First World War Centenary

WW I in Photos (2)
Manual Advance
World War I : The Western Front
When we think of World War I, images of the bloody, muddy
Western Front are generally what come to mind. Scenes of
frightened young men standing in knee-deep mud, awaiting the
call to go o!er the top, facing machine guns, barbed wire,
mortars, bayonets, hand-to-hand battles, and more.
The stalemate on the Western Front lasted for four years, forcing
the ad!ancement of new technologies, bleeding the resources of
the belligerent nations, and destroying the surrounding
countryside.
"ooking out across a battlefield from an #n$ac pill bo% near the &elgian city of 'pres in West Flanders in ()(*. When +erman forces met stiff resistance in northern France in
()(,, a race to the sea de!eloped as France and +ermany tried to outflank each other, establishing battle lines that stretched from Swit$erland to the -orth Sea. #llies and
.entral /owers literally dug in, e%ca!ating thousands of miles of defensi!e trenches, and trying desperately to break through the other side for years, at unspeakably huge cost
in blood and treasure. 01ames Francis 2urley3State "ibrary of -ew South Wales4
French soldiers on horseback in street, with an airship 5upuy 5e "ome flying in air behind them, between ca. ()(,.0"ibrary of .ongress4
# French pilot made an emergency landing in friendly territory after a failed attempt to attack a +erman 6eppelin hangar near &russels, &elgium, in ()(7. Soldiers are climbing up
the tree where the biplane has landed. 0-ationaal #rchief4
+erman officers in a discussion on the Western Front. 0The man 8nd from right, in fur collar is possibly 9aiser Willhelm, the caption does not indicate4. The +erman war plan
had been for a swift, decisi!e !ictory in France. "ittle planning had been done for a long-term, slow-mo!ing slog of a battle. 0#/ /hoto4
French soldiers in a bayonet charge, up a steep slope in the #rgonne Forest in ()(7. 5uring the Second &attle of .hampagne, ,7:,::: French soldiers ad!anced against a force
of 88:,::: +ermans, momentarily gaining a small amount of territory, but losing it back to the +ermans within weeks. .ombined casualties came to more than 8(7,::: from this
battle alone. 0#gence de presse ;eurisse4
# downed +erman twin-engined bomber being towed through a street by #llied soldiers, likely from #ustralia, in France.0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
Si% +erman soldiers pose in a in trench with machine gun, a mere ,: meters from the &ritish line, according to the caption pro!ided. The machine gun appears to be a
;aschinengewehr :<, or ;+ :<, capable of firing ,7:-7:: rounds a minute. The large cylinder is a =acket around the barrel, filled with water to cool the metal during rapid fire.
The soldier at right, with gas mask canister slung o!er his shoulder, is peering into a periscope to get a !iew of enemy acti!ity. The soldier at rear, with steel helmet, holds a
potato masher model 8, grenade. 0"ibrary of .ongress4
2arnessed dogs pull a &ritish #rmy machine gun and ammo, ()(,. These weapons could weigh as much as (7: pounds.0&ibliothe>ue nationale de France4
+erman capti!e balloon at ?>uancourt, France, on September 88, ()(@. Abser!ation balloons were used by both sides to gain an ad!antage of height across relati!ely flat
terrain. Abser!ers were lifted in a small gondola suspended below the hydrogen-filled balloons. 2undreds were shot down during the course of the war. 0.. &' S# &en=amin
2irschfeld4
French Beser!es from the CS#, some of the two million fighters in the &attle of the ;arne, fought in September of ()(,. The First &attle of the ;arne was a decisi!e week-long
battle that halted the initial +erman ad!ance into France, short of /aris, and led to the race to the sea. 0Cnderwood D Cnderwood4
Soldiers struggle to pull a huge piece of artillery through mud. The gun has been placed on a track created for a light railway. The soldiers are pushing a de!ice, attached to the
gun, that possibly slots into the tracks. Some of the men are in a ditch that runs alongside the track, the rest are on the track itself. # makeshift caterpillar tread has been fitted
to the wheels of the gun, in an attempt to aid its mo!ement through the mud. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
;embers of -ew 6ealandEs ;aori /ioneer &attalion perform a haka for -ew 6ealandEs /rime ;inister William ;assey and 5eputy /rime ;inister Sir 1oseph Ward in &ois-de
Warnimont, France, during World War I, on 1une F:, ()(<.02enry #rmytage Sanders3-ational "ibrary of -ew 6ealand4
In France, a &ritish machine-gun team. The gun, which appears to be a Gickers, is mounted on the front of a motorcycle side car.0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
# +erman prisoner, wounded and muddy, helped by a &ritish soldier along a railway track. # man, possibly in French military uniform, is shown behind them, holding a camera
and tripod, ca. ()(@. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
Three dead +erman soldiers outside their pill bo% near 6onnebeke, &elgium. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
+erman soldiers make obser!ations from atop, beneath, and behind large haystacks in southwest &elgium, ca. ()(7.0"ibrary of .ongress4
;ountains of shell cases on the roadside near the front lines, the contents of which had been fired into the +erman lines.0Tom #itken3-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
# French soldier smokes a cigarette, standing near the bodies of se!eral soldiers, apparently +ermans, near Souain, France, ca. ()(7.0&ibliothe>ue nationale de France
Francois-;itterrand4
Soldiers in trenches during write letters home. "ife in the trenches was summed up by the phrase which later became well-known: ;onths of boredom punctuated by
moments of e%treme terror. 0-etherlands -ationaal #rchief4
#t .ambrai, +erman soldiers load a captured &ritish ;ark I tank onto a railroad, in -o!ember of ()(*. Tanks were first used in battle during World War I, in September of ()(@,
when ,) &ritish ;ark I tanks were sent in during the &attle of Flers-.ourcelette.05eutsches &undesarchi!4
#t a height of (7: meters abo!e the fighting line, a French photographer was able to capture a photograph of French troops on the Somme Front, launching an attack on the
+ermans, ca. ()(@. The smoke may ha!e been deployed intentionally, as a screening de!ice to mask the ad!ance. 0-#B#3C.S. War 5ept.4
&ritish soldiers on Gimy Bidge, ()(*. &ritish and .anadian forces pushed through +erman defenses at the &attle of Gimy Bidge in #pril of ()(*, ad!ancing as far as si% miles in
three days, retaking high ground and the town of Thelus, at the cost of nearly ,,::: dead.0&ibliothe>ue nationale de France4
#n e%plosion near trenches dug into the grounds of Fort de la /ompelle, near Beims, France. 0San 5iego #ir and Space ;useum4
French soldiers wearing gas masks in a trench, ()(*. gas mask technology !aried widely during the war, e!entually de!eloping into an effecti!e defense, limiting the !alue of
gas attacks in later years. 0&ibliothe>ue nationale de France4
+assed patients are treated at the F8@th Field 2ospital near Boyaumei%, France, on #ugust <, ()(<. The hospital was not large enough to accommodate the large number of
patients. 0.. &' Atis 2istorical #rchi!es4
&ritish soldiers and 2ighlanders with +erman prisoners walk past war ruins and a dead horse, after the &attle of the ;enin Boad Bidge, part of the Third &attle of 'pres in
September of ()(*. The sign near the railroad tracks reads 0possibly4: -o Trains. "orries for Walking Wounded at .hateau H/oti=$eIJ. 0&ibliothe>ue nationale de France4
.leaning up +erman trenches at St. /ierre 5i!ion. In the foreground a group of &ritish soldiers are sorting through e>uipment abandoned in the trenches by the +ermans when
St /ierre 5i!ion was captured. Ane soldier has three rifles slung on his shoulder, another has two. Athers are looking at machine gun ammunition. The probable photographer,
1ohn Warwick &rooke, has achie!ed considerable depth of field as many other soldiers can be seen in the background far along the trenches. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
&ringing .anadian wounded to the Field 5ressing Station, Gimy Bidge in #pril of ()(*. +erman prisoners assist in pushing the rail car.0.. &' 8.: Wellcome "ibrary, "ondon4
An the &ritish front, .hristmas 5inner, ()(@, in a shell hole beside a gra!e. 0&ibliothe>ue nationale de France4
&ritish ;kIG &ear tank, abandoned after battle near In!erness .opse, on #ugust 88 , ()(*. 0&rett &utterworth4
# mine tunnel is dug under the +erman lines on the Gosges front, on Actober (), ()(@. The sappers worked at a depth of about (* meters, until they reached a spot below
enemy positions, when large e%plosi!es would be placed and later detonated, destroying anything abo!e. 05er Weltkrieg im &ild3Cpper #ustrian Federal State "ibrary4
;en wounded in the 'pres battle of September 8:th, ()(*. Walking along the ;enin road, to be taken to the clearing station. +erman prisoners are seen assisting at stretcher
bearing. 0.aptain +. Wilkins3State "ibrary of Gictoria4
SoldierEs comrades watch him as he sleeps, near Thie!pal, France. Soldiers are standing in a !ery deep, narrow trench, the walls of which are entirely lined with sandbags. #t the
far end of the trench a line of soldiers are s>uashed up looking o!er each othersE shoulders at the sleeping man. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
+ermans put the finishing touches on a deadly barbed wire entanglement in -o ;anEs "and, the area in-between opposing trenches. The #llies routinely targeted the barbed wire
with artillery shells prior to any ad!ance by foot soldiers, but this was not always effecti!e, lea!ing some sections intact, resulting in a high death toll of entangled men killed by
machine-gunners.
French soldiers make a gas and flame attack on +erman trenches in Flanders, &elgium, on 1anuary (, ()(*. &oth sides used different gases as weapons during the war, both
asphy%iants and irritants, often to de!astating effect. 0-ational #rchi!es4
?!olution of the combat gas mask from its ineffecti!e beginnings to the familiar full face style 0on right4 which also came in !ersions for dogs and horses.
+erman 5efensi!e /ositions. # +erman machine-gun crew fires from a solid defensi!e position, taking ad!antage of the high ground and 87 yards of barbed wire along a ri!er
bank. In choosing to go on the defensi!e all along the Western Front, the +ermans selected ideal terrain, lea!ing the #llies at a constant disad!antage.
+erman 5efensi!e /ositions. # +erman trench dugout (7-feet below ground, supported by hea!y log construction and sand bags. +erman trenches were generally much more
elaborate than &ritish or French trenches. #llied commanders thought a lack of comfort would preser!e the offensi!e spirit needed to win.
-on-?uropeans in France. Troops from India after their arri!al in France to =oin the &ritish in the trenches of the Western Front. A!er a million Indian soldiers ser!ed with the
&ritish during the war in France, &elgium, the ;iddle ?ast and elsewhere.
9aiser Gisits the Front. +erman infantry at the Front parade for 9aiser Wilhelm 0seen on left4. The 9aiser also liked informal encounters, often mingling with his troops amid their
affectionate shouts of 2ochK 2ochK meaning high or e%alted, although this practice diminished as +ermanyEs fortunes declined.
9aiser Gisits the Front. The 9aiserEs eldest son and heir, .rown /rince Frederick Wilhelm, at the wheel. In pre-war ?urope, the international press had followed the young
/rinceEs e!ery mo!e, including !arious romances, world tra!els, personality traits etc. 5uring the war his popularity among +ermans was o!ershadowed by 2indenburg. The
military minded /rince had command of an army on the Western Front, but pro!ed to be incompetent. Ance he made up his mind, he was unwilling to heed contrary ad!ice
from e%perienced generals. Thus he wasted the li!es of some of +ermanyEs best regiments, especially around Gerdun. Begardless, he was repeatedly praised and decorated by
his father. Ane general, howe!er, spoke up. When called on the carpet by the 9aiser to answer for a bungled maneu!er and its e%cessi!e troop loses, the general reportedly
told the 9aiser, ItEs not my fault. 'our brat of a son insisted upon it. The general promptly saluted, then immediately e%ited the room and shot himself dead.
Trench 5epression. +ermans at &erry au &ac, north of Beims--participants in trench warfare with no end in sight. ;any soldiers along the Western Front e%perienced shell shock a generic term
coined by the &ritish for psychoneurotic disorders including depression, hysteria, se!ere an%iety, physical or mental paralysis, and other manifestations of emotional breakdown caused by years of
tension and stress. Such soldiers were remo!ed from acti!e duty while attempts were made to rehabilitate them through rest, psychotherapy, hypnosis and in some cases electro-shock therapy
# large scale &ritish attack utili$ing flame throwers or E"i>uid FireE as it was known at the time. Flame throwers were introduced by the +ermans in early ()(7, then copied by the
French and &ritish. Throughout the war both sides duplicated each otherEs e!er-more-lethal battlefield technology.
Western Front, France. &lack and white photograph of in=ured soldiers.
Western Front, France. &lack and white photograph of two &ritish soldiers in a landscape. # posed photograph of one soldier in an ammunition bo% filled with water asking the
other to scrub his back.
Western Front, France. &lack and white photograph of &ritish and german soldiers in a trench. The captured +erman soldiers are being searched by &ritish troops, although
they ha!e retained their ration tins and e!en a pipe, they ha!e clearly been disarmed.
World War I : The Soldiers and .i!ilians
When looking through thousands of images of World War I, some of the
more striking photos are not of technological wonders or battle-scarred
landscapes, but of the human beings caught up in the chaos. The
soldiers were men, young and old, and the opportunity to look into their
faces and see the emotion, their humanity, instead of a uniform or
nationality, is a gift - a real window into the world a century ago. While
soldiers bore the brunt of the war, ci!ilians were in!ol!ed on a massi!e
scale as well. From the millions of refugees forced from their homes, to
the !olunteer ambulance dri!ers, cooks, and nurses, to the ci!ilian
support groups used by all ma=or armies, ordinary people found
themsel!es at war.
French soldiers stand in a rela%ed group wearing medals. The medals appear to be the ;ilitary ;edal, established on 87th ;arch, ()(@, for acts of bra!ery. They ha!e probably
been awarded for their part in the &attle of the Somme. The French helmets, with their !ery distinct crests, can be seen clearly. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
Three unidentified -ew 6ealand ser!icemen riding camels during World War I, the Sphin% and a pyramid in the background.01ames ;c#llister3-ational "ibrary of -ew 6ealand4
# French officer has tea with ?nglish military personnel during World War I. 0"ibrary of .ongress4
1uly 8<, ()(, The #ustro-2ungarian ?mpire declares war on Serbia. 1uly 8), ()(, &ritain calls for international mediation to resol!e the worsening crisis. Bussia urges +erman
restraint, but the Bussians begin partial troop mobili$ation as a precaution. The +ermans then warn Bussia on its mobili$ation and begin to mobili$e themsel!es. #ugust (, ()(,
- +ermany declares war on Bussia. /hoto: +ermans .heer 5eclaration. 2ats are raised in &erlin upon the announcement of +ermanyEs declaration of war.
Western front, a group of captured #llied soldiers representing < nationalities: #namite 0Gietnamese4, Tunisian, Senegalese, Sudanese, Bussian, #merican, /ortugese, and
?nglish. 0-ational #rchi!e3Afficial +erman /hotograph of WWI4
+erman prisoners assist in bringing in #ustralian wounded. 0-ational ;edia ;useum3#ustralian War Becords Section4
C.S. Signal .orps telephone operators in #d!ance Sector, F km from the trenches in France. The women were part of the Signal .orps Female Telephone Aperators Cnit and
were also known as 2ello +irls. Women ha!e helmets and gas masks in bags on back of chairs. 0-ational World War I ;useum, 9ansas .ity, ;issouri, CS#4
&ritish soldier poses in mouth of a captured F< caliber gun during World War I. 0#/ /hoto4
Becruits line up at a -ew 'ork army camp shortly after /resident Woodrow Wilson declared war on +ermany, in #pril of ()(*.0#/ /hoto4
Bussian .$ar -icholas II at the Front along with the si%-foot-si% tall Bussian #rmy .ommander-in-.hief +rand 5uke -icholas 0standing in car4 and .ount 5obrinsky. #lthough
the .$ar had no military aptitude, he relie!ed the +rand 5uke in September ()(7 and took personal command of the worldEs largest army, with (@ million men mobili$ed--an
army sprawled across the gigantic ?astern Front. The .$arEs preoccupation with military matters and his e%tended absence from the home front led to a worsening of BussiaEs
internal political situation, weakening his power and helping to pa!e the way for re!olution.
Accupied France. #n encounter between French ci!ilians and a +erman guard in occupied France. Ten percent of eastern France remained in the possession of the +erman
#rmy for the warEs duration. 5uring the occupation, many thousands of ci!ilians, including teenage girls and boys, were taken away for forced labor. ?!erything of !alue, including
the contents of shops and factories, household goods and personal possessions, and e!en church bells, was confiscated and remo!ed to +ermany. "ocal foodstuffs and li!estock
were sei$ed and fed to the occupying army, causing ci!ilian malnutrition.
Sou!enir 9ing 2is name was 1ohn 0&arney4 2ines and he was an #ustralian soldier. /icture probably made after the &attle of /olygon Wood, near 'pres, Flanders, ()(*.
;any soldiers took sou!enirs from the battlefields or, sometimes, stole them directly from captured or dead enemies. /ri!ate &arney 2ines was known as the Sou!enir 9ing
due to his escapades of robbing the +erman dead. #pparently the 9aiser heard of him and branded him a barbarian... typical of #ustralian Troops on the Western
Front. 0Frank 2urley3-ational ;edia ;useum4
+ermans off to the ?ast. +erman troops en route to ?ast /russia to fend off the in!asion of +ermany from the east by the Bussian #rmy--an in!asion launched although the
Bussians were not sufficiently mobili$ed. The Bussians had responded to urgent appeals from France for action in the east to di!ert +erman resources from the Western Front.
This bought time for the French and &ritish, allowing them to better organi$e their own troops, and hurt the +ermans by cutting down on the number of troops in!ading France.
# member of the &ritish First #id -ursing 'eomanry oiling her car near the Western Front. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
Suffering of #rmenians. #n #rmenian woman kneels beside a dead child lying in a field in Syria. The #rmenians had been forcibly uprooted from their homes and marched south
toward the Syrian 5esert by the Turks.
5ressed in a rather e%otic uniform of army boots, army caps and fur coats, this image shows fi!e female members of the First #id -ursing 'eomanry standing in front of some
Bed .ross ambulances. #s the first female recruits of this organi$ation came from the ranks of the upper classes, perhaps the fur coats should not be too surprising. The
women would ha!e worked as dri!ers, nurses and cooks. ?stablished by "ord 9itchener in ():*, the First #id -ursing 'eomanry 0F#-'4 was initially an au%iliary unit of women
nurses on horseback, who linked the military field hospitals with the frontline troops. Ser!ing in dangerous forward areas, by the end of the conflict First #id -ursing 'eomanry
members had been awarded (* ;ilitary ;edals, ( "egion dLE2onneur and 8* .roi% de +uerre. # memorial to those women who lost their li!es while working for the organi$ation,
can be found at St /aulLEs .hurch, 9nightsbridge, "ondon.0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
"abour .orps members, the caption identifies these se!en men as LEnati!e policeLE. They are probably black South #fricans who had contracted to work in the South #frican -ati!e
"abour .ontingent 0S#-".4. In general the nati!e police and -.As were recruited from tribal chiefs or high-status nati!e families. Some 8:,::: South #fricans worked in the
S#-". during the war. They were not meant to be in combat $ones, but there were ine!itable deaths when the docks or transport lines on which they worked were bombed. The
greatest tragedy was the sinking of the troopship SS ;endi on February 8(, ()(*, when @(* members of the S#-". were drowned in the ?nglish .hannel. 0-ational "ibrary of
Scotland4
Some .anadian wounded being taken to the dressing station on a light railway from the firing line. 0-ationaal #rchief4
+erman troops in Finland during the Finnish .i!il War, part of a series of conflicts spurred on by World War I. Bed troops, both men and women, ready for deportation from
2ango, in #pril of ()(<. Two main groups, Beds and Whites were battling for control of Finland, with the Whites gaining the upper hand in #pril of ()(<, helped by thousands
of +erman soldiers.0-ational #rchi!e3Afficial +erman /hotograph of WWI4
The 9aiserLEs &irthday. +erman officers during the 9aiserLEs birthday celebrations in Bauscedo, Italy, on 1anuary 8*, ()(<.0.. &' S# .arola ?ugster4
&ritish ambulance dri!ers stand atop a pile of rubble. 0"ibrary of .ongress4
+erman prisoners, during World War I. /ortraits of a +erman prisoners taken by an official &ritish photographer, to be shown to folks back home. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
Gillagers interested in the arri!al of &ritish troops. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
&etween "aon and Soissons, +erman railway troops wash their clothes beside 7: cm shells, on 1uly (), ()(<.0-ational #rchi!e3Afficial +erman /hotograph of WWI4
Watched by a group of locals, +erman prisoners of war walk down a street in the French town of Solesmes, on -o!ember (, ()(<, near the end of World War I. 02enry
#rmytage Sanders3-ational "ibrary of -ew 6ealand4
#ugust (, ()(, +ermany declares war on Bussia. France and &elgium begin full mobili$ation. #ugust F, ()(, +ermany in!ades neutral &elgium. &ritain then sends an
ultimatum, re=ected by the +ermans, to withdraw from &elgium. /hoto: &elgian ;obili$ation. ?nthusiastic &elgians off to the front to face the worldEs most potent fighting force--
the +erman #rmy.
French patrol in occupied ?ssen, +ermany. 0"ibrary of .ongress4
The Famous F@)th #rri!e in -ew 'ork .ity ca. ()(). ;embers of the F@)th H#frican #mericanJ Infantry, formerly (7th -ew 'ork Begulars.0C.S. -ational #rchi!es4
+erman machine-gun nest and dead gunner at Gillers 5e!y 5un Sassey, France, on -o!ember ,, ()(< -- one week before the end of the war. 0-#B#3"t. ;. S. "ent$3C.S.
#rmy4
French ;obili$ation. The official order was gi!en at , pm on Saturday, #ugust (st, beginning the initial call-up of a million men for the French #rmy. /hoto: -ear the Front,
enthusiastic French troops e%it their trains prior to marching off to thwart the +erman in!aders.
Friendly and helpful. +erman army dentist operating on a &elgian country woman. /icture made in occupied &elgium, spring ()(7. #inEt I a lo!able fellowI 2ilfstMtigkeit der
E&arbarenE in Flanders 02elpful E&arbariansEn Flanders4 is the original capiton that goes with this +erman propaganda picture.
#fter the killing of &elgian ci!ilians in the first months of the war, the world branded +erman soldiers as sa!ages.ThatEs why the dentist picture and others like it had to con!ince
the +erman public that their uniformed fathers and sons who were occupying neighbouring countries were not barbarians. #s far as we know the +erman picture was ne!er
published outside +ermany. Foreign editors didnEt buy it.
#mbulance &ritish soldiers pushing an ambulance car through the mud. /icture made on the Western Front, somewhere in Flanders. The mud was a terrible enemy. When it
began to rain it became almost impossible to mo!e hea!y guns or cars. #mbulance was not the name for the car, but for the whole medical unit. In &ritish armies an #mbulance
was composed of (: officers and 88, men: stretcher bearers, wagon orderlies, dri!ers, cooks, etc. Such a unit usually had fi!e to ten ambulance motor wagons.
&ritish troops in a frontline trench- waiting for whate!er will happen ne%t. The distance between opposing trenches !aried greatly along the Front from as little as @: feet to as
much as a mile. &oth sides routinely conducted trench raids, usually done in the middle of the night by small units. The ob=ecti!e was to silently scurry across -o ;anEs "and,
cut through the barbed wire, dash into the enemy trench, engage in lethal hand-to-hand fighting with fists, clubs and kni!es, then >uickly e%it the trench with any prisoners
before enemy reinforcements or artillery could reposition to fend off the attack. The sporting atmosphere surrounding such raids, particularly among the &ritish, helped to
o!ercome battlefield boredom during lulls and pro!ided useful intelligence from interrogated prisoners.
-o!ember @-*, ()(* - In Bussia,
&olshe!iks led by Gladimir "enin and "eon
Trotsky o!erthrow the /ro!isional
+o!ernment in what comes to be known as
the Actober Be!olution. "enin announces
that So!iet Bussia will immediately end its
in!ol!ement in the war and renounces all
e%isting treaties with the #llies.
5ecember (7, ()(* So!iet Bussia signs an
armistice with +ermany. With BussiaEs
departure from the ?astern Front, forty-four
+erman di!isions become a!ailable to be
redeployed to the Western Front in time for
"udendorffEs Spring Affensi!e.
/hoto: -icholas Bomano!, who once sat
upon the throne as absolute ruler of
Bussia, now seated on a tree stump
following his abdication, subse>uent arrest
and imprisonment in the Crals by &olshe!ik
Bed +uards, three of whom are seen in the
background.
Bats from the trenches. The trench soldier of World War I had to cope with millions of rats. The omnipresent rats were attracted by the human waste of war N not simply sewage
waste but also the bodies of men long forgotten who had been buried in the trenches and often reappeared after hea!y rain or shelling. Some rat grew to the si$e of cats. It was
not uncommon for rats to start gnawing on the bodies of wounded men who couldnOt defend themsel!es. ;any troops were awakened by rats crawling across their faces. Trench
conditions were ideal for rats. ?mpty food cans were piled in their thousands throughout -o ;anOs "and, hea!ed o!er the top on a daily basis.
Some of these rats grew e%tremely large. They were so big they would eat a wounded man if he couldnOt defend himself.P These rats became !ery bold and would attempt to
take food from the pockets of sleeping men. Two or three rats would always be found on a dead body. They usually went for the eyes first and then they burrowed their way right
into the corpse.
Bats from trenches. Soldiers fought back as best they could with bayonets and rifles. Bats were shot, stabbed and clubbed to death. &ut efforts to eliminate them pro!ed futile.
# single rat couple could produce up to ):: offsprings a year. .ats and terriers were kept by soldiers in the frontline trenches to help free them of disease-carrying rats. The
terriers were actually !ery effecti!e in killing rats.
There is difference between a cat and a terrier when it comes to rodent control. When it comes to cats, e!en the best mousers only go after one at a time, and they often pause
to eat. +enerally it can take them days3weeks to deal with an infestation because of this. If there is rats, you may need multiple cats, because the rats may gang up on the cat.
With a good terrier, they will take care of your rat issues in a matter of hours. They donOt stop to eat. They kill, then mo!e on immediately to the ne%t creature. They donOt play
with their prey like cats do. They kill immediately. Ane terrier will also be much harder for rats to o!erwhelm as well. They are bigger and stronger than a cat, and their =aws are
much bigger. ThatOs what they were bred, to kill rats.
Bats from trenches. Bats were sometimes helpful too. ;any soldiers reported how rats sensed an oncoming attack from the enemy. They noticed that rats always ran away
when this was about to happen. Therefore, rats would sometimes warn and prepare the soldiers of enemy ad!ances.
World War I : #nimals at War
#nimals were used in World War I on a scale ne!er before
seen -- and ne!er again repeated. 2orses by the millions
were put in ser!ice as ca!alry mounts and beasts of
burden, but they were not the only animals acti!e in the
war. ;ules, dogs, camels, and pigeons all played !ital
roles, as well as many others -- all at great risk, and with
hea!y cost.
Sergeant Stubby was the most decorated war dog of World War I and the only dog to be promoted to sergeant through combat. The &oston &ull Terrier started out as the mascot
of the (:8nd Infantry, 8@th 'ankee 5i!ision, and ended up becoming a full-fledged combat dog. &rought up to the front lines, he was in=ured in a gas attack early on, which ga!e
him a sensiti!ity to gas that later allowed him to warn his soldiers of incoming gas attacks by running and barking. 2e helped find wounded soldiers, e!en captured a +erman spy
who was trying to map allied trenches. Stubby was the first dog e!er gi!en rank in the Cnited States #rmed Forces, and was highly decorated for his participation in se!enteen
engagements, and being wounded twice. 0Wikimedia .ommons4
# single soldier on his horse, during a ca!alry patrol in World War I. #t the start of the war e!ery ma=or army had a substantial ca!alry, and they performed well at first. 2owe!er,
the de!elopment of barbed wire, machine guns and trench warfare soon made attacks from horseback far more costly and ineffecti!e on the Western Front. .a!alry units did
pro!e useful throughout the war in other theatres though, including the ?astern Front, and the ;iddle ?ast. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
+as attack on the West Front, near St. Quentin ()(< -- a +erman messenger dog loosed by his handler. 5ogs were used throughout the war as sentries, scouts, rescuers,
messengers, and more. 0&rett &utterworth4
&andages retrie!ed from the kit of a &ritish 5og, ca. ()(7. 0"ibrary of .ongress4
# pigeon with a small camera attached. The trained birds were used e%perimentally by +erman citi$en 1ulius -eubronner, before and during the war years, capturing aerial
images when a timer mechanism clicked the shutter. 05eutsches &undesarchi!4
Bed .rescent 2ospital at 2afir #u=ah, ()(@. 0"ibrary of .ongress4
# corporal, probably on the staff of the 8nd #ustralian general hospital, holds a koala, a pet or mascot in .airo, in ()(7. 0#ustralian War ;emorial4
# messenger dog with a spool attached to a harness for laying out new electric line in September of ()(*.0-ational #rchi!e3Afficial +erman /hotograph of WWI4
These homing pigeons are doing much to sa!e the li!es of our boys in France. They act as efficient messengers and dispatch bearers not only from di!ision to di!ision and from
the trenches to the rear but also are used by our a!iators to report back the results of their obser!ation.0WWI Signal .orps /hotograph .ollection4
# soldier and his horse in gas masks, ca. ()(<. 0Woodrow Wilson /residential "ibrary4
# dog-handler reads a message brought by a messenger dog, who had =ust swum across a canal in France, during World War I. 0-ational "ibrary of Scotland4
War animals carrying war animals -- at a carrier pigeon communication school at -amur, &elgium, a dispatch dog fitted with a pigeon basket for transporting carrier pigeons to
the front line.0-ational #rchi!es3Afficial +erman /hotograph4
The feline mascot of the light cruiser 2;#S ?ncounter, peering from the mu$$le of a @-inch gun.0#ustralian War ;emorial4
World War I : The True Face of the +reat War
Unfinished cemetery
End Reort (Part 2)!
"een on #i$fun%&e Author' E(