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Most conflict during World War I was centered around trench warfare. Trenches – complex networks of long, deep ditches – were designed as protective defenses, but led to a drawn-out war with terribly high casualties. New deadly weapons made it nearly impossible for either side to gain ground or have a decisive victory. Unable to advance, troops began digging trenches for protection from machine-gun fire and artillery shells. The result was a maze of trenches on both sides. Soldiers would charge across the area of land between the trenches, known as “No Man’s Land.” As they charged the enemy trench, they faced massive firepower from machine guns, rifles, and artillery. They suffered appalling casualties to gain extremely minor areas of land, if any at all. Those fortunate enough to survive enemy fire faced horrendous conditions in the trenches. The trenches were filled with muddy water, human waste, rats, wounded soldiers and the mangled bodies of the dead. Lice fed on the living soldiers, and rats fed on the dead and the dying. Disease and infections were rampant. Huge numbers of soldiers died from disease rather than battlefield injuries. Arthur Savage recalls his memories of life in the trenches during World War I: “My memories are of sheer terror and the horror of seeing men sobbing because they had trench foot that had turned gangrenous. They knew they were going to lose a leg. Memories of lice in your clothing driving you crazy. Filth and lack of privacy. Of huge rats that showed no fear of you as they stole your food rations. And cold deep wet mud everywhere. And of course, corpses. I'd never seen a dead body before I went to war. But in the trenches the dead are lying all around you. You could be talking to the fellow next to you when suddenly he'd be hit by a sniper and fall dead beside you. And there he‘d stay for days.”

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Soldiers pose from the cover of a trench.

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Side view diagram of a trench.

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Most World War I trench systems consisted of a front-line trench, followed by support and reserve trenches. The three trenches ran parallel to each other and were connected by communication trenches. Communication trenches were used to transport men, equipment and supplies between the frontline, support and reserve trenches. Trenches varied in size, but were typically seven feet deep and six feet wide. The front side of the trench was called the parapet. Sandbags were stacked at the top of the parapet to provide protection from bullets and shell fragments. Source: Simkin, John. “Trench Systems.” Spartacus Educational, Spartacus Educational, spartacuseducational.com/FWWtrenchsystems.htm. Trench lines were built in zig-zag like angles to prevent the enemy from shooting straight down the line if they entered your trench. Fire-steps were dug into the front side of the trench, providing a perch for soldiers to shoot from. Duckboards were placed at the bottom of trenches in an attempt to protect soldiers from the muddy water that often caused trench foot. Also, soldiers made dugouts to provide some protection from the weather and enemy fire. Machine-gun posts and barbed wire protected the front-line trenches. Lieutenant Bernard Pitt describes trench life in a letter to his parents, December 25, 1915: “What is life like in the trenches? Well, muddy, and cramped, and filthy. Everything gets covered with mud; you can't wash, for water has to be fetched for a mile. There is no room, and if you walk upright in many of the trenches, you run grave risks; and you sleep, huddled together, unable to stretch. All day long shells and rifle bullets go banging and whistling, and from dark to midnight the Huns [Germans] fire rifle-grenades and machine-guns at us.”

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Diagram of a trench system.

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No man's land before an attack.

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The area of land between two opposing trenches was referred to as “No Man’s Land.” The average distance of No Man’s Land was 250 yards, but could be as small as 50 yards, or as large as 500 yards. In order to attack the enemy, soldiers had to charge across the open area, leading to substantial death and destruction. No Man’s Land was heavily defended on both sides by machine guns, riflemen, artillery and barbed wire, making any advance extremely difficult. Craters from artillery riddled the land. Corpses and wounded soldiers were left scattered across the fields because enemy fire made it nearly impossible to recover the bodies. Source: Ernst Toller. I Was A German. 1933. No Man’s Land before an attack A soldier searches No Man’s Land following a battle Ernst Toller describes an experience of the war: “One night we heard a cry, the cry of one in excruciating pain; then all was quiet again. Someone in his death agony, we thought. But an hour later the cry came again. It never ceased the whole night. Nor the following night. Naked and inarticulate the cry persisted. We could not tell whether it came from the throat of German or Frenchman. It existed in its own right, an agonized indictment of heaven and earth. We thrust our fingers into our ears to stop its moan; but it was no good; the cry cut like a drill into our heads, dragging minutes into hours, hours into years. We withered and grew old between those cries. Later we learned that it was one of our own men hanging on the wire. Nobody could do anything for him; two men had already tried to save him, only to be shot themselves. We prayed desperately for his death. He took so long about it, and if he went on much longer we should go mad. But on the third day his cries were stopped by death.”

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A soldier searches No Man's Land after a battle.

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A propaganda poster encouraging the prevention of trench foot.

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One of the atrocities associated with trench warfare was the threat of trench foot. Trench foot was a result of prolonged exposure of the feet to wet, cold, unsanitary conditions. During WWI soldier were forced to stand for hours in waterlogged trenches, unable to remove wet socks and boots. This led to an infection of the feet, occasionally causing gangrene, which may require amputation. During the winter of 1914-1915, over 20,000 British soldiers were treated for trench foot. One of the first signs of trench foot is numbness in the feet. As the condition worsened, the feet began to swell. Then, the feet would turn red or blue because of poor blood supply. Advanced trench foot often involved open sores. If left untreated, part, or all of the foot would have to be amputated. Trench foot could be prevented by keeping feet clean, warm and dry. Many armies began ordering their men to change socks several times a day. Also, soldiers began covering their feet with whale-oil, which helped to eliminate foot dampness. Sergeant Harry Roberts recounts the agony of trench foot: “If you have never had trench feet described to you. I will tell you. Your feet swell to two or three times their normal size and go completely dead. You could stick a bayonet into them and not feel a thing. If you are fortunate enough not to lose your feet and the swelling begins to go down. It is then that the intolerable, indescribable agony begins. I have heard men cry and even scream with the pain and many had to have their feet and legs amputated.”

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British soldiers standing in a flooded trench.

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Soldiers attempt to rid their clothes of lice while someone keeps watch for the enemy.

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In addition to surviving threats from the enemy, soldiers in the trenches had to overcome numerous hardships. An issue that made living conditions rather uncomfortable was the infestation of millions of pests. Two of the most annoying were rats and lice. Lice are tiny insects that infected the clothes and bodies of soldiers. Lice bites were extremely itchy and made life miserable. Also, lice could spread disease, such as “trench fever.” Lice were nearly impossible to get rid of because the men did not have the ability to wash properly in the trenches. Men attempted to kill lice by crushing them between their fingernails, or by burning them out, but these methods did not kill the eggs, which would hatch hours later. As shown, soldiers trained dogs to hunt rats in the trenches Rats were another pest that thrived in the crowded, unsanitary conditions of the trenches. A lack of proper garbage disposal attracted the rats, which fed on rotting food waste. The rats added to the filth of the trenches and spread diseases among the men. The rats could grow to be enormous and were constant nuisances. Soldiers reported rats stole food from them while they ate and scurried over them while they slept. Soldiers tried in desperation to get rid of the rats, but regardless of how many they killed, the rats were too numerous. Stuart Dolden describes life among the rats in the trenches: “The outstanding feature of the trenches was the extraordinary number of rats. The area was infested with them. It was impossible to keep them out of the dugouts. They grew fat on the food that they pilfered from us, and anything they could pick up in or around the trenches; they were bloated and loathsome to look at. Some were nearly as big as cats. We were filled with an instinctive hatred of them, because however one tried to put the thought of one's mind, one could not help feeling that they fed on the dead.”

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As shown, soldiers trained dogs to hunt rats in the trenches.

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Soldier suffering from shell shock.

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World War I created immensely stressful conditions for soldiers. Terrifying weapon advancements, combined with horrific conditions in the trenches, created overwhelming burdens on the men fighting. That burden proved too great for some, causing mental breakdowns which were referred to as “shell shock.” Shell shock was caused by the heavy explosions and constant fighting associated with the war. Troops suffering from shell shock often agonized from headaches, dizziness, amnesia and tremors. They struggled to sleep, and occasionally, their ability to walk and talk were affected. Some men appeared helpless and nonresponsive, while others were consumed with vicious panic and terror. Shell shock victims receiving treatment Treatment for shell shock varied greatly. The most common form of treatment was to remove the victim from the front-lines to provide relief from the trauma of war. Since the condition was largely misunderstood, some victims were viewed as cowards and faced trial for desertion. Trauma induced by the intensity of warfare is still an issue for modern soldiers. Today, shell shock would most likely be diagnosed as a type of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Corporal Henry Gregory recalls witnessing shell shock for the first time: “I was in this Field Hospital that I saw the first case of shell-shock. The enemy opened fire about dinner time, as usual, with his big guns. As soon as the first shell came over, the shell-shock case nearly went mad. He screamed and raved, and it took eight men to hold him down on the stretcher. With every shell he would go into a fit of screaming and fight to get away. It is heartbreaking to watch a shell-shock case. The terror is indescribable. The flesh on their faces shakes in fear, and their teeth continually chatter. Shell-shock was brought about in many ways; loss of sleep, continually being under heavy shell fire, the torment of the lice, irregular meals, nerves always on end, and the thought always in the man's mind that the next minute was going to be his last."

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Shell shock victims receiving treatment.