Describe the nature of trench warfare on the Western Front and explain why the war became a long and deadly stalemate

What this dot point is asking

This dot point asks you to describe what fighting in the First World War was actually like, especially on the Western Front, and to explain why the war turned into a long and deadly stalemate. A stalemate is a situation in which neither side can win and nothing moves forward. You should be able to describe the trenches and the conditions soldiers lived in, and then explain the reasons why attacks kept failing and the front line barely shifted for years. The key idea is that, in this war, defending was far easier than attacking.

The answer

What the trenches were

When the German advance through Belgium and France was halted in 1914, both sides dug in. They built long lines of trenches, deep ditches in the ground, stretching from the coast all the way to the Swiss border. The opposing trenches faced each other across a strip of churned-up ground called no man's land. The trenches were protected by thick coils of barbed wire, and behind them sat machine guns and artillery. This system of defences was extremely strong and very hard to break through.

Life in the trenches

Conditions in the trenches were grim. Soldiers lived in mud and water, which could cause a painful condition called trench foot. Rats and lice were everywhere. The men faced the constant danger of artillery shells exploding around them and of being shot if they raised their heads above the trench. Disease spread easily, and the noise, fear and lack of sleep wore men down. Understanding these conditions helps you read sources about the soldiers' experience and explain why morale could fall.

Why attacks failed

To win, an army had to leave its own trench, cross no man's land, get through the enemy's barbed wire, and capture the enemy trench. This was almost impossible. As soon as soldiers climbed out and advanced across the open ground, they came under fire from machine guns, which could fire hundreds of bullets a minute and cut down whole lines of men. The barbed wire slowed the attackers down and trapped them in the killing zone. Even when an attack captured a stretch of trench, the gains were usually tiny and the cost in lives enormous.

The new weapons

This was a modern, industrial war, and new weapons made it especially deadly. The machine gun was the great defensive weapon that made attacks so costly. Heavy artillery could fire huge shells that destroyed trenches and killed men from a distance. Poison gas was used to try to break the deadlock, choking and blinding soldiers, though gas masks soon reduced its effect. New weapons such as the tank and the aeroplane appeared, and over time the tank would help end the stalemate, but for much of the war the balance favoured the defender.

Why the stalemate lasted so long

The stalemate dragged on for years because each side kept trying the same approach: a massive bombardment followed by an infantry attack, hoping to break through. Huge battles such as those on the Somme and at Verdun in 1916 caused enormous casualties yet moved the front line only a little. The generals struggled to find a way past the strength of the defences. Only late in the war, with new tactics, more tanks, and fresh troops, did movement finally return to the battlefield.

Examples in context

Example 1. The Battle of the Somme. In 1916 the British launched a massive attack on the Somme, beginning with a week-long bombardment meant to destroy the German defences. But the wire was not fully cut and the machine guns survived, so when the soldiers advanced they were cut down in huge numbers on the first day. After months of fighting, the front had moved only a few miles. The battle became a symbol of how costly and how stuck trench warfare was.

Example 2. Poison gas. Gas was first used to try to break the stalemate by clearing enemy trenches. It caused choking, blindness and panic, and could be horrifying. But both sides quickly issued gas masks, and the wind could blow the gas back on the attackers, so gas never delivered the breakthrough each side hoped for. This shows how hard it was to escape the deadlock even with terrible new weapons.

Try this

• Cue. Describe the trench system, naming the trenches, no man's land and barbed wire, and explain why these defences were so strong.

• Cue. Explain why the machine gun made attacking across no man's land so deadly.

• Cue. Using the Battle of the Somme as an example, explain how a huge attack could cost many lives but gain very little ground.