The nature of trench warfare and life in the trenches dealing with experiences of Allied and German soldiers…
The Nature of Trench Warfare and Life in the Trenches Dealing with Experiences of Allied and German Soldiers:…
Life in the trenches were constant of boredom, routine, “shell shock”, disease and vermin and the “stench of death”…
There was a clear expectation that WW1 would be a quick, offensive military war over by Christmas. Introduction of new technology such as munitions and tanks changed the structure of war as many were not prepared for modern warfare. Millions of men participated in war along with vast numbers of horses and later trucks, there was a great need for food and medical supplies however, it was hard to sustain. There were many war plans made such as the Schlieffen Plan; a plan devised to avoid war on two fronts, Germans to defeat France and turn back to Russia with a hammer swing, and Plan 17; was the French mobilisation plan. Modifications were made to the plans…
Life in the trenches, on the daily, was filled with horror, and death. Death was a constant companion to those serving in the line, even when no raid or attack was launched or defended against. In busy sectors the constant shellfire directed by the enemy brought random death, whether their victims were lounging in a trench or lying in a dugout (many men were buried as a consequence of large shell-bursts). Similarly, novices were cautioned against their natural inclination to peer over the parapet of the trench into no man's land. Many men died on their first day in the trenches as a consequence of a precisely aimed sniper's bullet. It has been estimated that up to one third of allied casualties on the Western Front were actually sustained in the trenches. Aside from enemy injuries, disease wrought a heavy toll.…
The grey sun seemed to be making it’s way up over the broken backs of the hills. The silhouettes of the men suddenly became clear. Faces dirty with mud, blood or anything that could be found in the trenches. Shoes without soles, shirts without sleeves we are the men of Ypres once of boy of 17 his only thoughts were of women. Now a man of 20 his eyes only peeled for the shadow of a man, the point of a bayonet, the fright full image of gas consuming a comrade’s lungs. Me and the other men had not yet experienced a gas attack but the stories spread across the trenches…
The military life has not treated me well at all, and all of the propaganda about the Germans back home riled me up for a job that I would have never expected. The living conditions here are horrid, and every day I question how I am still living and have enough power left in my body to write this letter. Every day, my friends in my platoon die from either the awful conditions, or they are blown to fractions from enemy shrapnel. Besides the numerous dead bodies, there are large, repulsive rats that feed on the dead bodies of my friends. Since they are so numerous, they’ve gotten bold enough to start stealing our bread.…
Can any of us imagine what life for soldiers in the First World War was really like? All we have are pictures and books to help us imagine but none of us can really feel the pain they went through. Can you imagine the terrible conditions and revolting, slimy mud that was under their feet? The noise, the bullets, the flies, the corpses, the mud that acted like quick sand and drowned so many. Life in the trenches was an unimaginable test of strength and endurance. The trenches were often quiet terrible which led to many diseases such as trench foot, trench fever, frost bite, pneumonia, body lice and many other diseases which could kill many of the soldiers. As it rained the majority of the time, the trenches were filled with watery mud which was a danger of warfare; they could get trapped in a trench.…
In 1914, World War I broke out and the Germans invaded France and Belgium, which led Great Britain to join the fight. For about three and a half years the countries fought each other in trenches four hundred miles long. Soldiers spent weeks at a time sitting in seven feet deep and six feet wide trenches consuming diseases and experiencing harsh conditions. Life in the trenches was hell on earth, men suffered from trench foot, body lice, and the attacks from trench rats that were almost impossible to prevent, and there were dead bodies everywhere. In a letter to parents living in East Grinstead, England in 1915, Private Livesay wrote, “Our trenches are... ankle deep mud.…
It’s cold. My feet are wet and everywhere I turn I see rats. Remember how excited and happy I was to enter into this war? Well, that changed once I stepped foot on these grounds. Remember when I kissed Angela on the forehead right before I left and I said, “I’ll be home soon to kiss you again.” Well, I think that was our last kiss. Remember how I said everything will be alright and I’ll be perfectly fine.” Well, I regret saying that. Remember how I said. “Its only a summer war mom. No need to be so worried. I’ll be back, right before Christmas eve.” Well, that turned into a lie. It’s disgusting. There’s not much to eat around here, so I eat lice and the rats that I can find. I haven’t taken a shower in over two weeks. I wish I was home right now wrapped up in that warm blanket you made me. These trenches they have us in are so small. It seems like everything around me is crammed up. Maybe it’s just me. You know how claustrophobic I get sometimes. It’s horrible here. Every day, every hour, one of the friends I had made here at this war is gone. Their bodies, lifeless and cold on these floors. No one cares to pick them up and move them. So they just lie there. As I walk past them I look at their faces. Roger Linopsy. That’s the last body I saw before I wrote this letter to you. Two kids and a wife back home. Well, he no longer has a home. He’s in heaven where the rest of my 184 friends I’ve made in this war are. Yes im keeping track. Every name, it’s written down on these few papers I have, because if I ever get out of this brutal war I want to tell their families myself that they passed on to a better life than what they were living. No family member deserves to hear that their loved one has passed away from someone that barely knew them. As I look around I see smoke coming from everywhere. I hear gun fires coming from everywhere. Yelling, screaming, and cries for help…
I have not written to you in quite some time, but not a day goes by I am not thinking about you. Much time has passed, but I don't suspect I'll be home by Christmas. Our soldiers are exhausted. Days are spent walking knee deep in mud and worse, sometimes waist deep in mud. Many of the men need rest but there is a war that has just begun. My sleeps are less than one hour at a time but I am constantly interrupted by the violent images I have witnessed.…
During World War Two, many people in the United States faced different homefront experiences. Some were treated very positively while others were treated very poorly. Some were looked a highly while others were looked at like they were like dirt. Some groups that faced different homefront experiences during World War Two include Jewish Americans, Japanese Americans, and many other groups. Jewish Americans and Japanese Americans faced two very different U.S. homefront experiences that included the way they were treated, viewed, and how they helped the recovery effort after the war.…
I had attended to write earlier, however the Germans had us covered with the constant rain of shells falling, we had to stay on Guard duty to make sure they did not get here. On the way back, Zack got caught in a mudslide after one of the bombs hit the nearby hill. He went out like the others. My company just acquired some new novices to fight and obviously they hadn’t seen rats before, consequently they were scared and it wasn’t helped by our stories of how the brown rats ripped through the Germans brains and was still hungry. In fact, he got scared so much, we tried to hide in No Man’s Land to get away but their snipers shot through him quite literally.…
My next steps after high school are pretty simple. I plan to work for a while to keep helping my parents with the house bills. After a while I plan on joining the Marine Corps and study for my career as a car mechanic. The plans I have will benefit me and my parents in a lot of ways. I will technically be working and studying for my career at the same time, so I won't have to be worrying about making enough money to pay for my education and have to stay up late at nights to catch up on my work. I will be able to have my brain and body fully concentrated on my goal. I am really aiming to become a very successful guy in life.…
Life in the Trenches is rough and horrible. We get woken up in the middle of the night due to fire falling on us. I then have to take cover and crouch in a corner. “ Each man lays hold of his things and looks again every minute to reassure himself that they are still there.” (Source 1) The troops and I have to hold are things and every minute we need to look see if they are still there.…
