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The 1st world war began in 1914 and lasted until 1918. No-one could have imagined the horrendous conditions the men on the western front would have to live and fight in. When the war began in France there was a deadlock which meant that each side had to dig treched for protection. These trenches stretched from channel ports to Switzerland.

Trenches were built wherever the enemy was found, no matter what was in the way. A trench was usually 2 metres wide and 2 metres deep, and was dug in a zigzag so that the blast from an exploding shell would be confined to only a small section of the trench. Firing steps helped the soldiers to fire through the parapet, a fire-step was dug into the forward side of the trench. The fire-step was 2 or 3 ft high. The elbow rest was also built in the front line.

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15y ago

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