Life in the Trenches - History Learning Site Trenches and life within those trenches have become an enduring topic from World War One. Throughout the war millions of soldiers experienced and endured the horrors of trench warfare. Some wrote down for posterity what these experiences were and as time has moved on from World War One more and more of these written documents – frequently in the form of a diary – have come to light. Others wrote about their experiences in book-form. On the British side “Goodbye to All That” by Robert Graves is considered a classic. For the Germans, “All Quiet on the Western Front” by Erich von Remarque was considered to be such a potent anti-war book that Hitler banned it. However, regardless of who wrote what about the trenches, all have one consistent theme – the horrors experienced by the men who had to live in them. All of the soldiers who fought in trenches would have had a good idea of what a good trench was like and what constituted a bad trench.
Comparing Civil War Recruitment Posters Students will compare and contrast military recruitment posters to analyze various perspectives regarding the role of African Americans during the Civil War. They will determine the purpose of each poster—one recruiting black men for the Union Army and one for the Confederacy—and analyze how the use of language conveys the intended message. Suggested Teaching Instructions Use this activity when studying the different perspectives on the recruitment of African Americans and the institution of slavery during a unit on the Civil War. Prompt students to carefully examine the two documents with the discussion questions provided. Who do you think created each of these posters. Explain that issues of emancipation and military service were intertwined from the onset of the Civil War. But the increasingly pressing personnel needs of the Union Army pushed the Government into reconsidering the ban.
Life In The Trenches | WW1 Facts There was nothing glamorous about trench life. World War 1 trenches were dirty, smelly and riddled with disease. For soldiers life in the trenches meant living in fear. Trench warfare WW1 style is something all participating countries vowed never to repeat and the facts make it easy to see why. Constructing WW1 Trenches The British and the French recruited manpower from non-belligerent China to support the troops with manual labour. 140,000 Chinese labourers served on the Western Front over the course of the First World War (40,000 with the French and 100,000 with the British forces). No Man’s Land The open space between two sets of opposing trenches became known as No Man’s Land because no soldier wanted to traverse the distance for fear of attack. The climate in France and Belgium was quite wet, so No Man’s Land soon became a mud bath. Hell on Earth There were millions of rats in ww1 trenches. 80,000 British Army soldiers suffered from shell shock over the course of the war.
SAT Subject Test: U.S. History: Toward War Toward War Abraham Lincoln’s victory in the election of 1860 began a chain of events that pushed the nation rapidly toward civil war. Secession During the 1860 election, some Southerners threatened secession pending Lincoln’s victory, even though he promised that while he would forbid the extension of slavery into the territories, he would not interfere with slavery in the South. In December 1860, soon after Lincoln’s victory, a special South Carolina convention voted unanimously for secession. By February 1861, six more Southern states followed suit: Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. Lincoln refused to recognize the confederacy and declared the secession “legally void.” However, the nation’s rift only widened in the early months of Lincoln’s presidency. The Confederate attack on federal troops at Fort Sumter sparked the secession of the Upper South and the commitment of the North to war . Mobilizing for War Each side predicted an early victory for itself.
BBC Schools - Life in the trenches 31 October 2014Last updated at 15:07 Two British soldiers standing in a flooded communication trench during World War One On the Western Front, the war was fought in trenches. Trenches were long, narrow ditches dug into the ground where soldiers lived all day and night. There were many lines of German trenches on one side and many lines of Allied trenches on the other. In the middle, was no man's land, so-called because it did not belong to either army. Rest Soldiers in the trenches did not get much sleep. Dirty trenches The trenches could be very muddy and smelly.
Declaration of Independence In early 1776, American public opinion was deeply divided over the issue of declaring independence from Britain. A discernible drift toward independence was occurring, but the publication of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense and news of King George III’s decision to hire foreign mercenary soldiers to fight in America radicalized the views of many. On May 10, the Continental Congress adopted a resolution that urged the states to form their own independent governments to replace the defunct royal governments. Despite this action, opinion remained divided over the wisdom of having Congress itself make a statement of independence. On June 7, 1776, the Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee, acting in accord with the instructions which the Virginia convention had given their delegation, brought three resolutions before the Congress: A statement of independence that concluded with the words, "These United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States." 1. 2.
Somme History The Battle of the Somme, 1916 On 24 June 1916, British and French artillery began a seven-day bombardment which marked the start of what became known as the Battle of the Somme. It had been in preparation since an Allied conference in December 1915. On 14 February, French and British generals agreed that 1 July would be the opening day of the offensive, which would strike north and south of the river Somme. Barely a week later, however, the German army launched its own major campaign against the fortified town of Verdun on the River Meuse which would continue for most of the year, killing more than 250,000 French and German soldiers. For France, Verdun became synonymous with national resistance and pride, but also with the devastation of the war. With the French now committed at Verdun, Commonwealth forces assumed the main role at the Somme. A heavy howitzer of the Royal Garrison Artillery in action, Somme offensive, August 1916.
American Revolution - American war of independence On the outbreak of the war the American colonies were, from North to South; Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut (making up New England), New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. The principal cities were Boston in Massachusetts, New York, Philadelphia, the colonial capital of Pennsylvania, and Charleston, the capital of South Carolina. To the North of the colonies lay the British province of Canada, with its mainly French speaking population, and to the West the hinterland of the American landmass. The American colonies differed widely. The New England colonies had been established and settled largely by English Presbyterians and comprised small close knit farming communities, with fishing and trading centres along the coast. The populations were inward looking and intolerant of outsiders. Boston was a busy port, reputed to be one of the wealthiest in the English speaking world. Concord:
Heros of 'India's Battle of the Somme' honoured by royal visit Battle of the Somme. Some of the Japanese soldiers had died of starvation and disease. By then end, more than 4000 allied soldiers were dead, and 5764 Japanese troops had been killed. Had they lost the Battle of Kohima, Japan would have taken the nearby railhead and air field at Dimapur, then in Assam, and used it as a base to sweep across Bengal. The heroism of the troops of Kohima has been the stuff of legend but their unique contribution to winning the war was finally recognised by Britain's royal family on Tuesday when the Duke of York, Prince Andrew, visited the town's Commonwealth War Cemetery. "It's very important for the modern generation, particularly across India, for people to remember and recognise the sacrifice that took place here, because without that sacrifice and that stand then the freedom that we now have … would not have been possible," he said. There's Captain John Randle of the Royal Norfolk Regiment. "It's part of our history, we can't deny that fact.