Haircut in the French trenches, WWI in color; ca. 1915.

Ha, look at the stout little guy to the right.

*The trenches varied from country to country, and during an attack, a trench could devolve into a scant 18″ deep in places, due to artillery tearing them up, and the soldiers having no extra time to repair them. A fully dug trench could be 5 to 8 feet deep, and generally wide enough that at least three men could walk abreast. A soldiers life in the trench was constant work, as officers kept the men at task, in order to keep them occupied. Concerning dugouts, they varied depending on the country digging them, the soldiers digging them, how far back from the line they were, and so on. As the war progressed, dugouts became less and less protected. Germany’s dugouts were considered better because Germany dug them deeper and the men felt better protected from shelling. Britain’s dugouts were more shallow because the British thought that if their holes were too deep the soldiers would not want to come back again. Concerning trench layout, “the front” wasn’t a single trench with artillery behind it, but rather a complex maze of trenches, reserve trenches, and perpendicular trenches meant to aid the flow of traffic back and forth. (Though this seldom was as efficient as possible, with people trying to go both ways.)

September 9, 2014 | Categories: European History, European Warfare 1789-1918, History, Human History, Military History, Modern Warfare, Photography, The Drama Of It All, Trench Warfare, World War One | Tags: Europe, France, French, Government, historic, Historical, History, human history, Military, Military history, Photo, Photography, Politics, Power, reserve trenches, Society, Trench Warfare, trenches, War, Warfare, World History, World War 1, World War i, World War One, WW1, WWI | 1 Comment