ww1 soilders

Contents
1. Equipment and kit
2. Food
3. Daily routine in the trenches
4. Dirt and disease and dangers
5. Fighting and combat
6. Keeping in touch
7. Important events in ww1
8. Bibliography Equipment and kit
Gasmask-these were used to protect soldiers form gas attacks
Bayonet- a long blade that fits onto the end of a rifle
Haversack- a type of backpack used to carry essential
Helmet- a hat to protect the soldiers head
Rifle- a long gun used to for shooting enemy
Eating tin- what the soldiers eat out of
Puttees-material wrapped around the boots like socks
Cape-a coat to keep soldiers warm and dry

Equipment and kit
Weapons
Riffle- this was the main weapon in ww1 trenches. 15 rounds could be shot in 1 minute and a soldier’s 1,400 meters away could be killed
Machine guns- this gun needed at least 4 men to work it and it had to be on some kind of flat surface. Firing one of theses was like firing 100 guns
Gas- the Germans was the first to use gas at the battle of Ypres in 1915. Chlorine gas causes burning in the throat and chest pains. The problem with chlorine gas is that the weather must be right. If the wind is in the wrong direction it could end up killing your own troops rather than the enemy.
Zeppelin- also known as blimp, it was an airship that was used during the early parts of the war in bombing raids. I the end they were stopped because they were so easy to shoot down.
Tanks- tanks were used for the first time in ww1 the first tank was called 'Little Willie' and needed a 3 men to work it. Its maximum speed was 3mph and it could not cross trenches.

Food
At the start of the war soldiers got one pound of meat, one pound of bread and 8 ounces of veg.
Soup and gruel were the most common meal for a soldier in the trenches these were normally served with potatoes or hard bread.
The veg and meat normally came from the undestroyed farms from surrounding areas.

Food
This is a list of supplies given to the troops on a daily ration:
1 1/4 lb fresh or frozen meat, or 1 lb preserved or salt meat
1 1/4 lb bread, or 1 lb biscuit or flour
4 oz. bacon
3 oz. cheese
5/8 oz. tea
4 oz. jam
3 oz. sugar
1/2 oz salt
1/36 oz. pepper
1/20 oz. mustard
8 oz. fresh or 2 oz. dried vegetables
1/10 gill lime juice (if fresh vegetables not issued);
1/2 gill rum (at discretion of commanding general) up to 2 oz. tobacco per week (at discretion of commanding general)

daily routine
A soldier in the trenches would start his day around one hour before sun rise with "Stand too" he would be woken up ,sent to the "Fire step", with his bayonet, on guard in case of a dawn raid from the enemy. After the morning "Stand too" the soldiers would be given a little rum to clean their weapons before the morning inspection by senior officers and then breakfast would be served. After breakfast the soldiers would have a inspection by their commanding officer, then the daily chores, each man would be get a certain chore. These included repairing duckboards, refilling sandbags, and draining trenches using pumping equipment.

Daily routine
At dusk, Stand-Too is repeated, because the enemies launched surprise attacks at dusk and dawn. After that, supply and maitenance duties were done , these included getting the rations and water, or the gruading of No Man's Land.
Next soldiers went on gruading duty they stood on the fire step of the trench and watched the enemy.
At night-time, the army rotated their troops. This process could take all night.

Dirt and diseases and dangers
Dirt
The soldiers in WW1 used soap and water for hygiene. Sometimes the soldiers caught lice, if they did would be taken to a tub of steamy water and their clothes were washed in machines but the lice usually stayed. Those who were in the battlefield did not clean themselves because most of the time they moved through muddy and bloody water. Rats were also a major problem in ww1 trenches some could grow as big as cats and they would eat on the dead bodies of the soldiers. Dirt and disease and dangers
Disease
Trench foot- Many soldiers in ww1 had trench foot. This was an infection in the feet caused by cold, wet and dirty conditions. In the trenches the soldiers stood for hours with there feet underwater without being able to remove wet socks or boots. The feet would eventually go numb and the skin would turn red or blue. If untreated, trench foot could turn gangrenous and this would mean amputation.

Dirt and disease and dangers
Disease

Typhoid- Typhoid, fever was spread by ingestion of sewage contaminated food or water and caused many deaths.
Influenza- this virus claimed far more lives than the war itself claimed during 1914-18. The outbreak, began in the Middle East in spring of 1918 before reaching the Western Front afterwards, at first it wasn’t too serious, But by the summer a third of people who had influenza reported increasingly harsh symptoms.
Trench fever- trench fever was quite a serious disease caused by lice. It infected armies in Flanders, France, Poland, Galicia, Italy, Salonika, Macedonia, Mesopotamia, and Egypt in World War I