I.

Introduction

Trench Warfare, fighting from a network of dug or constructed fortifications at or below ground level. It arose as a protracted method of warfare after the machine-gun had become the main battlefield weapon, its longer range making free movement of troops impossible. Because massed artillery fire by land forces denied both sides the ability to manoeuvre, trenches were dug along battlefield fronts in World War I, and created a stalemate that lasted for the duration of the war. Firing trenches were backed up by cover trenches, which provided a second line of defence in case enemy troops overran the firing trench. “Resting” off-duty troops lived in dugouts in the support trenches. Supplies, and fresh troops were transported to the front via a network of reserve and communications trenches. Between the trenches of opposing forces lay an area known as no-man’s-land.

II.

History

Although trench warfare has become synonymous with World War I, it can be traced back at least to the 19th century. During the Crimean War trenches were dug by the Anglo-French force besieging Sevastopol (Sebastopol), and in the American Civil War, Confederate trench lines at Petersburg stretched for some 85 km (53 mi).

III.

The World War I Stalemate

Soon after the outbreak of World War I, a series of outflanking movements, known as the “Race to the Sea”, led to trench lines being dug from the Belgian coast to the Swiss frontier as both sides tried to protect themselves from artillery and machine-guns. These weapons also caused the campaign against the Turkish forces at Gallipoli (now Gelibolu) April 1915 to January 1916, to degenerate into trench warfare.

On the Western Front, the German troops invariably dominated the high ground. They constructed well-fortified trenches, some with dugouts 12 m (40 ft) underground. The British lines were less well constructed because they were not intended to be permanent, with the emphasis being placed on trying to break the German lines.

At first improvised weapons such as catapults were used to throw bombs into enemy trenches. These were replaced by trench mortars, and other new weapons such as mustard gas and tanks were developed to try to break through the enemy lines, but without success.

IV.

End of the Stalemate

Breakthrough attacks, such as in the protracted Battle of the Somme in 1916, were not successful and a new tactic of “bite and hold”, in which a small gain was held at all cost, was employed during 1917; this too was unsuccessful. In March 1918 the German spring offensive brought the German troops out of their trenches and resulted in a return to open warfare. Improved tactics, leadership, and technology combined to allow the British Expeditionary Force to win a decisive victory.

V.

Conditions

Soldiers spent up to a week at a time in the trenches and conditions were harsh. Trenches were often waterlogged and infested with rats. Work, such as repairs to the barbed-wire defences, was done at night and the soldiers had to try to sleep during the day. In addition to the casualties sustained during a major offensive, or during a raid on the enemy’s lines, sniping and artillery fire took a constant toll on the troops in the trenches.

Soldiers have continued to dig-in under fire, such as in the Falklands War of 1982, but trench warfare has all but vanished because of the emergence of advanced land weaponry such as mobile rocket launchers and improved armoured vehicles, and the combination of these with air attacks on land forces. In the 1991 Gulf War the Iraqi trenches were easily breached or outflanked by the Coalition’s tanks and armoured infantry.