of Trenches
Slide 40
Anatomy of a Trench Tiny rooms, called dugouts, were tunneled
sideways into the dirt. Officers slept in dugouts which offered
shelter from wind and rain. The Germans built superior dugouts,
because they planned on maintaining their position for a long time.
Their dugouts were up to 30 feet below ground lined with bunkers of
concrete, and installed electric lights, wallpaper, carpet, and
running water. The British and French constructed simple trenches,
because they planned to push back the Germans and liberate Belgium.
Their dugouts held bunks and tables, but the roofs of corrugated
iron did not keep out the rain.
Slide 41
Building of Trenches
Slide 42
TRENCH DESIGN Frontline trenches were usually about seven feet
deep and six feet wide. The front of the trench was known as the
parapet. The top two or three feet of the parapet and the parados
(the rear side of the trench) would consist of a thick line of
sandbags to absorb any bullets or shell fragments. In a trench of
this depth it was impossible to see over the top, so a two or
three-foot ledge known as a fire-step, was added. Duck-boards were
also placed at the bottom of the trenches to protect soldiers from
problems such as trench foot. Soldiers also made dugouts and funk
holes in the side of the trenches to give them some protection from
the weather and enemy fire.
Slide 43
TRENCH EXTENSIONS The front-line trenches were also protected
by barbed-wire entanglements & machine-gun posts. Short
trenches called saps were dug from the front-trench into No-Man's
Land. The sap-head, usually about 30 yards forward of the
front-line, were then used as listening posts. Small groups of
soldiers were sent to the sap-head & were given the task of
finding out about the enemy. This included discovering information
about enemy patrols, wiring parties, or sniper positions. After a
heavy bombardment soldiers would be ordered to seize any new
craters in No Man's Land which could then be used as listening
posts. Front-line trenches were not dug in straight lines.
Otherwise, if the enemy had a successive offensive, and got into
your trenches, they could shoot straight along the line. The French
tended to build zigzag trenches. However, the British Army
preferred a system where each trench was dug with alternate fire-
bays and traverses. Whereas fire-bays were straight sections of
trenches, traverses were built at angles. This limited the effect
of enfilade fire or shell-burst.
Slide 44
Types of Trenches Support or Cover Trenches: behind the front
line about 30 yards. Soldiers were stationed there in case the
enemy broke through the front line. Behind the Support Trenches,
were the Reserve Trenches: used to relay messages and to transport
reinforcements, ammo, and food supplies during times of battle
through Communication Trenches: joined all three trench lines
Slide 45
Slide 46
Most Frequented Trenches Given names by the Germans like: o
Hansa Weg o Munster Gasse Given names by the British soldiers like:
o The Strand o New Bond Street Some trenches grew so complete that
soldiers needed guides to maneuver through the trenches Soldiers,
even whole units, easily lost their way in the maze of dead
ends.
Slide 47
Slide 48
BARBED WIRE Trenches on the Western Front were protected by
thick barbed-wire entanglements. Being a member of a wiring party
was one of the most unpopular duties experienced by soldiers. This
involved carrying out 6 ft. steel pickets and rolls of wire. The
pickets were knocked into place by muffled mallets. When fastened
to the pickets, the wire was pulled out to make what was known as
an apron. Barbed-wire was usually placed far enough from the
trenches to prevent the enemy from approaching close enough to lob
grenades in. Sometimes barbed-wire entanglements were set up in
order to channel attacking infantry into machine-gun fire.
Barbed-wire entanglements were virtually impassable. Before a major
offensive soldiers were sent out to cut a path with wire-cutters.
Another tactic was to place a Bangalore Torpedo (a long pipe filled
with explosive) and detonate it under the wire.
Slide 49
Heavy bombardment was necessary to destroy the barbed-wire.
However, this always removed the crucial element of surprise. Many
soldiers disputed the fact that shelling was capable of creating a
gap in the wire. Arthur Coppard, who observed attempts to destroy
barbed-wire entanglements at the Somme remarked: "Who told them
that artillery fire would pound such wire to pieces, making it
possible to get through? Any Tommy could have told them that shell
fire lifts wire up and drops it down, often in a worse tangle than
before." Drawings made by an allied spy of German barbed-wire
Slide 50
Private Victor Wheeler, a Canadian soldier, was involved in
digging some of the Allies first trenches.CanadianAllies With pick
and shovel we dug trenches through beautiful fields of grain, fully
realising what damage we were doing to the farmers' hopes of
reaping small harvests that would enable them to stem hunger during
the coming winter. The patriarch with his ox- drawn plough, the
matronly gleaner, and the young woman gathering grass and leaves,
roots and truffles, stood arms akimbo, wordlessly, helplessly,
hopelessly watching. The depressing effect on the morale of the men
- to many of whom raising grain on the Western prairie also meant
their livelihood - could not be easily dismissed.
Slide 51
Our trenches are... ankle deep mud. In some places trenches are
waist deep in water. Time is spent digging, filling sandbags,
building up parapets, fetching stores, etc. One does not have time
to be weary.
Slide 52
Types of Soldier Engineers (or Sappers) repaired bridges and
roads. Dug trenches.Engineers (or Sappers) repaired bridges and
roads. Dug trenches. Artillery Soldiers manned big guns.Artillery
Soldiers manned big guns. Signallers ran telephone lines to carry
messages to trenches.Signallers ran telephone lines to carry
messages to trenches. Staff Officers assisted the Generals in
planning and organising.Staff Officers assisted the Generals in
planning and organising. Generals usually lived in large mansions
in the French countryside. Rarely went to the Front Line to see
conditions.Generals usually lived in large mansions in the French
countryside. Rarely went to the Front Line to see conditions.
Slide 53
Slide 54
An aerial photograph of the opposing trenches and no-man's land
in Artois, France, July 22, 1917. German trenches are at the right
and bottom, British trenches are at the top left. The vertical line
to the left of centre indicates the course of a pre-war road.
Slide 55
View from the air TODAY of trenches dug during WWI
Slide 56
Fighting Trench Warfare Goal was to take the opponents trench
very hard to do; often ended in stalemate and high casualties Would
go over the top and charge across no-mans land under the cover of
rolling artillery barrages, poison gas, behind tanks, facing
machine gun fire Almost all the new weapons that developed were to
help break the trenches
Slide 57
Western FrontWestern Front over 400 miles of trenches across
Belgium and France Most offenses resulted in heavy casualties but
gained little territory.
Slide 58
Germany 1,935,000 Russia 1,700,000 France 1,368,000
Austria-Hungary 1,200,000 British Empire 942,135 Ottoman Empire
725,000 Italy 680,000 Romania 300,000 United States 116,516
Bulgaria 87,495 Belgium 45,550 Serbia 45,000 Greece 23,098 Portugal
8,145 Montenegro 3,000 Japan 1,344 Military Casualties in World War
I: 1914-1918
Slide 59
How to Survive in the Trenches According to General Sir Edwin
Alderson Do not expose your heads, and do not look around corners,
unless for a purposeto lose your life without military necessity is
to deprive the State of good soldiersa soldier who takes
unnecessary risks is not playing the game, and the man who does so
is stupid..If you put you head over the parapet without orders,
they will hit that head..When you are shelled, sit low and tight.
This is easy advice, for there is nothing else to do. If you get
out you will only get it worseThe Germans do not like the bayonetIf
they get up to you, or if you get up to them, go right in with the
bayonet
Slide 60
Slide 61
Slide 62
The Trench Cycle 70 days in the front line 30 days in a nearby
support trench 120 days in a reserve trench 70 days spent at rest
The amount of leave varied with up to 2 weeks a year.
Slide 63
'The Rear-Guard' by Siegfried Sassoon Groping along the tunnel,
step by step, He winked his prying torch with patching glare From
side to side, and sniffed the unwholesome air. Tins, boxes,
bottles, shapes too vague to know, A mirror smashed, the mattress
from a bed; 5 And he, exploring fifty feet below The rosy gloom of
battle overhead. Tripping, he grabbed the wall; saw someone lie
Humped at his feet, half-hidden by a rug, And stooped to give the
sleeper's arm a tug. 10 "I'm looking for headquarters." No reply.
"God blast your neck!" (For days he'd had no sleep.) "Get up and
guide me through this stinking place." Savage, he kicked a soft,
unanswering heap, And flashed his beam across the livid face 15
Terribly glaring up, whose eyes yet wore Agony dying hard ten days
before; And fists of fingers clutched a blackening wound. Alone he
staggered on until he found Dawn's ghost that filtered down a
shafted stair 20 To the dazed, muttering creatures underground Who
hear the boom of shells in muffled sound. At last, with sweat of
horror in his hair, He climbed through darkness to the twilight
air, Unloading hell behind him step by step. 1. Where is the
rear-guard? What is going on above him? 2. Describe the conditions
in the tunnel/trench. Pick out some of the words or phrases which
help describe the tunnel. 3. The rear-guard meets a sleeper in the
tunnel. What does he look like? What do you think has happened to
him? 4. At the end of the poem the rear guard leaves the tunnel.
What is the tunnel compared with in the last line? This last line
uses imagery to make a powerful point. What kind of imagery is
this? 5. What do you predict happens to the rear guard next? 6.
Visualize the rear guard, the tunnel, the war itself, etc. Create
an illustration or other form of visual art that represents this
poem.
Slide 64
Fear and Anticipation As you sit in the trench, what do you
fear? What dangers do you face? How are you preparing, physically
and mentally to face those dangers? How does it feel to be in that
position?
Slide 65
Daily Life in Trenches
Slide 66
Daily Life in the Trenches Start with morning Stand To-an hour
before dawn everyone is woken up and ordered to climb up on the
fire step to guard against a dawn raid. Then Morning Hate-machine
gun fire, shelling, small arms fire into the mist to ensure their
safety at dawn.
Slide 67
Slide 68
What should be the caption for this photo?
Slide 69
Daily Life in the Trenches
Slide 70
Daily Life in Trenches Then rum may be issued to some men. Time
to clean the rifles & weapons inspections by officers Breakfast
would be served-unofficial truce between both sides. Another
inspection by company commander Assign daily chores: refilling
sandbags, repair duckboards, drain the trenches, clean out the
latrines After chores, read, write letters home, nap, & many
wrote poetry or songs.
Slide 71
Slide 72
Trench Warfare
Slide 73
French soldiers firing over their own dead
Slide 74
Daily Life in Trenches At dusk, repeat of morning Stand To.
Guard against surprise attack. Under the cover of darkness, men
would be sent to the rear lines to fetch rations & water. Other
men would do sentry duty on the fire step alternating every two
hours. Patrols would be sent out into no-mans land. Relieving of
men on the front lines happened at night as well.
Slide 75
There has been constant shelling for 3 days. How does your head
feel? Describe the destruction you expect to see around you the
next morning. Do you expect to die? How do you cope with that
feeling? What did the enemy hope to gain by this constant shelling?
First bombardment
Life in the Trenches James Lovegrave described life in the
trenches as Life in the trenches was hell on earth. Lice, rats,
trench foot, trench mouth, where gums rot and you lose your teeth.
And of course dead bodies everywhere.
Slide 82
No smiling and relaxed faces No clean uniforms Their equipment
is scattered everywhere Boredom and sleep are obvious
Slide 83
Slide 84
Along the whole line, trench life involved a never-ending
struggle against water and mud. Duck-boards were placed at the
bottom of the trenches to protect soldiers from problems such as
trench foot. Much of the land where the trenches were dug was
either clay or sand. The water could not pass through the clay and
because the sand was on top, the trenches became waterlogged when
it rained. The trenches were hard to dig and kept on collapsing in
the waterlogged sand. As well as trenches the shells from the guns
and bombs made big craters in the ground. The rain filled up the
craters and then poured into the trenches. Officers walking through
a flooded communication trench.
Slide 85
The soldiers at the front need more rest. While in the trenches
the water is over our knees most of the time. The war is going to
last some time yet, and might be another twelve months before it is
over. The war has only just begun and its going to be a war of
exhaustion. After the regular armies have done their work it means
that all the young lads at home being trained and disciplined and
will take our place in the field. The sooner people understand
this, the better, it will be for the nation.---Private H. F.
Leppard in a letter to his mother on December 19th, 1914 We have
just come out of the trenches after being in for six days and up to
our waists in water. While we were in the trenches one of the
Germans came over to our trench for a cigarette and then back
again, and he was not fired at. We and the Germans started walking
about in the open between the two trenches, repairing them, and
there was no firing at all. I think they are all getting fed up
with it.---Private Stanley Terry in a letter to his family in
November, 1915
Slide 86
Slide 87
Slide 88
Soldiers were expected to carry all of their equipment with
them at all times. They were supposed to keep it clean and in good
condition they were British after all.
Slide 89
Slide 90
How the uniform and equipment changed after just three weeks in
the trenches
Slide 91
Clothing The Teddy Bear: army jerkin made from goat- skin. It
is given out in the winter of 1914. Necklet: a silk-lined collar
which is supposed to stop a large, speeding bullet from taking your
head off The British Warm: an overcoat that is knee- length and
tight at the waist. Only for officers and troops on horseback The
Brodie: a British steel helmet invented in Feb 1916 for snipers.
Some officers start to buy them for themselves. Body Armour: The
Dayfield is the best knownit is made from steel plates sewn into a
cloth shirt and usually worn under the army uniform. It is
expensive and usually only officers can afford them.
Slide 92
Clothing British Army Armour: Has curved metal plates for the
chest and back. It is meant to stop snipers bullets. But the metal
is very thin and curves in the middle, so any bullet hitting in the
center of the armour will be directed into you and not away from
you. Trench Coats: Germans started using them first. It helps keep
them warm and protect from the rain. Bullet-Proof Bibles:
Pocket-sized copies of the New Testament being bought and sent by
British mothers to their sons. There are stories that these little
Bibles have stopped rifle bullets. Tights: Many Scottish soldiers
wear kilts. They started to wear tights to protect their legs from
poison gas.
Slide 93
Life in the Trenches There were about 20 men. They walked like
plaster statues. Their faces stared at us like those of shrunken
mummies, and their eyes seemed so huge that one saw nothing but
eyes. Those eyes, which had not seen sleep for four days and nights
showed the vision of death. Was this the dream of glory that I had
when I volunteered to fight?
Slide 94
Dealing with boredom and cramped living quarters What do you do
to keep from getting bored? Your leg has a cramp. How do you get
rid of it? The soldier next to you keeps sneezing and coughing.
What can you do to keep from getting sick? Your uniform is wet. How
do you get more comfortable?
Slide 95
Trench Warfare
Slide 96
Going Over the Top Phrase given to the soldiers when it was
time to try to take the opposing trench Means running across
no-mans land About 8 out of every 10 soldiers who went over the top
would die
Slide 97
Slide 98
We started away just after dawn from our camp and I think it
was about an hour later that we encountered the enemy. They were on
the opposite side of the valley and as we came over the brow of the
hill they opened on us with rifle fire and shrapnel from about 900
yards. We lost three officers and about 100 men killed and wounded
in that half hour. I do not want any more days like that one. (this
section censored) Anyway we drove the Germans back and held them
there for eight days. I cannot tell you all I should like to, as it
would never reach you. Private James Mitchell in a letter to his
father on October 17th, 1914.
Slide 99
Soldiers in an exposed trench, bracing for an incoming attack
As captain, its your job to reassure your men, to give them
confidence and make them want to continue to fight. How do you do
this? You are feeling homesick and want to write home. What do you
write? Do you spare them any details?
Slide 100
Over the Top
Slide 101
Slide 102
I have not written to you for a long time, but I have thought
of you It is, indeed, not so simple a matter to write from the war,
really from the war; and what you read in the papers usually lack
of understanding that does not allow a man to get hold of the war,
to breathe it in although he is living in the midst of it. The
further I penetrate its true inwardness the more I see the
hopelessness of making it comprehensive for those who only
understand life in the terms of peacetime, and apply these same
ideas to war in spite of themselves. They only think that they
understand it. It is as if fishes living in water would have a
clear conception of what living in the air is like. When one is
hauled out on to dry land and dies in the air, then he will know
something about it. So it is with the war. Feeling deeply about it,
one becomes less able to talk about it every day. Not because one
understands it less each day, but because one grasps it better. But
it is a silent teacher, and he who learns becomes silent too.
Rudolf Binding, letter (April, 1915)
Slide 103
Slide 104
Few soldiers ever made it to the other sides trenches.
Slide 105
Slide 106
No Mans Land
Slide 107
Trench Warfare No Mans Land
Slide 108
No-Mans Land Term used by the soldiers to describe the ground
between the 2 opposing trenches Width could vary from 500 yards to
as narrow as 7 yards; the average was 250 yards Contained a lot of
barbed wire; some places 100 ft deep If there had been a lot of
fighting, no-mans land was covered with abandoned military
equipment, the rotting corpses, and total annihilation of the land
with shell holes At the Battle of Somme, 200,000 men were left to
rot in No-Mans Land
Slide 109
NO MANS LAND No Man's Land is the term used by soldiers to
describe the ground between the two opposing trenches. Its width
along the Western Front could vary a great deal. The average
distance in most sectors was about 250 yards (230 meters). However,
at Guillemont it was only 50 yards (46 meters) whereas at Cambrai
it was over 500 yards (460 meters). The narrowest gap was at
Zonnebeke where British and German soldiers were only about seven
yards apart. No Man's Land contained a considerable amount of
barbed wire. In the areas most likely to be attacked, there were
ten belts of barbed wire just before the front-line trenches. In
some places the wire was more than a 100 feet (30 meters) deep. If
the area had seen a lot of action No Man's Land would be full of
broken and abandoned military equipment. After an attack No Man's
Land would also contain a large number of bodies. Advances across
No Mans Land were always very difficult. Not only did the soldiers
have to avoid being shot or blown-up, they also had to cope with
barbed wire and water-filled, shell- holes.
Slide 110
Barbed wire strung out over No Mans Land slowed speed of the
advance of the attacking troops At times electrified cable ran thru
the mass of barbed wire-had to be cut first!!
Slide 111
Soldiers were only occasionally involved in a full-scale attack
across No Man's Land. However, men were sometimes ordered into No
Man's Land to obtain information about the enemy. When an artillery
shell had landed just in front of an enemy trench, soldiers were
often ordered to take control of the shell-hole and to try and spy
on the enemy. Small patrols were also sent out to obtain
information about the enemy. These patrols would go out at night.
They would have to crawl forward on their stomachs in an attempt to
get close enough to find out what the enemy was up to. If possible,
they would try and capture a sentry and bring him back for
interrogation. To stop British night patrols the Germans used a
light- shell rocket. Suspended from a small parachute, the flare
blazed brightly for a minute giving the defending troops a chance
to kill the soldiers who had advanced into No Man's Land.
Slide 112
No Mans Land
Slide 113
All with the regular sound of shells bursting nearby. This is a
small piece of no mans land in 2002, complete with shell holes. The
trees were not there in 1915, but the mud was!
Slide 114
Here are descriptions by writers who fought in the war: Beyond
the wire was 'no-man's land', the space between the Allied and the
German trenches. I t could be a kilometre wide or more; in some
places it was less than 30 metres. No-man's land was pitted with
shell holes and littered with unexploded shells, rusting rifles,
rotting bodies and the rats that fed on them. At night, patrols
were sent out of the trenches, across no-man's land, to try to find
out the strength of the enemy in the opposite trenches. That was
why, as Wolff describes, the enemy would fire star shells (timed to
explode in the air like giant, long- lasting fireworks) to light up
no-man's land so that machine- gunners could destroy the
patrols.
Slide 115
Slide 116
Extract from "Death of a hero" by Richard Adlington (1892-1962)
The days passed into weeks, the weeks into months. He moved throu-h
impressions like a man hallucinated. And every incident seemed to
beat on his brain Death, Death, Death. All the decay and death of
battlefields entered his blood and seemed to poison him. He lived
among smashed bodies and human remains in an infernal cemetery If
he scratched his stick idly and nervously in the side of a trench,
he pulled out human ribs. He ordered a new latrine to be dug out
from the trench, and thrice the, digging had to be abandoned
because they came upon terrible black masses of decomposing
bodies.
Slide 117
No Mans Land
Slide 118
At dawn -one morning when it was misty he walked over the top
of Hill 91. where probably nobody had been by day since its
capture. The heavy mist brooded about him in a strange stillness.
Scarcely a sound on their immediate front, though from north and
south came the vibration of furious drum-fire. The ground was a
desert of shell-holes and torn rusty wire, and every-where lay
skeletons in steel helmets, still clothed in the rags of sodden
khaki or field grey. Here a fleshless hand still clutched a broken
rusty rifle; there a gaping, decaying boot showed the thin, knotty
foot-bones. He came on a skeleton violently dismembered by a shell
explosion, the skull was split open and the teeth lay scattered on
the bare chalk; the force of the explosion had driven coins and a
metal pencil ri-ht into the hip-bones and femurs. In a concreted
pill-box three German skeletons lay across their machine- gun with
its silent nozzle still pointing at the loop-hole. They had been
attacked from the rear with phosphorus grenades, which burn their
way into the flesh, and for which there is no possible remedy. A
shrunken leather strap still held a battered wrist- watch on a
fleshless wrist-bone. Alone in the white curling mist. drifting
slowly past like wraiths of the slain, with the far-off thunder of
drum-fire beating the air, Winterboume stood in frozen silence and
contemplated the last achievements of civilised men.
Slide 119
No Mans Land
Slide 120
Otto Dix---German soldier and painter
Slide 121
I have an old platoon roll before me; three pages of names,
numbers, trades, next-of-kin, religions, rifle numbers, and so
forth. Faces come back out of the past to answer to these barren
details, the face of this man dead, of that vanished for ever. Here
and there rise memories of their habits, their nicknames, the look
of one as he spoke to you, the attitude of another shivering in the
night air, as he leaned over the parapet, watching with tired
bloodshot eyes. Some of the faces have disappeared. did I know you?
I censored your letters, casually, hurriedly avoiding your personal
messages, your poignant hopes. Guy Chapman account of his
experiences in 1930s
Slide 122
Coping With Songs and Jokes Dont Worry When you are a soldier
you can be in one of two places: A dangerous place or a safe place.
If youre in a safe placedont worry. If youre in a dangerous place
you can be one of two things: One is wounded and the other is not.
If youre not woundeddont worry. If you are wounded it is dangerous
or slight. If its slightdont worry. If its dangerous, then one of
two things will happen: Youll die or youll recover. If you
recoverdont worry. If you dieyou cant worry. In these circumstances
a soldier never worries.
Slide 123
Coping with Songs and Jokes 1914 Version: Though your heart may
ache a whilenever mind. Though your face may lose its smilenever
mind. For theres sunshine after rain And then gladness follows
pain, Youll be happy once againnever mind. 1916 Version: If youre
hung up on barbed wirenever mind. If your sleeping place is
dampnever mind. If you wake up with a crampnever mind. If your
trench should fall in some. Fill your cars and make you dumb. While
the sergeant drinks your rumnever mind.
Slide 124
British Comic Song about German Shells I want to go home I want
to go home, I want to go home. I dont want to go in the trenches no
more, Where whizz-bangs and shrapnel they whistle and roar. Take me
over the sea, where the Germans cant get at me. Oh my, I dont want
to die, I want to go home.
Slide 125
On your Left Side: With your partner, come up with your own
joke on an aspect of Trench Life.
Slide 126
Mess Time in the Trenches
Slide 127
Rotten Rations Typical Diet for a British Soldier in 1914: 1 lb
of meat 4 ounces of bacon 3 ounces of cheese 1 lb of bread ounce of
salt 8 ounces of fresh vegetables= 1/36 ounces of pepper 3 ounces
of sugar 5/8 ounces of tea 1/20 ounces of mustard ounces of
tobacco
Slide 128
Mess Time or Food in the Trenches As the war went on, due to
rationing & problems transporting food, there were more food
issues The bulk of the diet was Bully Beef (canned corned beef),
Bread, & Biscuits Bread was made out of dried ground turnips
due to flour shortages; took 8 days to reach the front lines &
would be stale Main food became pea soup with a few lumps of
horsemeat Food was prepared in two huge vats, so the tea would
taste of vegetables, etc.. Due to conditions, food in the front
lines usually was served cold
Slide 129
Food in the Trenches Soldiers water had chloride of lime added
to kills the germs But the chloride of lime made the water taste
terrible, even when it was boiled and used to make a cup of tea. It
was like drinking your swimming pool water.
Slide 130
Food in the Trenches Soldiers took comfort where they could
from the wars less grim aspects. The humor of the troops helped to
keep them sane. Army food was a particular target for jokes.
Sausages were known as Barkers because supposedly they were high in
dog-meat content. Cheese was called Bung because it caused
constipation.
Slide 131
Food in the Trenches Soldiers were also given bully beef, like
corned beef, to which they liked to add raw onions. Sometimes they
have to eat this with hard biscuits. Ernest Parker of the 10 th
Battalion, The Durham Light Infantry wrote: Army food was
monotonous and in the trenches bully beef and bread, often without
butter or jam, was the usual meal. Teenagers like myself were
always hungry. Alas, when we needed food most it sometimes did not
arrive at all. It was not pleasant to spend twenty-four hours or
more in the front line with nothing to eat. Sometimes, when
drinking water did not arrive, we had to boil water from shell
holes, and this may account for the crop of boils and diarrheas
that plagued us.
Slide 132
First World War.com - Vintage Video - British Troops Receiving
Rations, 1914First World War.com - Vintage Video - British Troops
Receiving Rations, 1914
Slide 133
Food: Joke Recipe from the Soldiers Maconochie Hotpot: 1. Open
one tin of Maconchie rations. 2. Warm gently until the greasy oil
floats to the top. Remove this by blotting it with a piece of
flannel. 3. Remove the black lumps from the tin. These are
potatoes. 4. Squeeze the greasy oil from the flannel into a frying
pan and gently fry the potatoes. 5. Take two handfuls of dried
vegetables (they look like any other dead leaves). Mix with water
flavoured with chloride of lime and pat into a pancake. This should
be gently fried after the potatoes. 6. Heat up the remains of the
stew, then serve the potatoes and vegetables on a cold enamel
plate.
Slide 134
1916 Joke Poem on Tin Plum and Apple Jam Fear A terror hangs
over our heads. I scarcely dare to think Of the awful doom that
each one dreads From which the bravest shrink. Its not the crashing
shrapnel shell Its not the snipers shot, Its not the machine guns
burst of Hell. These matter not a jot. Its a far worse thing than
that, son. With which we have to grapple. Its if we see another one
More tin of Plum and Apple.
Slide 135
Slide 136
General Fears Constant fear of imminent death. Life expectancy
of a 2 nd Lieutenant in the trenches was three months. Soldiers
could be: Crushed by a collapsed trench; Ripped to shreds by
shrapnel; Cut in half by machine gun fire; Gutted by a bayonet;
Blown apart by highly explosive shells; Drowned in a shell hole;
Bullet through the brain.
Slide 137
Oh its a lovely war-a Trench Song 'Oh it's a lovely war!' Up to
your waist in water, up to your eyes in slush, using the kind of
language that makes the sergeant blush, Who wouldn't join the army?
That's what we all enquire. Don't we pity the poor civilian sitting
by the fire. (Chorus) Oh, oh, oh it's a lovely war. Who wouldn't be
a soldier, eh? Oh it's a shame to take the pay. As soon as reveille
has gone we feel just as heavy as lead,
Slide 138
Oh its a lovely war Cont. but we never get up till the sergeant
brings our breakfast up to bed. Oh, oh, oh, it's a lovely war. what
do we want with eggs and ham when we've got plum and apple jam?
Form fours. Right turn. How shall we spend the money we earn? Oh,
oh, oh it's a lovely war. When does a soldier grumble? When does he
make a fuss? No one is more contented in all the world than us. Oh
it's a cushy life, boys, really we love it so: Once a fellow was
sent on leave and simply refused to go. (Chorus)
Slide 139
Oh its a lovely war Cont. Come to the cookhouse door, boys,
sniff the lovely stew. Who is it says the colonel gets better grub
than you? Any complaints this morning? Do we complain? Not we.
What's the matter with lumps of onion floating around the tea?
(Chorus)
Slide 140
German Food Rations 1914: 1 lbs of bread lb of fresh or frozen
meat 25 grams of coffee ounce of salt 3 lb of potatoes ounce of
sugar 2 cigars 2 cigarettes 10 ml of rum 250 ml of wine 500 ml of
beer 1918: One tin of corned beef 10 biscuits 5 to 7 pints of army
tea By the end of 1918 a meal was turnip stew served with chunks of
turnip bread
Slide 141
Exposure to the elements
Slide 142
Mud
Slide 143
PROBLEM: When it rained the trenches flooded, resulting in a
horrible medical condition called trench foot. Because of the
moisture, the soldiers feet literally rot.
Slide 144
Lieutenant Bernard Pitt, letter to his parents (25th December,
1915) What is life like in the trenches, well, muddy, and cramped,
and filthy. Everything gets covered with mud; you can't wash, for
water has to be fetched for a mile. There is no room, and if you
walk upright in many of the trenches, you run grave risks; and you
sleep, huddled together, unable to stretch. All day long shells and
rifle bullets go banging and whistling, and from dark to midnight
the Huns fire rifle-grenades and machine-guns at us.
Slide 145
Heath Issues: Trench Foot An infection of the feet due to cold,
wet, & unsanitary conditions Men stood for hours in waterlogged
trenches without being able to remove wet socks or boots The feet
would go numb, the skin turn red or blue If untreated, the trench
foot would turn gangrenous and have to be amputated Between
1914-1915, over 20,000 British soldiers were treated for trench
foot Only remedy was to dry feet & change socks several times a
day Men also covered feet with grease from whale oil to make them
water-resistant
Slide 146
Trench Foot
Slide 147
If you have never had trench feet described to you, I will tell
you. Your feet swell to 2 to 3 times their normal size and go
completely dead. You could stick a bayonet into them and not feel a
thing. If you are fortunate enough not to lose your feet and the
swelling begins to go down. It is then that the intolerable,
indescribable agony begins. I have heard men cry and even scream
with pain and many had to have their feet and legs amputated.
Slide 148
At the age of 92, Arthur Savage was asked about his memories of
life on the Western Front. My memories are of sheer terror and the
horror of seeing men sobbing because they had trench foot that had
turned gangrenous. They knew they were going to lose a leg.
Memories of lice in your clothing driving you crazy. Filth and lack
of privacy. Of huge rats that showed no fear of you as they stole
your food rations. And cold deep wet mud everywhere. And of course,
corpses. I'd never seen a dead body before I went to war. But in
the trenches the dead are lying all around you. You could be
talking to the fellow next to you when suddenly he'd be hit by a
sniper and fall dead beside you. And there he's stay for
days.Arthur SavageWestern Front
Slide 149
Health Issues: A Blighty Soldiers shot themselves in an attempt
to end their time on the front lines Self-inflicted wounds became a
capital offense; if found guilty, death by firing squad Usually
blew off two of the toes; sometimes misjudged and lost the whole
foot
Slide 150
Issue of the Blighty One day I was in the trench and wed been
Under non-stop attack for days. Well, two Of the blokes with me
shot themselves on Purpose to try and get sent home out of the War.
One lad put a tin of bully beef on a Ledge in the trench and then
placed his Hand behind it and fired his rifle through The tin
thinking, I suppose, that the tin would Take the full force of the
bullet and he would Only get a flesh wound. But he misjudged The
power of a shot at such close range and Blew three of his fingers
off.
Slide 151
Issue of the Blighty The other one said to me, Chas, I am going
home to my wife and kids. Ill be some use to them as a cripple, but
none at all dead! I am starving here, and so are they at home, we
may as well starve together. With that he fired a shot through his
boot. When the medics got his boot off, two of his toes and a lot
of foot had gone. But the injuring of oneself to get out was quite
common.
Slide 152
Debilitating Injuries
Slide 153
Trench Mouth Soldiers who had not brushed their teeth for days
would suffer from trench mouth. The symptoms were bleeding gums,
ulcers of the mouth and very bad breath
Slide 154
Slide 155
Shell-Shock & Stir-Crazy
Slide 156
Health Issues: Stir-Crazy and Shell Shock Shellshock-symptoms
were tiredness, irritability, giddiness, lack of concentration,
& headaches Eventually the men would suffer mental
breakdowns-this was known as Stir Crazy Only way to recover was
complete rest 80,000 men were diagnosed with shell shock Many
others were not diagnosed in time & committed suicide in the
trenches
Slide 157
Shell Shock and Stir Crazy Many of the British soldiers
suffering from shell shock were sent to the Craiglockhart Hospital.
Some of the most important poets of World War One were sent to
Craiglockhart for shell shock and wrote their poetry there:
Siegfried Sassoon, Wilfred Owen, and Robert Graves Officially the
British government claimed 80,000 soldiers suffered from shell
shock, but more likely it was closer to 613, 047 cases.
Slide 158
Shell Shock Shell shock was the result of the stress and trauma
of war. Soldiers would contract it by living in the frontline for a
time and becoming unstable from being exposed to the constant
shelling and general stress of war which magnified the horror of
it. The effects of shell shock varied depending on the case, mostly
it lead to extreme panic and losing control mentally. Eventually a
soldier would not be able to concentrate at all and would lead to a
complete mental breakdown. Some men would not respond to anything
or anyone while in hospital except (for example) the word bomb or
death. Others would be in constant spasm reenacting an experience
such as ducking or hiding. Others would just become unable to
control themselves as a result of the trauma. The condition would
affect different men in different ways, but all the same it would
affect almost everyone who lived long enough to go through it.
Slide 159
Shell Shock & Stir Crazy It was while I was in this Field
Hospital that I saw the first case of shell-shock. The enemy opened
fire at dinnertime, as usual, with his big guns. As soon as the
first shell came over, the shell-shock case went mad. He screamed
and raved, and it took eight men to hold him down on the stretcher.
With every shell he would go into a fit of screaming and fight to
get away. It is heartbreaking to watch a shell-shock case. The
terror is indescribable. The flesh on their faces shakes in fear,
and their teeth continually chatter. Shell-shock was brought about
in many ways---loss of sleep, continually heavy shell fire, the
torment of the lice, irregular meals, nerves always on end, and the
thought always in the mans mind that the next minute was going to
be his last.
Slide 160
Stir-Crazy Experiences British Lieutenant Frederick Rees
explained: Last night a man had an attack of nerves. He picked up a
box of bombs, climbed out of the trench and threw them about in
no-mans land. He was lucky not to be shot. Either side would have
shot him if he had come near when he still had those bombs. George
Bucher, a German officer wrote After four days of bombardment, a
very young soldier had had enough. He climbed out of the trench
with two hand-grenades from which he had taken the safety pins. He
told his comrades what he thought about war. He was going to run
towards the British rifle fire and throw his grenades at them. He
threatened to throw them at his comrades if they tried to stop him.
They let him go
Slide 161
Shellshock Experience Lieutenant A G May from the British army
wrote: The noise was impossible. Shells were bursting overhead.
Near our front trench, I saw a couple of our lads who had gone
goofy. It was pitiful. One of them welcomed me like a long-lost
friend and asked me to give him his baby. I picked up a tin hat
from the ground and gave it to him. He cradled the hat as if it
were a child, smiling and laughing without a care in the world,
even though shells were falling around us. I have no idea what
happened to the poor chap but if he stayed there very long, he must
have been killed. A few days later, I started to have
uncontrollable jerking and shaking of my legs. I was quite upset
because I was unable to stop. The doctor told me I had shellshock,
but I did not believe this. Later I was told to go to a special
hospital for shellshock victims.
Slide 162
Shellshock Experiences A French soldier described: The noise of
a slamming gate, a flaring gaslight, a train whistle, the barking
of a dog, or some boyish prank is enough to set off my trembling. I
went to a shop to do an errand for my wife. The crowd, the rustling
silks, the color of the goods-everything was a delight to look on
after the misery of the trenches. I was happy and chatted merrily
like a schoolboy on holiday. All of a sudden I felt my strength was
leaving me. I stopped talking. I felt a shiver in my back, I felt
my cheeks going hollow. I began to stare and the trembling came on.
In the tram, I feel the people are looking at me and that gives me
a terrible feeling. I feel they are looking at me with pity. Some
excellent woman offers me her seat. I am deeply touched; but they
look at me and say nothing. What are they thinking of me?
Slide 163
Shell Shock and Stir Crazy I saw a sergeant-major convulsed
like someone suffering from epilepsy. He was moaning horribly with
blind terror in his eyes. He had to be strapped to a stretcher
before he could be carried away. Soon afterwards I saw another
soldier shaking in every limb, his mouth slobbered, and the two
comrades could not hold him still. These badly shell-shocked boys
clawed their mouths ceaselessly. Others sat in the field hospitals
in a state of coma, dazed, as though deaf and dumb.
Slide 164
Slide 165
On your Left Side: Today we call Shell-Shock, Post-Traumatic
Stress Disorder. And since the first Gulf War in the early 1990s,
it has become more common. Why do you think humans respond this way
to war? Explain. Some people do not believe it to be a true medical
problem. And this was an issue for the first Gulf War vets. What
are your thoughts on this and explain why?
Slide 166
Frostbite Frostbite in the trenches often lead to losing toes
or fingers. In the winter of 1914-1915, anti-frostbite grease is
sent to the soldiers in one kilo tins. It looks like lard and is
mostly pork fat. After 1915, the grease is made from whale oil, and
sent out in rum jars. The soldiers dont like the whale grease
because of the terrible smell. Army orders said: before going out
on patrol in cold or wet weather, each man must be stripped and
rubbed down with whale oil by an officer. Most men refused to strip
and most officers refused to rub.
Slide 167
1915 Cure for Frostbite Carry the sufferer to a room or place
without a fire. Remove the clothes. Rub hard with a cloth soaked in
water or snow. Hmmdoes this sound like it worked?
Slide 168
In the summer months flies, attracted by unburied bodies and
human waste, swarmed over wounds, into mouths and food. Lice and
flea infestations, spread by rats and close contact, tormented
soldiers with itchy bites. They also could make bits of discarded
uniform move across the trench!
Slide 169
Flies On soldier of the Australia and New Zealand Army Corps
(Anzacs) wrote home about the flies: Some of them must have tin
openers on their feet, they bite so hard. Another British soldier
complained: In order to eat your food you have to wave your hand
over it and then bite suddenly, otherwise a fly came with it. Any
bit of food uncovered was blotted out of sight by flies in a couple
of seconds.
Slide 170
Lice
Slide 171
Health Issues: Lice The average British soldier had 20 lice
crawling over his body. The record was 10, 428. Blotchy red bite
marks all over the body that created a sour stale smell Used a
lighted candle to burn the lice off the skins When they could, the
men would bathe in huge vats of hot water while their clothes were
deloused; but this did not work Within 2 to 3 hours, the remaining
eggs in the clothes would hatch due to the body heat Frenzied
scratching of the lice bites led to Trench Fever (pyrrexhia) that
resulted in shooting pains in the shins and a very high fever 15%
of all cases of sickness was due to lice issues
Slide 172
Lice are about the size of a sesame seed, about as long as a
hyphen -. They have six legs with claws that they use to pull
themselves along hair and clothing. They do not fly or jump. They
take on the color of the surrounding background much like a
chameleon, so they may be black, yellow, brown, whitish, or
reddish.
Slide 173
Lice One night, as we lay in bed after doing our two hours
sentry-we did two hours on and two hours off-my friend Jock said
damn this, I cannot stand it any longer! He took off his tunic, his
jersey, and his shirt. He put his shirt in the middle of the
dug-out floor and put his jersey and tunic on again. As we sat up
in bed watching the shirt he had taken off and put on the floor, it
actually lifted; it was swarming with lice.
Slide 174
Lice Bred in the seams of filthy clothes and caused the men to
itch unceasingly. Even when clothes were deloused, the lice eggs
remained hidden in the seams. The infected lice bites caused Trench
Fever. It was not until 1918 that the doctors figured out the
cause. Other parasites were the Nits, so the men would shave their
heads to avoid them.
Slide 175
Lice and Trench Fever On the Western Front, strict measures
were taken to prevent the outbreak of typhus Mobile laboratories,
laundries, and delousing stations were set up Soldiers and
prisoners of war were bathed, disinfected, and shaved Bodies and
clothing were deloused---a process of involving steam treatment,
fumigation, and rubbing with anti-lice powers Getting rid of lice
in the soldiers underclothes became one of the daily rituals
Slide 176
Lice and Trench Fever Despite determined efforts and almost no
outbreaks of typhus on the Western Front, another louse-borne
disease known as Trench Fever developed It tormented and
incapacitated more than one million soldiers It was a mild
infection The irritation from the lice led to the soldiers trying
to rid themselves of the infestation by stubbing their cigarette
ends on the lice Trench fever causes a greater loss of manpower
during the was than any other disease except for influenza
Slide 177
Lice and Typhus---Like in the Industrial Revolution Typhus is
an acute infectious disease transmitted by lice It is prevalent in
areas with overcrowding and poor hygiene It is also spread by the
infected feces of the lice carrier Body lice live and lay their
eggs in the warm clothes of humans---preferring wool or cotton to
silk They suck the blood of the typhus carrying person and then
jump to another where they then die from the typhus, but not before
infecting another person
Slide 178
Lice and Typhus It is possible to get infected by rubbing a
slight scratch or wound, sniffing or breathing in dried louse feces
in clothing or bedding, etc The typhus enters the body through the
mucous membranes in the nose or mouth Once infected with typhus,
the victims become feverish and even delirious They experience an
intense headache with pains in the muscles and joints. They exhibit
a vivid rash of bright red spots similar to flea bites. They also
emit a vile stench Death rates range from 10 to 40% depending on
the age of the person Typhus erupted in Serbia in 1914 Within 6
months, 150,000 people died from typhus
Slide 179
Lice and Typhus Russia was hit hard by the typhus epidemic as
well. Between 1917 and 1922, an estimated 25 to 30 million cases of
typhus were documented Resulted in 3 million deaths Lenin declared:
Either socialism will defeat the louse, or the louse will defeat
socialism.
Slide 180
delousing
Slide 181
Private George Coppard in With A Machine Gun To Cambrai wrote
about the lice: A full days rest allowed up to clean up a bit, and
to launch a full scale attack on lice. I sat in a quiet corner of a
barn for two hours delousing myself as best I could. We were all at
it, for none of us escaped their vile attentions. The things lay in
the seams of trousers, in the deep furrows of long thick woolly
pants, and seemed impregnable in their deep entrenchments. A
lighted candle applier where they were the thickest made them pop
like Chinese crackers. After a session of this, my face would be
covered with small blood spots from extra big fellows which had
popped too vigorously. Lice hunting was called chatting. In parcels
from home, it was usual to receive a tin of supposedly
death-dealing powder or pomade, but the lice thrived on the
stuff.
Slide 182
The Little Soldiers of the Night Though some hundreds you may
kill, Youll find theres hundreds still, For they hide beneath each
other. And are smart at taking cover; Then you have an awful bite,
Theyve a shocking appetite. There are families in dozens, Uncles,
mothers, sisters, cousins, And they have their married quarters
Where they rear their sons and daughters; And they take a lot of
catching, Cause an awful lot of scratching.
Slide 183
Lovely Lice At the Gallipoli battles, the soldiers were forced
to wear the same clothes for weeks without even taking them off.
One Australian soldier finally got to take his socks off and saw a
ghastly sightAnd Ma, I swear that as I dropped my socks on the
floor, I saw them start to move. They were a seething mass of
lice.
Slide 184
Louse Hunting by Isaac Rosenberg Nudes-stark and glistening,
Yelling in lurid glee. Grinning faces And raging limbs Whirl over
the floor one fire For a shirt verminously busy Yon soldier tore
from his throat, with oaths Godhead might shrink at, but not the
lice. And soon the shirt was aflare.
Slide 185
Louse Hunting continued Over the candle hed lit while we lay.
Then we all sprang up and stript To hunt the verminous brood. Soon
like a demons pantomine The place was raging. See the silhouettes
agape, See the gibbering shadows Mixed with the battled arms on the
wall.
Slide 186
Louse Hunting Continued See gargantuan hooked fingers Pluck in
supreme flesh To smutch supreme littleness. See the merry limbs in
hot Highland fling Because some wizard vermin Charmed from the
quiet this revel When our ears were half lulled By the dark music
Blown from Sleeps trumpet.
Slide 187
. The men who were not getting in a bit of extra sleep sat
about talking and smoking, writing letters home, cleaning their
rifles, running their thumb-nails up the seams of their shirts to
kill the lice, gambling. Lice were a standing joke. Young Bumford
handed me one like this. 'We was just having an argument as to
whether it was best to kill the old ones or the young ones, sir.
Morgan here says that if you kill the old ones, the young ones will
die of grief, but Parry here, sir, he says that the young ones are
easier to kill and you can catch the old ones when they come to the
funeral. Robert Graves Goodbye to all That
Slide 188
Trench Rats "The rats were huge. They were so big they would
eat a wounded man if he couldn't defend himself." "I saw some rats
running from under the dead men's greatcoats, enormous rats, fat
with human flesh. My heart pounded as we edged towards one of the
bodies. His helmet had rolled off. The man displayed a grimacing
face, stripped of flesh; the skull bare, the eyes devoured and from
the yawning mouth leapt a rat." Many men killed in the trenches
were buried almost where they fell. These corpses, as well as the
food scraps that littered the trenches, attracted rats. Quotes from
soldiers fighting in the trenches:
Slide 189
The soldiers had very little decent food, and what food they
had was often attacked by rats. These rats were the size of small
rabbits and badgers because they had fed on the decomposing bodies
of dead soldiers.
Slide 190
Health Issues: Rats Corpses littered the trenches & fed the
rats 1 pair of rats could produce 880 offspring in a year, so the
trenches swarmed with rats Some of the rats grew huge---the size of
a cat The rats were bold & fearless & would attempt to take
food from the pockets of sleeping men 2 to 3 rats would always be
found on a dead body They usually went for the eyes first &
then burrowed into the body of the corpse and then ate from the
inside out
Slide 191
Towards morning, while it is still dark, there is some
excitement. Through the entrance rushes in a swarm of fleeing rats
that try to storm the walls. Torches light up the confusion.
Everyone yells and curses and slaughters. The madness and despair
of many hours unloads itself in this outburst. Faces are distorted,
arms strike out, the beasts scream; we stop just in time to avoid
attacking one another. Erich Remarque, All Quiet on the Western
Front Source: http://
Slide 192
Rats killed in one trench
Slide 193
Rats Rats became a problem in trenches during World War 1. They
were attracted by the despicable smell and damp conditions. Rats
would eat men's uniforms & generally just run around in the
trenches. Sometimes they would bite soldiers, in desperation of
hunger, which would cause extreme pain & often lead to
infection. In extreme cases, a wounded or unprotected soldier could
be eaten alive by a large group of rats. Dead corpses would often
be eaten by the rats. One soldier described the rats as `small
dogs' that would attack and eat anything. Wounded men were often
afraid to go to sleep in their beds and men tried to secure their
food during the night to stop rats from getting it.
Slide 194
Rats Rats in their millions infested the trenches. Two main
types: brown & black rats Brown Rats most feared for they
gorged themselves on the human remains & grew to the size of
cats. The men would hunt them with gunfire, bayonet, or clubbing
them to death. Rats spread infections & contaminated the
food.
Slide 195
Slide 196
Stuart Dolden in 1920 shared about the rats: We were filled
with an instinctive hatred of them, because however one tried to
put the thought out of ones mind, one could not help feeling that
they fed on the dead.
Slide 197
Rats The trenches of the Western Front were horrors in restful
times. They were full of mud & infested with rats. One young
lieutenant was awakened while sleeping in a dugout by a sound from
the corner. He switched on his flashlight to reveal a large rat
dragging something. In a moment he could make out it was a human
hand.
Slide 198
George Coppard in With A Machine Gun To Cambrai wrote: Rats
bred by the tens of thousands and lived on the fat of the land.
When we were sleeping in funk holes, the things ran over us, played
about, copulated and fouled our scraps of food, their young
squeaking incessantly. There was no proper system of waste disposal
in trench life. Empty tins of all kinds were flung away over the
top on both sides of the trench. Millions of tins were thus
available for all the rats in France and Belgium in hundreds of
miles of trenches. During brief moments of quiet at night, one
could hear a continuous rattle of tins moving against each other.
The rats were turning them over. What happened to the rats under
heavy shell-fire was a mystery, but their powers of survival kept
pace with each new weapon, including poison gas.
Slide 199
Rats
Slide 200
Hunting the Rats Richard Beasley in an interview in 1993
shared: If you left your food the rats would soon grab it. Those
rats were fearless. Sometimes we would shoot the filthy swines. But
you would be put on charge for wasting ammo, if the sergeant caught
you. Frank Laird wrote after the war: Sometimes the men amused
themselves by baiting the ends of their rifles with pieces of bacon
in order to have a shot at them at close quarters.
Slide 201
Rats
Slide 202
We went up into the front-line near Arras, through sodden and
devastated countryside. As we were moving up to the our sector
along the communication trenches, a shell burst ahead of me and one
of my platoon dropped. He was the first man I ever saw killed. Both
his legs were blown off and the whole of his face and body was
peppered with shrapnel. The sight turned my stomach. I was sick and
terrified, but even more frightened of showing it. That night I had
been asleep in a dugout about three hours when I woke up feeling
something biting my hip. I put my hand down and my fingers closed
on a big rat. It had nibbled through my haversack, my tunic and
pleated kilt to get at my flesh. With a cry of horror I threw it
from me.
Slide 203
Slide 204
Huddled in trenches between bombing raids What would you do to
get rid of rats? Your ration for the day is a tin of ham and a
slice of bread. How are you going to make it last? The rats have
nibbled on your bread. Will you eat it? You eat some spoiled food
and now feel very sick. You develop diarrhea. What can you do?
Slide 205
German Soldiers and Trench Cats German soldiers kept cats in
the trenches to catch rats. The cats also gave early warnings of a
British gas attack. They became restless, as though they could
scent the poison gas before the main cloud appeared.
Slide 206
Terrier Dogs and Rats Terrier dogs were kept in the trenches to
kill the rats. A devoted soldier wrote a poem to his terrier, Jim:
A tough little, rough little beggar, And merry the eyes on him. But
no German or Turk Can do dirtier work With an enemy rat than Jim.
And when the lights done and nights falling, And shadows are
darkling and dim, In my coat you will nuzzle Your pink little
muzzle And growl in your dreams, little Jim.
Slide 207
Rats Notice the dog is hunting the rats
Slide 208
On your Left Side: Of all the insects and animals that
tormented the soldiers in the trenches, which would have bothered
you the most and why?
Slide 209
Terrible Toilets Toilets were built just behind the trenches
out of sight of the enemy Deep pits with wooden seats on top
Latrines: trench toilets; pits 4ft to 5ft deep; were often not
cleaned out as much as they should be Some soldiers lit cigarettes
while they sat on the holes doing their business, and the enemy
snipers would wait and aim for the glow from the cigarette. Between
the stagnant mud, the latrine, chloride of lime on un-buried
corpses, rotting sandbags, stale human sweat, fumes, etcthe stench
made you ill In 1917 battles in Flanders, the troops did not have
proper trenches, just shell holes and sandbags. There were no
toilet huts. One officer wrote home: If you want to do your daily
job of urinating and otherwise there is an empty tin can, and you
have to do that in front of all your men, and then chuck the
contents, (but not the tin can), out over the back.
Slide 210
Terrible Toilets Erich Maria Remarque, who wrote All Quiet on
the Western Front, described the toilets: The older soldiers dont
use the unpleasant, indoor, common toilet, where 20 men sit side-
by-side in a line. As it is not raining, they use the individual
square wooden boxes with carrying handles on the sides. They pull
three into a circle and sit there in the sun all afternoon reading,
smoking, talking, playing cards.
Slide 211
Other Health Issues Dysentery: inflammation of the lining of
the large intestines-caused stomach pains and diarrhea, vomiting,
and fever Symptoms of Dysentery are: Pain in the guts Painful
pooing Bloody poo Sickness Fever And sometime death due to
dehydrations Caused by water or food contaminated by human feces
due to lack of proper sanitation
Slide 212
DYSENTERY Dysentery is a disease involving the inflammation of
the lining of the large intestines & it strips the lining from
the stomach. The inflammation causes stomach pains and diarrhea.
Some cases involve vomiting and fever. The bacteria enter the body
through the mouth in food or water, and also by human feces and
contact with infected people. The diarrhea causes people suffering
from dysentery to lose important salts and fluids from the body.
This can be fatal if the body dehydrates. This disease struck the
men in the trenches as there was no proper sanitation. Latrines in
the trenches were pits four to five feet deep. When they were
within one foot they were supposed to be filled in and the soldiers
had the job of digging a new one. Sometimes there was not time for
this and men used a nearby shell-hole. Dysentery caused by
contaminated water was especially a problem in the early stages of
the war. The main reason for this was that it was some time before
regular supplies of water to the trenches could be organized.
Soldiers were supplied with water bottles that could be refilled
when they returned to reserve lines. However, the water-bottle
supply was rarely enough for their needs and soldiers in the
trenches often depended on impure water collected from shell-holes
or other cavities. Later, to purify it, chloride of lime was added
to the water. This was not popular with the soldiers as they
disliked the taste of the purified water.
Slide 213
Siegfried Sassoon, Glory of Women (1917) You love us when we're
heroes, home on leave, Or wounded in a mentionable place. You
worship decorations; you believe That chivalry redeems the war's
disgrace. You make us shells. You listen with delight, By tales of
dirt and danger fondly thrilled. You crown our distant ardours
while we fight, And mourn our laurelled memories when we're killed.
You can't believe that British troops 'retire' When hell's last
horror breaks them, and they run, Trampling the terrible corpses -
blind with blood. O German mother dreaming by the fire, While you
are knitting socks to send your son His face is trodden deeper in
the mud.
Slide 214
On your Left Side: In the previous slide, what point is
Siegfried Sassoon trying to make about the war? Explain. How can
you tell?
Slide 215
A Song From the Trenches That Sums It All Up: My Little Wet
Home in the Trench Ive a little wet home in the trench, Which the
rain-storms continually drench; Blue sky overhead, Mud and clay for
a bed, And a stone that we use for a bench. Bully beef and hard
biscuits we chew; Shells crackle and scare, But no place can
compare With my little wet home in the trench.
Slide 216
My Little Wet Home in the Trench Our friends in the trench oer
the way Seem to know that weve come here to stay; They rush and
they shout, But they cant get us out, Though theres no dirty work
they dont play. They rushed us a few nights ago, But we dont like
intruders, and so Some departed quite sore, Others sleep evermore,
Near my little wet home in the trench.
Slide 217
My Little Wet Home in the Trench So hurrah for the mud and the
clay, Its the road to Der Tag-thats The Day. When we enter Berlin,
that big city of sin, Where well make the fat Berliner pay, Well
remember the cold, and the frost, When we scour the fat land of the
Bhost; Therell be shed then, I fear Redder stuff than a tear For my
little wet home in the trench.
Slide 218
Poetry and Writing How did the slaughter of World I affect
British, French, and German poets and writers? Famous poetry from
this time period was very dark and depressing. Most likely due from
the terrible loss of so many people. "How to Die" Dark clouds are
smouldering into red While down the craters morning burns. The
dying soldier shifts his head To watch the glory that returns; He
lifts his fingers toward the skies Where holy brightness breaks in
flame; Radiance reflected in his eyes, And on his lips a whispered
name. You'd think, to hear some people talk, That lads go West with
sobs and curses, And sullen faces white as chalk, Hankering for
wreaths and tombs and hearses. But they've been taught the way to
do it Like Christian soldiers; not with haste And shuddering
groans; but passing through it With due regard for decent taste.
This is a poem written during WWI by Siegried Sassoon
Slide 219
For More Poetry Go to Ms. Barbens Teacher Page and download the
word document entitled World War One Poetry. This is good primary
source material to incorporate into your diary entries.
Slide 220
Painting How did the slaughter of World War I affect British,
French, and German painters? Roger de la Fresnaye, L'artillerie
(Artillery), 1911 Max Beckmann, Der Kriegsausbruch 1914 Otto Dix,
Selbstbildnis als Soldat, 1914 Frank Brangwyn, Tank in Action
Slide 221
Art of Wo rld Wa r I Maurice Denis, Soire calme en premire
ligne (Quiet Evening on the Front Line), 1917, oil on canvas, Muse
d'Histoire Contemporaine - BDIC, Paris.
Slide 222
A Street in Arras John Singer Sargent, 1918
Slide 223
Oppy Wood John Nash, 1917
Slide 224
Those Who Have Lost Their Names Albin Eggar-Linz, 1914
Slide 225
Gassed and Wounded Eric Kennington, 1918
Slide 226
Paths of Glory C. R. W. Nevinson, 1917
Slide 227
Slide 228
Slide 229
Slide 230
Trench Warfare: Analysis This was their new tactic in war.
After the war, it had left horrific scars. Made many people not
want to have another World War ever again.
Slide 231
On your Left Side: After examining all the weapons and trenches
of World War One, which of the horrors the soldiers faced was the
most HORRIFIC to you and why? Provide historical evidence to
support your answer.