How would you describe life in the trenches?
Trench life involved long periods of boredom mixed with brief periods of terror. The threat of death kept soldiers constantly on edge, while poor living conditions and a lack of sleep wore away at their health and stamina.
What was life like in ww1 trenches?
On the Western Front, the war was fought by soldiers in trenches. Trenches were long, narrow ditches dug into the ground where soldiers lived. They were very muddy, uncomfortable and the toilets overflowed. These conditions caused some soldiers to develop medical problems such as trench foot.
Why was life in the trenches difficult?
LIFE IN TRENCHES. Life in the trenches was very difficult because they were dirty and flooded in bad weather. Many of the trenches also had pests living in them, including rats, lice, and frogs. Rats in particular were a problem and ate soldier’s food as well as the actual soldiers while they slept.
Why was life hard in the trenches?
Did soldiers in ww1 eat rats?
With no proper disposal system the rats would feast off food scraps. The rats grew bigger and bolder and would even steal food from a soldier’s hand. But for some soldiers the rats became their friends. They captured them and kept them as pets, bringing a brief reprisal from the horror which lay all around.
What did ww1 soldiers taste?
The bulk of their diet in the trenches was bully beef (caned corned beef), bread and biscuits. By the winter of 1916 flour was in such short supply that bread was being made with dried ground turnips. The main food was now a pea-soup with a few lumps of horsemeat.
What did they drink in the trenches?
Drinking water was transported to front line trenches in petrol cans. It was then purified with chemicals. To help disguise the taste, most water was drunk in the form of tea, often carried cold in soldier’s individual water bottles.
What is lice ww1?
We were lousy. The lice were the size of grains of rice, each with its own bite, each with its own itch. When we could, we would run hot wax from a candle down the seams of our trousers, our vests – whatever you had – to burn the buggers out. It was the only thing to do.
Do rats eat dead humans?
Such attacks on humans are rare, though hungry rats do sometimes feed on corpses.
Where can I find World War I trench diaries?
World War I trench diaries have been found by family members, buried away in old houses and among old books. One, written by Sergeant Horace Reginald Stanley during the battles of Ypres and the Somme, was found by his daughter, Heather Brodie, when she was cleaning out the attic.
What was life like in the German trenches of WW1?
Life in the GERMAN trenches of World War One: Fascinating… One of his more despairing diary entries was on Easter Sunday 1915 on the front line at Ypres. He wrote: ‘Trees crash on the ground, some falling across the trench, trying it seems to crush us. The noise is deafening.
How did Sgt Stanley describe his experience in the trenches?
Sgt Stanley described the trauma of losing his brother and the horror of being shelled in the trenches He writes in graphic detail about brutality of war, ‘some poor wretch has the side of his skull blown away’ Insightful collection of photos and diary entries have been published by his granddaughter, Juliet Brodie
What can we learn from the Diary of a First World War?
The diary includes first-hand details of the conflict, the loss of friends and the tragedy of war, but with a surprising level of humour. A diary of a First World War officer who served in the trenches is going to auction.