Construction and Design of Trenches
World War I introduced one of the ugliest and fiercest form of fighting; trench warfare. Both the The Triple Alliances and Triple Entente built trenches across the Western Front to provide shelter while making it extremely dangerous for the enemies to attack the front line. The trenches were built in a zig-zag pattern, allowing for less damage and casualties if the trenches were ever bombarded. The trench construction encompassed reinforcing the walls by using materials such as wood, tree posts, and sand bags (filled with clay). The trenches were often constructed during nighttime by a group soldiers called engineers so that the trenches were built before the enemy attacked. During WWI there were 3 main types of trench construction:
Most of the trenches were built 8-10 feet in depth. Due to the rainy conditions and to keep the trenches from flooding, duckboards were put across the floors of the trenches to prevent the soldiers from getting wet. Differences Between German and British Trenches:
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