Conditions in the Trenches

Question 1

The start of the First World War

Answer 1

1914 June in Sarajevo
- Archduke FF and wife assassinated
- Austria - Hungary got ‘blank cheque’ from Kaiser
July
- Austria Hungary sent an ultimatum (threat) to Serbia
- Serbia didn’t accept all of demands, so Austria Hungary started shelling Belgrade
- Russia mobilised (ally of Serbia)
- Germany started mobilising its army (had six weeks to beat France)
- France also mobilised its army
- on 2nd August Germany declared war on France and moved its army to Belgium
- Britain declared war on Germany (because it invaded neutral Belgium)

Question 2

Rifle

Answer 2

• could hit something + do damage even half a mile away
• helps defenders more than attackers, defenders would be low down in the trenches + shooting as attackers would have to run in open ground with the risk of being shot at
• can’t outrun the speed of the shots being fired, so can’t shoot and run well at the same time
• have to stop artillery just in time, so that attackers have enough time to get in to opposition’s trenches before the defence from those trenches start emerging
• attackers need to carry lots of kit including hand grenades

Question 3

Machine gun

Answer 3

400/600 bullets per minute

One of the most dangerous weapons

Question 4

Artillery

Answer 4

Fire shells
Shells are full of explosive and lots of shrapnel or gas
Would have been more defensive, can’t move artillery around easily

Question 5

Grenade

Answer 5

Carried by soldiers

Thrown close to enemy caused a lot of damage

Question 6

Barbed wire

Answer 6

Barbed wire would be as deep as someone could throw a grenade (50-60m) so that they couldn’t throw grenades at you

Question 7

Aeroplanes

Answer 7

• helped defenders because they would look down on enemy and take photos, so that they could see whether enemy was getting prepared to attack
• flimsy planes so not really for dropping bombs

Question 8

Gas

Answer 8

• chlorine gas (one attempt to break stalemate)
• Germans used poisonous gas in 1915, lots died
• Wasn’t effective because some soldiers urinated on a cloth and held it to their face to limit effect of gas

Question 9

Mines

Answer 9

• both armies would tunnel under each other’s trenches and blow them up from underneath
• this was another attempt to break stalemate , however it only destroyed a few of trenches

Question 10

Tanks

Answer 10

• British invented and used tanks in 1916
• it only went about 4 miles/hour , gave the Germans lots of time to fire artillery
• they weren’t that helpful as often broke down

Question 11

Why were trenches created?

Answer 11

After battle of Marne, Germans didn’t want to lose any more ground, so dug trenches
Allies were unable to break through this line of defence and so began to dig their own protective trenches

Question 12

What happened by October 1914?

Answer 12

Neither army could advance its position
Forward moving strategies were not effect or feasible against modern weapons like machine guns and artillery
Inability to move forward led to stalemate

Question 13

What were periscopes used for?

Answer 13

To see above trench wall

Question 14

Why were trenches dug in a zig zag pattern?

Answer 14

If an enemy entered the trenches, could not fire straight down the line

Question 15

Why was poison gas ineffective?

Answer 15

Gas masks

Unpredictable (relied upon wind/other conditions)

Question 16

Why was the stalemate broken?

Answer 16

Allies use of tanks

Question 17

How many British casualties were there on first day of battle of Somme?

Answer 17

57,000

More than 19,000 killed