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Trench warfare

Trench warfare was a defining feature of ground combat during the First World War. The extensive defensive positions ran from Switzerland to the English Channel and required thousands of soldiers to maintain. Lieutenant Reginald Bateman of the 28th Infantry Battalion summed up trench life as “days of unendurable monotony and moments of indescribable fear.” Harry Woodburn Blaylock, deputy commissioner of the Canadian Red Cross, witnessed the horror of trench warfare firsthand: victims of gas attacks, men who had lost limbs, and others who were seriously wounded arrived at Red Cross posts by the hundreds and soon were occupying every available bed in Boulogne, France. Operations during the next 18 months would bring new contingents of suffering humanity. Blaylock was deeply affected by what he saw, to the point that he was overcome by fatigue and psychological shock.

Related Biographies

ADAMSON, AGAR STEWART ALLAN MASTERTON
ALDERSON, Sir EDWIN ALFRED HERVEY
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BRILLANT, JEAN (baptized Jean-Baptiste-Arthur)
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Other Resources

10 Photos of Life in the Trenches | Imperial War Museums
ARCHIVED - Trench Warfare - Oral Histories of the First World War: Veterans 1914-1918 - Library and Archives Canada. Content archived on 25 Nov. 2019
BBC - Standard Grade Bitesize History - Trench warfare : Revision
BBC Bitesize - What was it like in a World War One trench?
First World War.com - Feature Articles - Life in the Trenches. Content archived on 24 Apr. 2024 (original link)
Life In The Trenches | WW1 Facts
Life as a soldier - The British Library. Content archived on 10 Mar. 2023
Life in the trenches of the First World War – The Long, Long Trail
Origins and Early Phases - Trench Warfare Starts | Canada and the First World War
Trench Conditions - Trench Routine | Canada and the First World War
Trench Warfare - Military History - Oxford Bibliographies
Trench warfare - Wikipedia
Trench warfare - World War I
World War One - What is a Trench? - History
german-front-line-trenches - World War I: Trench Warfare Pictures - World War I History - HISTORY.com
trench warfare | Definition, History, & Facts | Britannica.com

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Nous reconnaissons l'aide financière du Musée canadien de l'histoire à travers les œuvres du programme de référence en ligne financés par le gouvernement du Canada.

We acknowledge the support of the Government of Canada.


Nous reconnaissons l’appui du gouvernement du Canada.

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