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Ww1 Trench Life Essay

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The First World War was a global war centred in Europe that lasted 4 years. More than 9 million soldiers and 7 million civilians died as a result of the war, a casualty rate aggravated by the technological and industrial sophistication of the nations at war. It was one of the deadliest conflicts in history. Trenches and life within them have become a lasting topic since World War One. Throughout the war, millions of soldiers experienced and endured the horrors of trench warfare. The First World War was characterised, however, by its lack of movement, the years of stalemate exemplified on the Western Front from autumn 1914 until spring 1918. Life in the trenches during the First World War took many forms, and varied widely from sector to sector …show more content…

Physical conditions for the soldiers also varied somewhat between the different armies on the Western Front, although the particular and horrific nature of the war was shared by all of them. For most French, German and British soldiers going to war was the unwelcome and inevitable consequence of conscription. For most combatants on all sides, however, particularly early in the war, service was voluntary, and men who were not forced to enrolled in the Army. Some of the reasons for this can be found in the fact that the arrival of the war brought an unforgettable sense of community to people: it prompted patriotism and brought societies closer together, weakening the strong class differences of the time. In addition, warfare seemed to be the only thing that could offer the opportunity for individual action and glory. Overall, motives for fighting probably didn't vary so much between nations as they did between individuals. Moreover, almost all soldiers for almost all of the war’s duration seem firmly to have believed that they were fighting in their country’s national defence. Apart from the first weeks of the war, the reality of the Western Front proved to be

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