what was battle like for british soldiers in world war 1 and what were the trenches like?

Answer 1

Trenches have been the same for all armies since man figured out how to mass gunfire. Trenches reduce the exposure of the defenders and thus greatly improve defensive positions. As you might guess, men are afraid in battle and being less exposed in a trench causes more of them to actually stick their heads up and aim. Until they become battle-hardened many troops just shoot without looking at all. That's one of the things meant by "seasoned troops".
The use of modern artillery (exploding shells during the War of 1812) greatly reduced the effectiveness of the line abreast charge. When John Gatling's gun began to be used during the American Civil War (1861 - 1865), things got worse. It was only late in the Civil War that soldiers figured out how to attack through enemy artillery against enemy trenches full of riflemen supported by Gatling guns (you have to attack in a vertical line like an arrow, not line abreast like a push broom).
Somehow during the years between the Civil War (1965) and the First World War (1914), the battle planners forgot the Civil War lessons learned on how to attack trenches. In those years Rudyard Kipling called line abreast formations, "Thin Red Lines Of 'eroes.
I feel this was because the British didn't face many enemies who had automatic weapons and artillery during those years. They should have known, though, if only because of the Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava in the Crimea (Cannon to the left, cannon to the right, cannon in front, volleyed and thundered ...).
Instead, in WW I a battle often consisted of going "over the top" (of the trench) and attacking the enemy in line abreast, hoping to win by overrunning them. Attacking soldiers trying to run and shoot were far less effective than a mostly hidden soldier firing over the rim of a trench.
Anything which slowed the WW I attack left the attackers exposed. All attacking soldiers know the safest place on the battlefield is hand to hand with the enemy, where their artillery and machine guns can't be used.
To further slow an attack the enemy often would call on their own artillery to shell the attackers. The enemy also placed lots of obstacles like multiple fences of barbed wire and mines. One method of taking out the mines was to blow a path with an artillery barrage. This left more obstacles in the form of shell holes which further slowed the attack (but were used as mini-trenches until the mortars came in on you in that hole). Unfortunately artillery barrages often left sufficient barbed wire on the field to still slow the attack. The first soldier to the wire fell forward across it, pinning it down to the ground so his comrades could run over it.
In 1916 the British hid a secret project under the code name "tanks" (to explain what the large steel plates were for). They then fielded 20 battlefield tanks in the first use, each 20 feet long. That length was used because the vehicle could straddle an eight-foot wide trench without falling in. They would machine gun the trench on either side, and then move on to the next row of trenches. To facilitate this, the machine guns were placed in cupolas on the sides of the tank, not in a turret on top. Later, one or both cupolas held cannon, not machine guns, to take out the rooms and other obstacles in the enemy trenches. Tanks with a cannon were called male tanks and those with only machine guns were known as female tanks.
The early tanks were made of boilerplate, not the tough, chewy armor used today. It would stop rifle fire, but machine guns could chew their way through it, sending hot spalls around inside. The small, wheeled field guns you see in the old newsreels would wipe them out. Most tanks had large hooks trailing behind which would help the soldiers by uprooting the barbed wire defenses, dragging the wire along for miles.
Tanks at first were just a large box, with no internal partitions to separate the crew from the heat of the engine, the gasoline tanks or the ammunition storage. A leaking exhaust was fatal. Most had a top speed of about ten miles an hour or so.
Another bane of the trenches were airplanes. Pilots would fly over the trenches and stream boxes of ordinary three-inch carpenter's nails over them. The nail heads would act like the fletching on an arrow and cause the nails to fall point downward. They could go through helmets! Of course there was some strafing also. If you see old newsreels, look at the shape of the trenches. If they are relatively straight, the trenches were dug before 1916. In late 1915, the airplane problem caused all trenches to be dug in a zig-zag pattern to reduce the exposure to planes.
Because the WW I Generals on both sides kept on ordering attacks across open ground, men were killed, or wounded and left to die moaning on the hot battlefield, or wounded and later died due to inadequate medical care. Lots more were wounded but lived, some maimed. Sometimes tens of thousands in one day!
By WW I the Germans had a fine machine gun made by Maxim and the British had pretty good ones made by Vickers. The soldiers threw away the French ones because the parts weren't interchangable (though they were supposed to be) and they jammed easily in the dirt and mud. Interestingly, the Americans had a Browning machine gun so good the government wouldn't let the soldiers use it because they were afraid it would be captured and copied by the Germans. They did let the men use the Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR), though. It was often preferred because it was much lighter than the machine gun, yet used the same bullet (a caliber .30, invented in 1906, hence 30 ought six).
The definition of a gun is "Any weapon which is fired from a mount". The BAR only uses a bipod, so it is a rifle, automatic or not. Machine guns are usually set on a swivel pin set into a mount of some kind. Submachine guns use pistol bullets instead of rifle bullets, so some of them can be hand-held, but they are usually fitted for a mount of some kind also.
Before an attack planners usually tried to lay down an artillery barrage for a couple of hours (or even days). My studies have unfortunately led me to believe that such barrages almost never work. The enemy has dug rooms leading off of his trenches. These rooms are usually reinforced with logs, rocks or even concrete. The soldiers go into the rooms until the barrage lifts, then come out, ready to fight. They don't even keep troops from sleep, because soldiers get used to the noise and are full of adrenalin (and fear) for the fight.
The trenches easily got muddy, even when it wasn't the rainy season. Hollywood usually shows the trenches with logs reinforcing the sides and planks on the floor, keeping the men out of the mud, but there were lots of places where none of that was available. Many men had to sleep in the mud and water in the bottom. One problem was "trench foot", fungus and bacteria growing in the wet, warm environment inside the soldier's boots. They tried to keep three pairs of socks (one drying in your pocket and one ready to put on), but if you were wet all the time, there wasn't much sense in changing. Taking off your boots to dry was dangerous. An attack could come and you might need to run back to the next line of trenches. Also, there were lots of sharp things in the trench mud - - ammo clips, packing wire, shrapnel, and the like.
Finally, there was the English caste system. Unless you were somehow connected (to the nobility, the universities, or the rich merchant class, for instance), you had little chance of becoming an officer. Worse yet, many who had such a chance got it by connections, not merit. Men being led by incompetents and sacrificed by generals who hadn't studied how to attack trenches naturally resented this.
It was miserable, but wars always are. I believe wars will go on forever. It's the adrenalin.
Men and women report the same thing. The amusement park Rush. The fact that you might be killed causes a feeling of elation, sharpened senses and euphoria that can't be matched. It is THE natural high. I have never done dope, but I am a lawyer who has seen hundreds who have. Their highs have never impressed me. But the highs of my fellow soldiers go way beyond, some to lifetime friendships.
People come back from combat exhausted, dirty and hungry. They're often don't undress, bathe, or eat before falling asleep. Yet, as soon as they can they get back into it. It's the adrenalin. We laughingly called ourselves " adrenalin junkies".
Just being trained by the military is enough. You don't actually have to be in combat. When the Korean War started, America was worried that the Russians would attack our European Allies while our forces were thinned by being sent to Korea. I was in the Air Force, and was stationed on the North African (Moroccan) desert for a year. Our job was to be ready in the event the Russians attacked Europe. We were set up to refuel seventy-five B-29's who would have been on their way to Russia (one way!) This was in the days before the USA had ICBM's. We were told the Russians could be expected to try to nuke our base in Morocco to stop those bombers, and I don't mean with a microwave!
We weren't used, but we were READY in case we were needed. We got the adrenalin rush on a daily basis, even in 140 degree heat.
Later, during the Vietnam war I joined the Army and became a Green Beret paratrooper (20th Special Forces). We went on disavowed raids into Laos to interdict the Ho Chi Minh Trail. My job was to set ambushes for North Vietnamese soldiers who came when we blew up the little old ladies pushing bicycles carrying 200 kilos of rice. We butchered those soldiers and the Commies had to use thousands of troops to protect their supply lines instead of attacking in the South.
We were paratroopers, so we were always surrounded and outnumbered. Again, the adrenalin!
I think all those who can join the military and don't do so are cheating themselves out of the greatest joy life has to give. Helen Keller once said, "Life is either a great adventure, or nothing." Ambrose Bierce ( see his "Devil's Dictionary" for great ironic humor) believed in the old adage "To live is to be a soldier." He was killed fighting in the 1914 Mexican Revolution at age 71! Albert Einstein remarked, "The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."
Do something about it! If not for you, then for your kids. Every branch of the service has an elite corps, even the Coast Guard and the Air Force. Don't just write about old battles - - get in as soon as you can! You'll never be sorry, even if you're killed. You'll have bragging rights for a lifetime!
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Answer 2

WW1 trenches 1st had barbed wire alongthe top of frontline because when the enemies were trying to take ove a trench this made it really hard work for thenemies to get through as a result the dfense couldkill them and hold hembak easier. another tactic was not just to build trenches in straight lines but to build trenches diagonally so enemes tryed to invade anpther part of the trenches there could be some other protection from the sides aswell. the trenches had channels gong back so when the enemies finally did get in the font part of the trench the defense had a quik escape route. for offensive tactics they dug trenches towards the enemies trenches to try and hear what wa being said so the defense could get ready for an attack. there was a famous inventer in the time who was told to invent a gun he invented basically what we call the browning this was used all along th sides of trenches to hold of enemie easily and efficently. I hope these notes help

Answer 3

Read 'Birdsong' by Sebastian Faulkes or 'The First Casualty' by Ben Elton.

The first world war was gruesome beyond belief, with soldiers being face to face with the other side during attacks, men died slowly from hand grenade and bayonet attacks and lived in trenches on top of the bodies of their comrades.

Answer 4

Ghastly. Often the trenches would be soaking wet for months on end, so quite apart from enemy action their clothes never dried out. A disease called 'trench foot' became endemic because of constantly wet boots. They lived from one day to the next, never knowing when they would be ordered 'over the top' to attack enemy lines against a hail of machine gun fire, risking getting caught on barbed wire and unable to disentangle themselves. There could be constant noise from artillery fire both from their own side and the enemy. They ran the risk of the enemy trying to mine their trench by digging tunnels and blowing them up with explosives planted in them. They could be sent out on night reconnaissance trying to find out about the enemies positions etc. If they suffered from shell shock, a mental disease caused by the constant noise etc. and became incapable of attacking they risked being shot by their own side as cowards or deserters.