How World War I Changed The Development Of Trench Warfare

World War I changed the definition of the word “war”; previously wars were fluid offensive operations with not a lot of defensive action. World War I was almost entirely different with the new strategy of trench warfare. Trench warfare was solely developed due to the use of machine guns and rapid fire that required a strong defense system. The development of trench warfare was a big shock to the major powers because it was new and different. Although it may have been effective, it came with horrific conditions, such as influenza outbreaks, trench fever and trench foot, along with the freezing temperatures and the lack of hygiene that made the lives of soldiers miserable. Trench warfare negatively impacted the French and British soldiers through,

the construction of trenches, the ineffective battle strategies, and the disease and lack of hygiene.
Trench warfare began in September of 1914, around Chemin des Dames, northwest of Reims, France when German Reserve Corps halted a British advancement.

The construction of the trenches was an unfamiliar strategy for the soldiers on both sides. They were used to offensive maneuvers and battles, but this was a complete opposite type of war. It was worse than offensive war by far and overall had a negative impact. At first, soldiers dug individual holes linked to form fire line trenches; they consisted of ditches six feet deep with a fire step at four feet where soldiers stood to fire at the enemy; they were called fire steps because soldiers would stand on them to fire into enemy territory. They were especially useful for sentry duty, sniper use, and unit defense. While they might have been useful and semi-practical, they were acutely uncomfortable because of how small they were. For added protection, they had sheet metal roofs that concealed any movement in the trenches. To make life in the trenches easier, communication trenches were dug. These were typically more narrow, and in a zigzag pattern to avoid enemy fire; they were also a few miles long. They were used to deliver vocal messages and supplies between battle trenches. Francis Buckley describes the construction of the trenches in the book Hot Blood and Cold Steel: “...The trenches themselves were built and revetted with sandbags and dry enough even during the wettest weather, we had only small shelters-the deep

dugout was unknown…”
The construction of the trenches grew longer and more intricate as time went on. They were dug through many different types of terrain-like swamps, mud plains, flatlands, forests, low hills, and industrial areas, making it even more difficult to adjust with the constant environmental change. Parapets were constructed with logs, rocks, or dirt and later replaced with a thick line of sandbags as an extra defense against enemy fire, and to protect the earth from caving into the trenches. The back of the trenches were called parados and were built up with sandbags. To add extra protection from the elements such as loose terrain, rain, and shelling, wooden strips and planks were used to cover the trench sides, and wire obstacles were used to protect the trench line. Certain trenches were dedicated to specific actions, such as sleeping quarters with bunks or nooks in the walls; others were constructed for waste, strict sniper use, and as temporary morgues, kitchens, and first aid stations. In the underground sleeping quarters, cement and iron roofs were used to make them more tolerable-- these also served as a safety from artillery fire. The trenches included storage bunks for mainly medical supplies, tables, eating areas, gramophones, and other items to make life more comfortable and homelike and distract them from the awful reality of the war. Even with all the safety precautions and efforts to make them more tolerable, they were still a living hell for the French and British soldiers especially.
On the contrary, the Germans had more luxurious and intricate trenches that made life less miserable. For example, one trench was said to have a piano in it, along with a mobile kitchen and hospital all located at the rear of the trench. Another one was said to be three hundred feet long with wooden walls and floors, stairs, sixteen different exits, heating, telephone connections, electricity, and a pipe to evacuate water. The trenches on both sides had some of the same concepts, such as the sleeping quarters equipped with beds, and a curtain for some privacy, along with cooking and first aid stations, and support services. Both sides also gave trenches street names from their home countries. Some British favorites were Regent Street and Strand, while the French used the popular streets Rue de Rivoli and Champs Elysees.
Most trench systems resembled an S and were mainly dug from Belgium to France through all types of terrain and all of Europe; by the end of the war the trenches were constructed for an impressive four hundred and seventy-five miles long from the North Sea to the Swiss border and lasted throughout the war. At one point, they went through an old mining town in south France called Armentienes. The location was beneficial because it was flat and was ideal to construct observation posts. The typical defense system consisted of three parallel lines with a length of at least one mile. The front most line was the fire trench-the first line to defend against attacks. A few hundred yards back were the support trenches where reinforcements would hold the line in case of a surprise attack. Farthest to the back were the reserve trenches that were used for soldiers to prepare for the front lines. Also located there were billets, which were special areas away from the the front lines to which soldiers would escape. Overall, the construction of the trenches negatively impacted the soldiers, especially the British and French.
The strategies were somewhat different from previous wars. They were ineffective and unsafe, adding to the already negative impact. Both sides still fired regularly and used assault weapons, rifles, hand grenades, and hand to hand combat, but offensive operations were difficult. To make them easier signals such as a whistle were used to tell soldiers when to come out of the trenches and advance to the opposing enemy trenches. Leaving the safety of the trenches was difficult because it gave the enemies a good shot at the soldier. Lieutenant Barnett describes his journey to attempt to get to the enemy side in the book Hot Blood and Cold Steel: “...They put the machine gun on us! I had a stream handy and fell in it gracefully. I was in it for sometime...They all turned out and fired volleys at us, so we solemnly crawled home on all fours.” Often times these strategies would result in many casualties and loss of life, proving the unsuccessfulness. Another risky and negative part of trench warfare was No-man’s land.
No-man’s land was very risky and dangerous. It could be as little as ten yards wide or stretch as far as hundreds of yards-it all depended on how close the trenches were constructed to each other. The space between was covered with corpses, destroyed trees and forest, garbage, and debris such as wire. During the quiet hours it was said that the cries of the wounded and dying in No-man’s land could be heard.
Another risk of No-man’s land was that soldiers often went in to retrieve ammunition, grenades, water and food from the dead or the prisoners. The following quote is from an unnamed soldier who went into No-man’s land from the book Hot Blood and Cold Steel: “All around us were abandoned trenches-many of them filled with dead and old underground passages. Close beside was a crater about fifteen feet deep, with a pool of water and around it I saw a box of bombs, spades, a shovel, broken rifles, and a human head without a body.” They were desperate for a new strategy to cross No-man’s land more safely. The use of tanks became the solution. These were introduced by the Allied Powers. They went over debris with ease and kept soldiers safe from enemy fire. They started to become a part of most wars. The strategies used in trench warfare were ineffective and put soldiers lives at risk.
The conditions of the trenches were horrific, which also negatively impacted the French and British soldiers.

In winter, there were rats, and freezing mud which soldiers stood in for hours that caused trench foot. Trench foot is an infection that affects your feet; it was mainly caused by the many hours standing still in freezing mud and water; this caused the skin on their feet to over saturate and develop blisters and peeling. Due to the cold winter months soldiers wore tight puttees; according to the Oxford Dictionary, a puttee is a long strip of cloth wound spirally around the leg from ankle to knee for protection and support. While they may have provided protection they increases the severity of trench foot because they cut off circulation to the feet. Also they went weeks with the same wet socks making it almost unbearable, incapacitating some soldiers. When they left the trenches and took off their socks, they found white swollen feet and rotting toes. By 1916 one-fifth of all units had been affected by trench foot. To help this be more bearable, nurses massaged soldiers feet with warm whale oil to hopefully increase the circulation and bring the white swollen feet back to a healthy pink color. In worst case scenarios, military surgeons removed rotted toes. Wearing puttees was soon abandoned because the British noticed that the Belgian soldiers did not wear them and rarely got trench foot. Soldiers still carried dry socks with them at all times, and constantly

rubbed them with warm oils.
In summer, rats, and especially lice became a problem resulting in trench fever. Trench fever is transmitted when a louse bites a carrier and defecates on the skin of the host; when the host scratches the bite and breaks the skin contaminated with feces allowing the microorganism to enter the host’s blood stream. The host will develope a rash, fever, and joint and bone pain, that can incapacitate the host. Trench fever can last several weeks and become unbearable. To help avoid this, delousing became a must which was discovered through experiments on human volunteers’ blood stream and the louse. Bathing in hot water became an essential in the treatment; clothes were also cleaned regularly and put through delousing machines. Soldiers also shaved and chemically deloused. Delousing is defined as the treatment of parasites or insects from a person; this also was quick to become a necessity.
Other issues with the conditions in the trenches were the lack of hygiene that contributed to trench foot and trench fever, and respiratory problems. The mud affected clothing, weapons and equipment, which was dangerous because this caused malfunctions. To prevent this weapons were cleaned regularly. The following quote is from Francis Buckley from Hot Blood and Cold Steel about his experience in the trenches: “Being tall and having warned of the efficiency of the German sniper, I had to walk in most of the trenches with a bend in the back, which soon became tiring.” Conditions in the trenches were anything but ideal, but medical measures were made to help improve this as best as possible. Soldiers were always being infected with various diseases and under the constant issues created from the lack of hygiene. All of these combined negatively impacted the soldiers living in the trenches.