Life of Trenches Flashcards
What would heavy rain turn a trench into?
A mud pit
What were the main illnesses soldiers contracted?
Trench foot, trench fever and shellshock.
What were the main injuries soldiers suffered?
Shrapnel wounds that would lead to infections, blindness caused by gas attacks, gangrene infections caused by the fertiliser in the ground.
When did poison gas attacks become a threat?
Chlorine gas was first used in 1915, Phosgene at the end of the 1915 and Mustard Gas in 1917.
What happened to the quality of helmets between 1914 and 1918?
Brodie Helmets were introduced in 1915, before that men only wore flat caps.
What happened to the quality of gas masks between 1914 and 1918?
At first they were just cotton wool pads, but they became more sophisticated as time went on.
How were injured soldiers evacuated from the frontline?
Aid posts were close to the front line, more serious injuries were taken to casualty clearing stations further away and specialist doctors were based at Base Hospitals near the coast of France and far away from the fighting.
What were the estimated casualties from the Battle of the Somme in 1916?
Over a million on all sides.
What were the estimated casualties from the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917?
487.000 on all sides.
