The effects of the trenches Lesson starter: 1. Describe the condition ‘Shell Shock’. 2. In what other ways did the war affect men psychologically?

Today we will… Identify the physical effects of living in the trenches Identify the psychological effects of living in trenches

I can… Create a mind map on living in the trenches Describe some effects of living in the trenches

What do you think each of these mean? There were two types of effects the trenches had on men… PHYSICAL And PSYCHOLOGICAL What do you think each of these mean?

Vocabulary Physical – affecting the body Psychological – affecting the mind Take notes as part of your mind map as we move through today’s presentation

psychological The effects of the trenches physical

Trench foot Trench Foot was an extremely painful condition that caused a soldiers foot to swell up and go numb. Soldiers would often have to have their foot amputated as a result of this. Dry socks and whale-oil grease helped to prevent it.

Early stages

Trench foot inspection

Lice These parasites were rife in the trenches Caused terrible itching

German soldiers picking lice off uniforms

Trench fever This fever could last for up to five days It was carried from man to man through body lice The symptoms were much like a bad flu – fever, nausea, diarrhoea etc

Rats Trench Rats Primary sources tell us about ‘rats the size of cats’ They feasted on dead bodies and soldier’s rations

Rat hunting in the trenches

Gas Chlorine gas was greeny-yellow and caused you to choke violently and stopped you being able to see It caused a terrible slow painful death Gas masks were developed by both sides

Mustard gas was even worse It damaged skin, leaving huge red blisters which were agony It also caused internal bleeding and could blind you

Shells Shells caused the most injuries of any weapons Shrapnel would fly off exploding shells and give men terrible injuries Some were blinded or killed by 200mph flying shrapnel

Shell Shock This was classed as a mental illness during WW1 Those who had shell shock had slower reaction times and tired easily They often could not concentrate and were very nervous The noise and impact of shells was blamed

Other psychological effects Men watched friends and family die They also had to kill fathers, brothers, sons Many suffered from Depression Stress Hallucinations Anxiety Nightmares These things had a huge stigma attached to them in those days and men were discouraged from discussing their feelings…

Trench rats

Trench Foot

Shell shock

Trench mouth

Gas

Lice

conchie

pacifist

You should now have a detailed mind map showing both physical and psychological effects of trench warfare You will now watch several Video clips about trench life Add any points you take from these to your mind map BBC Clips - trenches

Today we will… Understand the physical effects of living in the trenches Understand the psychological effects of living in trenches