World War I: The Western Front and Trench Warfare

Quotes

• “The lamps are going out all over Europe. We shall not see them lit again in our lifetime.”– British Foreign Minister, Sir Edward Grey

The Western Front

• Long and bloody stalemate, or deadlock, along the battlefields of northern France

• Schlieffen plans works well…at first!

First Battle of the Marne

• Allies attack Germany northeast of Paris by the Marne River

• German driven back nearly 60-miles

• 1st major clash on the Western Front

• Single most important event of the war– Schlieffen plan RUINED– Germany send more

troops…stalemate

Trench Warfare

• Opposing Armies dig miles of parallel trenches to protect themselves from enemy fire

• Armies suffered huge losses for small gains

• The space between the trenches was known as “no man’s land”

What happened when you are ordered to go “over the top” of a

trench?

No Man’s Land

Daily Life- Rat Infestation

• Brown and Black rats- Brown rat especially feared they could eat human remains and grow to be the size of a cat– Kill by gunfire,

bayonet, or clubbins– Rats can produce up

to 900 offspring a year

Daily Life- Frogs, Lice, and Worse

• Lice- breeds in dirty clothes, body heat causes eggs to hatch. Lice causes TRENCH FEVER (recovery took up to 12 weeks)

• Frogs found in shell holes

• Trench foot- fungal infection caused by cold, wet, unsanitary conditions

The Trench Cycle

• In each battalion, people were expected to serve in the front line for a little. Then, they would move to support. Then, they would move to reserve lines.

• It depended on the necessities of the situation- some would spend longer time in the front, depending on the location

• Normally about 70 days in the front line

Breakfast

• After “stand to,” breakfast was served. It was an unofficial truce

• What other aspects of daily life can you imagine in the trenches?