Daily Routine in the Trenches

1
Daily Routine in the Trenches
2
Daily Life

• A general pattern for trench routine.
• 4 days in the front line, then 4 days in reserve
  and 4 at rest.
• In a year some 70 days in the front line, with
  another 30 in nearby support trenches. 
• A further 120 might be spent in reserve. 
• Only 70 days might be spent at rest. 
• The amount of leave varied but about two weeks.

3

• All of the men posted to the fire trench and had
  to wear their equipment at all times.
• Men in the front line had to keep their bayonets
  fixed during hours of darkness or mist, or
  whenever there was an alert of enemy activity.
• A man could not leave his post without permission
  of his commander, and an officer had to approve
  him leaving the trench.

How soldiers were trained in Britain!
4
Stand To

• The daily routine of life in the trenches began
  with the morning 'stand to'. 
• An hour before dawn everyone was roused from his
  sleep and ordered to climb up on the
  fire-fire-step to guard against a dawn raid by
  the enemy, bayonets fixed.
• Both sides would have machine gun fire, shelling
  and small arms fire, directed into the mist to
  their front.
• This made doubly sure of safety at dawn.

5
Rum, Rifles and the Breakfast Truce

• With stand to over, rum might then be issued to
  the men. 
• They would then clean their rifle and equipment,
  ready for inspection.
• Breakfast would be next. 
• In every area a truce while breakfast was served
  and eaten. 
• This truce often extended to the wagons which
  delivered the supplies.

6
Rations
7
Inspection and Chores

• After breakfast the men would be inspected by
  either the company or platoon commander.  Once
  this had been completed, Officers would assign
  daily chores to each man (except those who had
  been excused duty for a variety of reasons).
• Duties might include
• Refilling of sandbags,
• Repairing duckboards
• Draining trenches
• Rebuilding trench walls
• Preparation of latrines (toilets)
• Burying the dead

In addition, Every day, the battalion holding
the line would request from the nearby Brigade
workshop a list of stores it needed. Some
special items such as wire 'knife rests' (a
wooden support for a barbed wire entanglement),
signboards, boxes, and floor gratings would be
made up at Brigade and brought to the trenches
ready to use. Sandbags, wood, cement, barbed
wire, telephone cable, and other supplies would
also be sent up as needed. Men would be sent back
to Brigade as a carrying party to fetch it.
8
French Engineering Corps working on a
railwayThis railway is meant for the artillery,
to transport ammunition and guns
9
Free Time

• After men had finished their chores, they were
  free to work on personal matters
• e.g click on the buttons below to see free
  time in the Trenches

Reading and writing letters home
Telling stories
Washing
Snoozing
Getting a haircut
Preparing meals
Entertainment!
10
France   Trenches           8 February 1917 Dear
Will Nell At pres. my abode is in a brick oven.
On sentry last 4 days, a new cobber as the old
ones are away at school cept, Wal Chris and
they are signalling so only get to see them when
we get a shift. Came straight in here out of
hospital. The cold is dreadful, our post is
standing on bout 6 inches of ice everything has
been white nearly a month. Had heavy shelling
last night - lasting 2 hrs. Did alot of ducking I
tell you. Got much mail when I came back 8 one
day 15, 3 days later but to date no parcels.
Have had touch Rheumatism last 3 days. The
cousins (Eng) write pretty regularly. Sorry to
hear not much luck with crop. How I would like to
have a peep  at you all and the home and garden.
Our batt is much broke up expect newly organised
at an early date. Had a letter from Willie Whyte
last week. Old Fritz's planes are hovering round
this morn. Well I'll have to ring off my hands
are like stone. Love to you all No. 6084 Yours
Fondly XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX OOOOOOOOOOOOO Tell Lorna
she won't know her Uncle when he comes home.
Click to return
11
Haircut and
Click to return
12
Senegalese soldiers washing their linen in
troughs
Click to return
13
French poilu's cook their meal outside the
barracks.
Click to return
14
Australian soldiers asleep in a front line
trench, June 1916.
Click to return
15
Telling stories
Click to return
16
Soldiers in front of a theatre tent, 1917
Click to return
17
Dusk Stand To, Supply and Maintenance

• As night fell, the trenches became a hive of
  activity. 
• Supply and maintenance activities began as men
  were sent to the rear lines to fetch rations and
  water
• Some would be assigned sentry duty on the fire
  step.  Generally men would be expected to provide
  sentry duty for up to two hours.  Any longer and
  there was a real risk of men falling asleep on
  duty - for which the penalty was death by firing
  squad.

18
Patrolling No Man's Land

• Patrols would often be sent out into No Mans
  Land. 
• Some men would be tasked with repairing or adding
  barbed wire to the front line. 
• Others however would go out to listening posts,
  hoping to pick up valuable information from the
  enemy lines.
• Sometimes enemy patrols would meet in No Man's
  Land. 
• They were then faced with the option of hurrying
  on their separate ways or else engaging in hand
  to hand fighting.
• They could not afford to use their handguns while
  patrolling in No Man's Land, for fear of the
  machine gun fire it would inevitably attract,
  deadly to all members of the patrol.