Flashcards
History
Cards in this deck (32)
- 1Rat InfestationThe trenches were alive with rats. Rats fed on dead bodies in No Man´s Land. Soldiers awakened by rats running over them. (a single rat couple could produce up to 900 offspring(babies) in a year.)
- 2Lice InfestationLice were common in the front-line because the rarely washed if ever. men constantly itched them self.
Lice caused- trench fever, a particularly painful disease that began suddenly with severe pain followed by high fever, recovery- away from the trench- took up to 12 weeks. lice was not identified till after the war (1918) - 3Trench footTrench foot was an infection if the feet caused by cold, wet and unhygienic conditions. Soldiers stood hours in waterlogged trenches without being able to remove wet socks or boots. The feet would gradually go numb & the skin would turn red or blue, if untreated trench foot could turn gangrenous and result in amputation. Recovery- dry their feet & change their socks several times a day.
- 4FoodMain food- Tinned bully beef with bread, jam or biscuit. Little drinking water so soldiers drank rum. water was treated with chlorine to kill germs so had an unpleasant taste.
- 5Boredom & Camaraderietrench chores of refilling sandbags, repairing the duckboards, draining the trenches & trench floor many became bored. To relieve the boredom, they used to write letters home and diaries.
- 6Camaraderie 2Many soldiers enlisted with their friends, this meant that they were often I the same ´PALS´ battalion as them & fought alongside them in the trenches. To pass the time they would sing, talk about home & write letters. They would try to help & protect each other.
- 7The Schlieffen PlanUsing this plan the Germans invaded Belgium and then France. They thought they would be able to avoid the French defences and defeat them very quickly . The plan did not work, the French and the British armies ´dug in´ & stopped the German advance. In doing this they had started trench warfare.
- 8Barbed wireto make running at the trench difficult
- 9Sand bagsto stop the trench collapsing.
- 10Fire stepto shoot from
- 11Duck boardsstopped by the bottom of the trench getting very muddy & slippery.
- 12´Dug In´The Germans were advancing very quickly & the only way to stop them was to put a large barrier in their way.
- 13Advantages of a trenchEasy to make, easy to defend, cheap to build, don't need lots of men to defend them.
- 14Disadvantages of a trenchwet, cold, hard to get in and out of without being seen by the enemy. Trenches were very dirty and unhygienic as there was no running water or flushing toilets.
- 15Western FrontWas the border between Belgium-Germany and France where most of the fighting took place.
- 16Gas- the chemists´ warCompressed liquid chlorine & mustard gas
- 17Set up of the trenchesThe Firing trenches were the front line trenches, support trenches were next with reserve trenches at the back.
- 18´Going over the top´going out and over the trenches
- 19Weapons-Rifles & pistols
-Machine guns
-Artillery
-Bayonets
-Torpedoes
-Flame throwers
-Mustard gas & chlorine gases
-Smoke less gun powder
(Later on)- Tanks
-Zeppelins
-Planes - 20Women & the war effortSome joined Volunteer Aid Detachments as nurses or ambulance drivers. Munitions factories(making military supplies) making shells, guns and aircraft.
- 21ConscriptionMeant compulsory military service for men.
- 22Defence of the Realm ActDefence of the Realm Act(DORA). This act gave the government powers to control what people did and it meant that the government could pass laws without asking the parliament
- 23CensorshipIn e.g. newspapers they don't tell the full story (e.g. twenty thousand British soldiers died on the first day of the battle of the somme. wont be in it)
- 24AliensForeign citizens, lived and worked In Britain for many years were ordered to register aliens
- 25Conscientious ObiectorsMen refused to join up he had to face a tribunal and his claim for exemption would be considered.
- 26Derby Schemeinvited men of military age (between 18 and 41) to promise that they would join up were asked to do so.
- 27absolutistsabsolutists refused to help the business of fighting in any way. Needed great courage to be an absolutist.
- 28Censorship and propagandacensorship was one way to influence people. The other was propaganda posters.
One result of censorship and propaganda was that few people had any idea of what it was like to fight In France. - 29Why propaganda?Moral of the country needed to be kept up so that people would support the war effort.
- 30Suffragetteswomen were not allowed to vote in elections.
- 31How did women try to change their situation?Women campaigned to change men's attitudes.
Women were still not allowed to vote in elections. - 32Who were the suffragettes?Some woman became so frustrated that men wouldn't give them the vote that they decided to form a new organisation. They were called Suffragettes. The leader of the Suffragettes was Emmeline Pankhurst.