Trench warfare final essay

Submitted By David-Montaleza
Words: 1558
Pages: 7
Open Document
David Junior Montaleza
Mr. Dormer
Global 10
21 May 2015 Summer Research Paper: The impact of trench warfare and advanced weaponry in World War 1 was massive and very destructive. It destroyed many families, town, and countries since it had a great power of effect on its target. When soldiers left to go to war they expected lush battlefields and valiant fighting, instead they got dirty, unhygienic trenches with battles playing out for months to year on end in an uneasy stale mate. Trench warfare was horrific and the ongoing effects as a result were extensive. “A trench used solely as an obstacle against an advancing enemy should be broad and deep enough that it cannot be jumped over or crossed by vehicles. It can be reinforced by barbed wire or mines and filled with water or burning material. The defender often covers such an obstacle by direct or indirect fire.” (Trench Warfare) This was the first year trench warfare was used in war and it surely had a very significant affect on the end and battles during the war. War will never be the same since new tactics were being used to defend and attack by different armies. Trench warfare especially had a great impact on psychological of the soldiers in the trenches, on many families who lost their loved ones and also on the health and sanitation of many of the soldiers in the trenches. One very major problem that trench warfare had on soldiers in trenches were psychological problems of shell shock especially. Shell shock was a very bad condition that affected all the soldiers in the trenches during World War 1. The horrifying shell shock was caused by multiple shells hitting the trenches of the armies during war. Throughout all of World War 1, the impact of shell shock was not determined to be anything but instead the soldiers who suffered from it were treated and seen as cowards and worthless. “Traumatic events such as natural disasters or accidents can trigger PTSD, and it is quite common among combat veterans. In World War I, PTSD was called shell-shock, in World War II, combat fatigue. Several unique aspects of the Vietnam experience, however, contributed to greater incidence of PTSD: the one-year individual tour of duty, as opposed to rotations of entire platoons, which made combat an individual, rather than a shared group, experience; the uncertain and unpredictable nature of guerrilla combat in the jungle in which booby traps and ambushes were used extensively; the moral ambiguities surrounding the war; and the treatment veterans received upon returning home.” (Post-traumatic Stress Disorder) During World War 1, all the doctors were not able to determine what shell shock really was until war was over and they finally found out what it truly was. The condition of shell shock became a major problem in World War 1 because it was effecting multiple numbers of sliders in different countries, causing the armies to lose various soldiers a day. Higher raked officials were sent home because of it so that they wouldn't get affected by it in any way. With doctors unable to define the reasoning behind shell shock there was no apparent treatment. Doctors during this time believe that this state of being was caused by various bombarding in the trenches or of soldiers being buried alive. But doctors somehow also concluded that shell shock conditions also affected this soldiers who have not been through any bombarding or of being buried alive.

Another very dramatic impact of trench warfare in World War 1 were that many families had to cope with the death or disabilitation of their husbands, fathers and brothers. This was very harsh to many people and in the Australian military around 70,000 died throughout World War 1. Various problems like multiple women becoming widowed and had to take on the responsibility of both looking after their kids and also houses. This caused many women to leave their houses and look for jobs to be able to support and maintain their
Show More

Related Documents: Trench warfare final essay

The Russian Revolution and Alliance Partners Essay

her alliance partner: Austria-Hungary 1. All the other alliance promises (public and secret) * How the war started for each nation * Each nation has a different reason for entering * There will be short answer/ essay * Know details * Austria and Serbia * The Annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina caused dismay in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia * Infuriated the Serbs * Once Serbia gained independence…

Words 1908 - Pages 8

civil war Essay

“Why is the Civil War Considered as the First Modern War” Essay The American Civil War or quite simply the Civil War as it is known to many Americans, is regarded as America’s bloodiest war, claiming more lives than any other war in American history. It is a war that shook the constitutions of America by its roots and helped shape America into the nation it is today. Many people have questions they would like answered about the war, for instance, why was it considered as the first…

Words 2039 - Pages 9

Civil War Terms Essay

Sugar Act (1764) Revenue-raising act passed by the British parliament on sugar and sugar products Was stricter enforcement of earlier Molasses Act of 1733 Angered colonists, taxation without representation Stamp Act (1765) Direct tax on the colonies requiring all printed materials (legal documents, deeds, newspapers, magazines, etc.) to have a stamp on them Colonists had to pay stamp collectors to get stamps Declaratory Act (1766) Repealed the Stamp Act ...but, said parliament "had, hath, and…

Words 8628 - Pages 35