1. Look at the images. What do they tell you about trench warfare?
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2. SOURCE 1
A German cavalryman ready for battle. Notice that he is wearing a gas mask. Each side
expected cavalry charges to be a key part of winning the war.
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3. 6 SOURCE © Hodder Murray Britain’s empire also contributed troops.
Around 1.5 million Indians and 15,000
West Indians fought in the British army.
Canadian, Australian and New Zealand
troops also fought.
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4. SOURCE 21
The trench system. This is an aerial photograph taken by British planes.
The British trenches are on the right. The main trench area is German.
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5. SOURCE
22A
Trenches in the Somme, July 1916.
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6. SOURCE
22B
Trenches in Guedecourt, December 1916.
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7. SOURCE 31
A British tank crossing a trench on the Western Front, September 1916.
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8. What was trench warfare like?

9. What do you think has happened to these men?

10. SOURCE 30
Gassed, a painting by John Singer Sargent. A famous portrait painter, Sargent was
commissioned in 1918 to paint a memorial picture of the soldiers killed and
injured in the war.
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11. Machine Guns Large armies Heavy Artillery Rifles Gas Weapons
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12. Learning objectives :
To know what warfare was like during the First World War
To understand why trench warfare resulted in so many casualties

13. © Hodder Murray

14. The trench system. This is an aerial photograph taken by British planes.
The British trenches are on the right. The main trench area is German.

15. Cross-section of a front-line trench
Cross-section of a front-line trench. These were supported by much stronger reserve trenches and linked by communication trenches. Many of their dug-outs and machine-gun posts were reinforced with concrete
which provided a stronger defence against artillery bombardment.

16. Trenches in the Somme, July 1916.

17. Task: Imagine that you are a new soldier to the frontline in 1914 and you have just arrived in the trenches. Write an extract from a letter home or a diary describing your experiences of the first few days in the trenches.
Try to use as many of the key terms as you can.
Remember that your audience will have no experience of trench warfare. How would you get across what it is like?

18. Assassination of Archduke Ferdinand
Short
System of alliances
Empires
Medium
Rivalry between Britain and Germany
Military build up
Long
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