Paper 1 - the british sector of the western front

Question 1

describe some features of trenches

Answer 1

floors had duckboards to prevent trench foot
they were in a zig-zag pattern to stop the bullets shooting straight down
they had dugouts in the walls to protect the soldiers from harsh weather/fire and for storage
wooden support beams prevented mud slides
barbed wire protected the top edges of the trenches by slowing down enemy attack and fire
support trench - the troops would retreat back here if the front-line trench became under attack
the reserve trench - where reserve troops could be mobilised if the frontline trench was captured by the enemy