LIFE IN THE TRENCHES

“Strong eye s , f ine l imbs , haughty ath le t e s , Le s s chanced than you for l i f e , Bonds to the whims of murder ,

Sprawled in the bowe l s o f the ear th”

PHOTOS OF THE

TRENCHES

Conditions in the

trenChes

This is an entry in the diary of Harold Saunders, a soldier during World War One. He describes trench life as he

knows it.

When I made my debut in the line I had a cheerful conviction that nothing would hit me.  And I remember standing on the fire-step for the first time and saying to myself exultantly: "You're in it at last! You're in it! The

greatest thing that's ever happened!"Lice and wind-up came into my life about the same time.  At stand-to one morning a flight of whizz-bangs skimmed the

top of the trench.  The man next to me went down with a scream and half his face gone.  The sand-bag in front of me was ripped open and I was blinded and half-choked with

its contents.

Rats and Lice• Two types – black and brown

• Soldiers made games of killing them• Lice were an even worse problem

Diseases in the Trenches

TRENCH FEVER

TRENCH FOOT

What Else?

•Novice Death•The Trench Cycle

•Stand To and The Morning Hate

•The Breakfast Truce•Inspection and Chores

•Patrolling No Man’s Land

GAS

• First used by the French

• Second Battle of Ypres

Country Casualties Deaths

ITALY 60,000 4,627USA 72,807 1,462

AUSTRIA-HUNGARY

100,000 3,000BRITISH EMPIRE

188,706 8,109FRANCE 190,000 8,000

GERMANY 200,000 9,000RUSSIA 419,340 56,000OTHER 10,000 1,000

DIARY ENTRY of Anthony Hossack on THE

FIRST GAS ATTACK