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Not specifically frostbite but cold certainly played a part.

Many soldiers fighting in the First World War suffered from trench foot. This was an infection of the feet caused by cold, wet and insanitary conditions when it was almost impossible to wash and dry the feet. The trenches were wet and the soldiers boots were soaked for long periods, sometimes weeks at a time and the skin of the feet became waterlogged pretty much the same as if you sit in a bath for a long time and your feet go wrinkly. Fungal infections like athletes foot took hold in the skin and simply got worse and worse.

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15y ago

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What type of warfare characterizes World War 1?

Trench Warefare


What type of warfare saw soldiers in a stalemate after digging ditches for safety?

Trench Warfare


Why were sleeping conditions in the trenches in World War 1 bad?

Sleeping conditions in WW1 trenches were so bad for a numerous amount of reasons. one is that the poor hygiene left the soldiers invested with lice which would practically eat them alive until they came up with the idea to use a hot iron on their clothing which would "pop" the lice to their death. My second reason is the trenches were invested with tomcat sized rats which would eat their food and the dead bodies of soldiers who sometimes couldn't be properly buried after a cave in, etc. Another reason was that the soldiers would get many diseases such as trench foot and trench mouths, or gums. Trench foot is the rotting away of the foot due to a wet boot causing moisture to soak into the foot which soldiers would walk on and the skin would rot away causing the foot to get diseased. Trench mouth was poor hygiene in the mouth creating the gums in the mouth to rot away and become diseased. Both of these conditions were extremely painful. Also, soldiers had absolutely no comfort, as they slept on the dirt and used each other to stay out of the mud leaning back to back. In the trench the soldiers were always under some type of artillery fire sometimes "Screaming Mimi's or invasions from their enemies.


Why was trench warfare famous?

Trench warfare is famous because of its large scale use during World War 1. During the war, both sides used this type of warfare for protection.


What is life like in the trenches for the typical British soldier?

For the soldiers life in the trenches was really tough. The soldiers shared there beds with mice and rats. Also it was not only summer whilst in the trenches it was also winter meaning frequent rain. This made the soldiers lives umbearable and gave them trench foot. Type that into the internet and you will see how horrific life for the soldiers realy was.