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The guidelines for British trench construction stated that it would take 450 men 6 hours at night to complete 250 m (270 yd) of front-line trench system. Thereafter, the trench would require constant maintenance to prevent deterioration caused by weather or shelling. Trenchmen were a specialized unit of trench excavators and repairmen.
A trench map shows trenches dug for use in war. This article refers mainly to those produced by the British during the Great War , 1914–1918 although other participants made or used them.. For much of the Great War, trench warfare was almost static, giving rise to the need for large scale maps for attack, defence and artillery use.
It was infamous for the nature of the fight that developed there; after almost a full year of inconclusive fighting, the front had become a giant trench line stretching from one end of Europe to the other. [1] 1914. Battle of Liège; A diagram of the fortifications surrounding the city
Western Front; Part of the European theatre of World War I: Clockwise from top left: Men of the Royal Irish Rifles, concentrated in the trench, right before going over the top on the First day on the Somme; British soldier carries a wounded comrade from the battlefield on the first day of the Somme; A young German soldier during the Battle of Ginchy; American infantry storming a German bunker ...
The front trench system was the sentry line for the battle zone garrison, which was allowed to move away from concentrations of enemy fire and then counter-attack to recover the battle and outpost zones; such withdrawals were envisaged as occurring on small parts of the battlefield which had been made untenable by Allied artillery fire, as the ...
Also, an enemy that has entered a trench is unable to fire down the length at the defenders, or otherwise enfilade the trench. A traverse trench is a trench dug perpendicular to a trench line, but extending away from the enemy. It has two functions. One function is to provide an entry into the main trench.
Trench Warfare was common during WWI, although it was not exactly the healthiest or morale-boosting experience for soldiers living in the trenches. They were constantly wet and water would often build up to several inches. Urine, body odor, poison gas, bad food, rats, little clothing, and misery all defined the trench lifestyle.
In British and Canadian military argot it equates to a range of terms including slit trench, or fire trench (a trench deep enough for a soldier to stand in), a sangar (sandbagged fire position above ground) or shell scrape (a shallow depression that affords protection in the prone position), or simply—but less accurately—as a "trench".