The Trenches Of World War I - 1355 Words

Introduction: World War 1 changed the world around it. More men fought than one could comprehend. World War 1 almost destroyed an entire generation of men. The battlefield for Australians were lined with trenches filled with disease, pests and the fallen where they had medical aid. They experienced traumas not yet known commonly at all. The war was not embellished for its inhumanity in its time but as we see now the men and women who helped with the war effort lived with fear of death, disease and infection. What Were the Trenches? Why was a System of Trenches Employed? In World War 1 trench warfare began. Trench warfare was a method of fighting where apposing armies fought from and defended their territories using a system of dug out†¦show more content†¦Were Men from all Armies Involved in Trench Warfare? At Which Battle Sites Were Trenches Dug? The Allies consisted of- Serbia, Russia, France (Raymond PoincarÃ' ), Romania, Belgium, British Empire (David Lloyd George/George V), United States (Woodrow Wilson), Italy (Vittorio Emanuele III/Vittorio Orlando), Brazil, Greece, Japan, Liberia, Montenegro, Portugal, Romania, Australia. The Central Powers consisted of- Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire. These powers and allies fought each other on the Western Front, Eastern front, in Gallipoli, and France. The Western Front, Eastern Front and Gallipoli had trenches protecting them. What Were the Conditions Like for the Soldiers in the Trenches? Trenches were infested with rats, disease and mud. Rats infested the trenches. There were two kinds of rats- black and brown. Brown rats were the most feared as they gorged on more human flesh and could grow to the size of a small dogs. This quote describes rats perfectly- Great, sleek, corpse-fed rats ran in squads between our legs and over our feet as we stood. Their obscene squeaking could be heard at all times. Some men conceived an unmeasured hatred of these loathsome things, and were always trying to slaughter them. I wondered, as I stood, did they picture themselves as those scattered corpses- a prey to these. Imagination is decidedly not good for a soldier. It is one of the things Kipling forgot to tell us- George Mitchell. Disease