Trench Warfare and WW1 Revision

• The Schlieffen Plan of 1905 was prepared by the Germans in advance of World War One
• The Schlieffen Plan involved bypassing French defenses by going through neutral Belgium first
• The German Army's plan was to outflank the French defenses and surround Paris
• The reality of what happened in 1914 showed that the Schlieffen Plan failed
• The German Army was delayed by fierce Belgian resistance, allowing the British Expeditionary Force to get across the channel
• In the race to the sea, the German Army attempted to outflank the Belgians and the British but failed
• The German Force was stopped by the French army at the Battle of the Marne
• A process of trench warfare developed with a stalemate by the end of the summer of 1914
• Trenches stretched from the Belgian Coast to the Swiss border
• Trenches were arranged into a system with networks providing deeper defenses and support for soldiers
• Frontline trenches had sharp corners to prevent bomb blasts from causing devastation along the entire trench
• Trenches were dug in for cover as both sides could not overpower each other
• Each side built networks of trenches to provide deeper defenses and support for soldiers
• British trenches tended to be fairly basic compared to French and German defenses
• Trenches were used as protection against the devastating defensive weapons of the age
• Trench types

  • Front line trench
  • Command trench
  • Communications trenches
  • Support trench
• Spotter planes could fly overhead and take photographs to observe troop buildups and movements
• Trench lines being fixed meant that artillery could be zeroed in on them effectively
• Soldiers spent about 15% of their time in the front line trenches, 40% in command or support trenches, and 45% behind the lines
• Knowledge of the past relies on sources
• Types of sources

  • Written sources
  • Oral or spoken sources
  • Non-written sources
• Written sources

  • Private sources
  • Official government sources
  • Unofficial sources
• Oral sources


  • Mostly dried up now due to the time passed since World War I, but better recorded than earlier conflicts
• Non-written sources

  • Archeology
  • Surviving buildings and artifacts
• Diaries are written and private sources
• Shrapnel pieces are non-written artifacts
• The Diary of a government Minister is a written and official source
• A photograph of stretcher bearers is an artifact
• Newspaper reports are unofficial written sources
• Types of sources

  • Diary (written and official)
  • Photograph (artifact)
  • Newspaper reports (unofficial written)
  • Royal Army Medical Corps records (official written)
  • Restored trench system (landscape)
  • Records of government meetings (written and official)
  • Eyewitness account (oral or spoken)
  • World War One Medical Kit excavation (archeology or artifact)
  • Royal Army Medical Corps training manual (official written)
  • Map of historical locations (evidence of landscape or artifacts)
  • TV interview with a World War One soldier (oral or spoken)
  • Former base Hospital (surviving building)
• Historians rely on a variety of evidence to learn about the past
• Different sources are suitable for different inquiries
• Sources have different features that can make them useful or they may have limitations to their usefulness
• All sources are useful when they are used critically and appropriately for the right inquiry
• Trench warfare in World War One was muddy, uncomfortable, and led to disease and danger
• The biggest danger day to day in World War One was artillery
• The power of defensive weapons in World War One resulted in a stalemate with both sides sticking to trenches to hold the line
• Caring for the soldiers' health and well-being within the trenches was tremendously difficult
• Stress bearers faced difficulties in crossing no man's land and helping in crowded trenches during World War One
• Historical sources include written, oral, artifact, landscape, and surviving building sources