Trench Warfare
in World War I
Trench Structure
• Protected by barb wire fences 5 feet high
• Concrete machine gun nests
• Trench’s on each side were separated by a
strip of land known as “no-man’s land”
Tactics of Trench Warfare
• Begin with artillery to flatten the enemy’s
barbed wire
• Mass of soldiers would climb out with
bayonets and run toward the enemy’s
trench
• Men were often killed charging the enemy
trench
• Planes were mostly used to spot the
enemy’s position
Horrors of Trench Warfare
• Poisonous gases like chlorine and mustard
were used
– Blindness, burns, and paralysis.
• Most trenches were infested with large
rats and lice
Horrors cont’d
• Many soldiers suffered from a fungal
infection known as Trench foot
– Caused feet to swell to two to three times their
normal size
– Could result in amputation of the feet
• Many suffered from “Shell Shock,” which
today would be called Post-Traumatic
Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Some men had psychological breakdowns
leading to suicide and desertion
Questions to consider…
• If your country is at war, whose
responsibility is it to make sure that your
side is winning?
• What do civilians at home have to do?
– Would they be willing to give up certain
foods? To drive their cars less?
• American citizens were expected to do
these things for their country
World War I:
The Home
Front
Propaganda
• Governments use propaganda to gain
support from the people
• In World War I it was used to…
– Convince people to go to war
– To get men to join the military
– To get people to invest money in the
government
– To get people to ration food
Examples
• Look at the posters and be able to answer
the following questions:
– What is the poster about?
– What is the poster trying to convince people to
do?
– Who, exactly, is the poster appealing to?
– Is the poster effective?
• 1) What is the poster
about?
• 2) What is the poster
trying to convince
people to do?
• 3) Is the poster
convincing? Why or
why not?
What are the
characteristics of these
propaganda posters?
•
•
•
•
They have a CLEAR MESSAGE
They are colorful and appealing
They appeal to people’s sense of DUTY
They are convincing
Break into partners…
• You and your partner are government
officials during World War I
• It is your job to design a propaganda
poster advertising one of the following
issues
– Using less food
– Saving energy (gasoline and coal)
– Joining the military
• Remember the four characteristics of
propaganda poster!