DAILY DEATH...
Life in the trenches was characterized by daily death; every day hundreds of soldiers died because of war wounds, and of hygiene conditions.
Life conditions in the trenches were extremely bad; soldiers had to live nearby in small overpopulated space. Trenches weren’t water proof so soldier had to deal with diseases caused by water infiltration.
In the trenches there was also the big issue of rat infestation that spread infections and contaminated foods.
At night the soldiers had to sleep nearby to keep as much heat as possible, and they couldn’t make big movements because sniper of the opposite side could see and kill them; for the same reason they couldn’t smoke or switch lights on at night.
Many man died in their first day in the trenches as the consequence of a precisely aimed sniper’s bullet.
Many people suffered not only from physical illness but also psychological diseases caused by the absence of resting time and the constant bombing; these diseases sometimes were permanent, so survivor had to cohabit with this kind of issue.
Trenches had the characteristic smell of death that many poets describe in their poems but also the smell of chloride of lime used to prevent the constant threat of disease and infection.
...DAILY ROUTINE
Every day the soldiers followed a non-official program. This is a part of a typical day in the trenches:
After their duties were done, soldiers spent their time reading and writing letters because movements were restricted until night as front lines were constantly under watch by the enemy and sleep was snatched wherever possible.
Soldiers were divided in battalions, during the war each battalion usually spent a period of time on the first line, then a period of support duties and then in the reserve lines. Before the cycle restarted there was a period of rest from the front. In reality, the period of time spent at the front was determined by the necessities of the situation, so a battalion could spend more time than usual at the front and on the line of fire. Many men died on the first day on the front also for the bullets of the snipers on the other line.
Life in the trenches was characterized by daily death; every day hundreds of soldiers died because of war wounds, and of hygiene conditions.
Life conditions in the trenches were extremely bad; soldiers had to live nearby in small overpopulated space. Trenches weren’t water proof so soldier had to deal with diseases caused by water infiltration.
In the trenches there was also the big issue of rat infestation that spread infections and contaminated foods.
At night the soldiers had to sleep nearby to keep as much heat as possible, and they couldn’t make big movements because sniper of the opposite side could see and kill them; for the same reason they couldn’t smoke or switch lights on at night.
Many man died in their first day in the trenches as the consequence of a precisely aimed sniper’s bullet.
Many people suffered not only from physical illness but also psychological diseases caused by the absence of resting time and the constant bombing; these diseases sometimes were permanent, so survivor had to cohabit with this kind of issue.
Trenches had the characteristic smell of death that many poets describe in their poems but also the smell of chloride of lime used to prevent the constant threat of disease and infection.
...DAILY ROUTINE
Every day the soldiers followed a non-official program. This is a part of a typical day in the trenches:
- 5 a.m. : The daily routine of life in the trenches began with the morning “stand to”, half an hour before dawn. The soldiers had to wake up quickly and to climb up on the fire step to guard against an attack by the enemy, bayonets fixed. This practice was called “the morning hate” by the soldiers.
- 5.30 a.m. : the soldiers had their rum ration. Each battalion had its own supply of rum that was distributed to the soldiers. It was usually issued to them after, rather than before an offensive. It was a great support also against the cold weather. French and German armies were more generous and supplied their soldiers with daily amounts of wine and brandy
- 6.00 a.m. : there was another “stand to”.
- 7.00 a.m. : the soldiers had breakfast, usually with bacon and tea. The food in the trenches was essentialy composed of meat, bread and biscuits. At the beginning of the war the food was served regularly to the soldier, instead towards the end of the war the food became very limited and the rations decreased drastically. The quality of the food got worse: for example bread was made largely with sawdust.
- After 8 a.m. the soldiers cleaned themselves, their weapons and fixed the trenches.
After their duties were done, soldiers spent their time reading and writing letters because movements were restricted until night as front lines were constantly under watch by the enemy and sleep was snatched wherever possible.
Soldiers were divided in battalions, during the war each battalion usually spent a period of time on the first line, then a period of support duties and then in the reserve lines. Before the cycle restarted there was a period of rest from the front. In reality, the period of time spent at the front was determined by the necessities of the situation, so a battalion could spend more time than usual at the front and on the line of fire. Many men died on the first day on the front also for the bullets of the snipers on the other line.
FOOD
Soldiers usually had as a daily diet bully beef, bread and biscuits. By 1916 the flour supply was really short, so bread was made using dried ground turnips.
At the beginning of the war British soldiers were given 10 ounces of meat and 8 ounces of vegetables a day. With the evolution of the war and the difficult situation on the Western front, this was reduced to 6 ounces of meat a day. The daily bread ration was also cut in April 1917.
The main food was now pea-soup with few lumps of horsemeat. The kitchen staff had only two large vats to cook everything, so every food tasted of something else.
Soldiers were really critical of the quality of food, which was often cold for being transported long the trenches, while the officers were well-fed.
HOMESICKNESS
Another problem that soldiers had to face was homesickness, in fact Soldiers had to spend months away from home fighting. Often, they only got ten days of leave (holiday) in a year.
However, they were allowed to write letters home to their loved ones. They were given postcards or headed paper that allowed them to write home for free.
Most letters sent from the front line were read by an officer who checked it was acceptable to send. He checked for anything that might give away British army secrets.He also made sure that letters were not too sad, so they did not spoil the morale (the way people felt) back home.
As well as letters and postcards, newspapers were also sometimes delivered to the trenches. This meant the soldiers could keep up to date with what was happening in the war, at home and in other parts of the world.
Soldiers usually had as a daily diet bully beef, bread and biscuits. By 1916 the flour supply was really short, so bread was made using dried ground turnips.
At the beginning of the war British soldiers were given 10 ounces of meat and 8 ounces of vegetables a day. With the evolution of the war and the difficult situation on the Western front, this was reduced to 6 ounces of meat a day. The daily bread ration was also cut in April 1917.
The main food was now pea-soup with few lumps of horsemeat. The kitchen staff had only two large vats to cook everything, so every food tasted of something else.
Soldiers were really critical of the quality of food, which was often cold for being transported long the trenches, while the officers were well-fed.
HOMESICKNESS
Another problem that soldiers had to face was homesickness, in fact Soldiers had to spend months away from home fighting. Often, they only got ten days of leave (holiday) in a year.
However, they were allowed to write letters home to their loved ones. They were given postcards or headed paper that allowed them to write home for free.
Most letters sent from the front line were read by an officer who checked it was acceptable to send. He checked for anything that might give away British army secrets.He also made sure that letters were not too sad, so they did not spoil the morale (the way people felt) back home.
As well as letters and postcards, newspapers were also sometimes delivered to the trenches. This meant the soldiers could keep up to date with what was happening in the war, at home and in other parts of the world.