Trench Warfare A BLOODY STALEMATE ALONG THE WESTERN

Trench Warfare

A BLOODY STALEMATE ALONG THE WESTERN FRONT • Both sides were relatively equal—faced a stalemate: a situation in which neither side was able to gain an advantage – Modern weapons prevented advances – France and Britain stop Germany’s advance – Western Front - the deadlocked region in northern France.

Life in the Trenches • Soldiers fought each other from trenches. • Life in the trenches was misery. • Men slept, washed, and ate in the mud. • Trenches swarmed with rats. • The space between the trenches was called “no man’s land”

Modern Warfare • Soldiers faced new weapons that were more efficient including: – Machine Guns – Hand Grenades – Artillery Shells – Poison Gas • Used to speed up the war, but the new technology just killed more people more effectively.

Poison Gas • Soldiers wore masks to protect themselves from poison gas. • Gas was introduced by the Germans but used by both sides. • Gasses caused blinding, choking, and severe blisters.

Machine Guns • Machine guns were much improved by the time of World War I. • Because it could wipe out waves of attackers and make it difficult forces to advance, it helped create a stalemate.

TANKS • An armored combat vehicle that moved on chain tracks. • Introduced by the British in 1916. • The early tanks were slow and clumsy. • They eventually improved and helped the Allies in the war effort.

AIRPLANES • WWI was the first time that planes were used in a combat role. • First used for taking photos of enemy lines. • Soon, both sides used them to drop bombs. • Guns were soon attached to the planes, and pilots fought each other in the air.

SUBMARINES • In 1914, the Germans introduce the submarine as an effective warship. • German submarines, known as U-Boats, eventually waged unrestricted warfare on Allied ships. • The primary weapon was the torpedo, a selfpropelled underwater missle.

BARBED WIRE • Barbed wire was used as a military weapon. • Barbed-wire was usually placed far enough from the trenches to prevent the enemy from approaching, but close enough to lob grenades in. • Sometimes barbed-wire entanglements were set up in order to channel attacking infantry into machinegun fire. • Barbed-wire entanglements were virtually impassable. Before a major offensive soldiers were sent out to cut a path wire-cutters. • Another tactic was to place a Bangalore Torpedo (a long pipe filled with explosive) and detonate it under the wire

Casualties • The soldiers killed wounded, and missing during a war – The number mounted as the war went on because of modern weapons – Eventually reached the millions