But what happens when the opposing forces take over those beautiful trenches ! You go back to square one and half to start digging again. Major problem in ww1 was to get out of this style of military planning. The weapons had advanced a great deal however the way they fought was still an old way of doing battle. It took all sides a long time to realize they could no longer put thousands of soldiers in a straight line and have them simply march toward eachother until close enough to open fire.
@@thegt3clickcrash329 also I'm still surprised that they could even live on those trenches, how come the artillery didn't get them? Surely at some point they knew exactly where the enemy entrenches are
TheWeeaboo If you think about it if the Germans won WW1, we wouldn’t have WW2 cause Hitler’s rise to power was mostly due to the German’s unrest after the unfair terms they dealt with. So really I kinda wish the Germans won then. WW2, not so much.
@@zombies4evadude24 To think WWI was caused because something happened between two countries and due to weird written treaties, allies of those two countries had to get involved because of it when it should have been something that was handled between just those two.
@TheWeeaboo no one would be speaking german if they had won WW1. Were they speaking french or english after? No they went back to doing what they were before the war, but with a ton of shame which eventually led them to fascism. And who died and who lived in WW1 had nothing to do with anything other than luck. You could have an army of arnold schwarzeneggers circa '84 but if their objective is to charge at a trench lined with barbed wire and mounted machine guns while they get bombarded with mortars, armed with only a single shot rifle, you can expect to lose most of your men. That was quite the elaborate setup just to be able to bring up what a "fat society" we live in
hockeymichael 09 Hans: “You mean ze _Austrian_ croissants, Kommandant Fritz?” Fritz: “Ja, ze _Australian_ croissants. Meine liedblingsart!” Hans: “... Why are you my superior?”
One interesting note, during morning when the frontal charges happened on both sides, the sun was at Germans' back and shining in the eyes of the British/French. Also could play a part in Germany's favour.
France: Our trenches uses the ground and nature Britain: We have Wooden rooms for Officers and Beers Russia: We have Vulnerable Forts that can blow up in 3 minutes Germany: We have Underground Hotels
WW1: This will be a fast moving war, so don’t get comfy. WW2: This will be a grueling stalemate, lets invest in trenches and bunkers that are more comfy like the Germans did in WW1 rather than investing in fast-moving tank tech like we did in WW1. This’ll work.
I believe that another reason for why there were zig-zags were to protect the soldiers from artillery. The zig-zags would prevent the artillery shrapnel from traveling throughout the whole trench.
I have never even heard of the theory suggested in the video, and suspect it is incorrect/something they saw in an article and presumed was correct. However you’ve got to let them make mistakes as they consistently put out good and informative videos for less advanced/knowledgeable people.
What they said was absolutely correct. The staggering and cornering on trench systems prevented Gas, Shrapnel, and enemy infantry from quickly killing all soldiers on the line rather than just those in that section
okay, and that's true, so whats your point? Just cause you haven't heard of zig-zag trenches doesn't mean they are "fake" or not historical. I can tell you it is 100% correct. It was so effective that it was replicated in wars to come. In the US infantry guide it even mentions that trenches should never be constructed in a manner that allows the enemy a sight-line of more than 15 meters if possible.
British: alright men, this is going to be quick and dirty, so don't get to fancy with this place. German: this is going to be a long fight, boys. Get comfy, and make this place an underground mansion!
Well while the Jerries were making electric lighting systems, wine cellars and comfortable living areas we Brits were making tanks and advancing battlefield tactics. I’d still rather be in a Jerry trench though.
False. The British were working on tanks, it was the Germans that advanced battlefield tactics. Common history that Germans focused too much on Infantry Tactics, while the British focused on mechanized warfare more.
Then the Germans got impatient and started to attack again. Thus the Kiaserschlat the offensive that was supposed to give them victory sealed their fate as the vanquashed.
@@siddharthkumar2138 Despite the fact that in ww1, the British had created tanks which could cross trenches and were way ahead of german techology. Also, D-day was planned way before us intervention. The Americans just tagged along and then claimed that they did all of the work.
You would also pick up the side that didn't get enough supplies like food and the side where you could be put to a job that would net you with a summary execution if you were captured.
After carefully reviewing all 2.9k, thought I’d add this overlooked fun fact: Zig-zag trenches also reduced the effect of shrapnel from incoming artillery rounds, although no doubt blast and concussion effects were still fatal near the blast site.
Interestingly enough, the blast wave is not lethal even relatively close range if there is a barrier behind you and the blast. If the barrier holds the blast wave will not get you. I believe they tested this theory in myth busters. You have to consider what blast wave actually is. It is a wave of force, a compression of air traveling at high speed, something physical, so to speak. It cant just go through hard objects and destroy something behind without going around the object or destroying the object itself!
@@NameHere2243 I personally believe god is very smart, and he doesn’t judge based on an objective rule. He knows our souls and what’s in them, and he’ll judge them knowing there was a war
@@NameHere2243 I’m not gonna judge them but god will. Keep in mind nazis we’re just world war 2 soldiers that came from Germany which they couldn’t conteol
My grandfather was a carpenter pre world war 1 so when he went over he spent most of his time shoring up the dugouts with wood. One fell in on him and injured his back.
or being on the pacific front where you are walking through jungles and have to watch out for traps and ambushes by the Japanese defenders and in alot of cases watched as civilians threw themselves and their children off cliffs to "escape" the Americans (really hurts moral when the American soldiers were thinking they were liberators who would get praised like the Americans in France and Italy were)
Eastern front wased a mess. The thing wased so ugly that the USRR havent enought weaponds for everbody. But they neede better nunbers to have one advantage over the germans, so some soldiers only recived amo and they would take the guna from the ones that died. The thing wased so precarius that they sended women to the front ( something very rare in that time ).
Matthew Donnelly Stalingrad wased very worst than D day. Just see the numbers 20 milions russians died in the war. This is more than any other country. They would often not evaciate the citys so the soldiers would fight knowing that failing would mean that ther woman and children would be in the hand of the nazis.
Very informative and good information. But you did miss an important note on the German trench system. The German trenches were stronger to the front towards the enemy. But were also weaker in the rear. They did this so if the first trench was lost that recapturing it would be easier done. Also for artillery as it would land either on the front side or in the trench. The bunkers would be fine but if the trench was lost the Germans could bombard it and cause collapses making the allied defensive position weaker.
Not really, it was highly simplistic and detailed only the defensive lines of the first half of the war. It also missed the fact that in most places there were actually THREE trench Lines, each made up of the lines detailed. By late war the defenses had changed, the front line was little more than a series of defensive listening and watch posts designed to do nothing more than slow the enemy down and bunch them up in the Battle Zone behind. The Battlezone was dominated by an interlinked series of strongpoints and defensive positions often anchored on bunkers, which created interlocking fields of fire. It was a system based on defence in depth and was often 12 - 20 MILES deep..... You cannot cover the defensive intricacies of the trench systems in WWI with a simple 3 and a half minute video.....
On top of that support trenches had a lot more importance than Simple History stated. Often commanders expected to lose the firing trench in the event of a large scale enemy attack. The purpose of the two front trenches was to have the firing trench inflict enough damage that, in the event of a successful enemy attack, the remaining forces would be too exhausted/damaged to hold the trench. At that point they would send the support trench to retake the firing trench and hopefully counterattack against what they believed was now weakened enemy defenses. Sadly, this was cyclic, as the counterattacking forces would face the same problem when they encounter the support forces of the enemy. tl;dr the commanders were kind of fine with losing the firing trench. It's when they lost the support trench that they'd start to sweat.
I know it's all brutal and not funny but I find these kinds of methods and techniques super interesting. People tried to make systems as efficient as possible. Thanks for the video.
Trenches were built in zig zags not so enemy soldiers couldn’t shoot down them... They were done that way so that if a shell landed on the trench the shrapnel wouldn’t take out the whole line but instead just that small section.
They lost on the strategic level. Doesn't mean they were inferior on tactical or even operational level. They were out-manned and outgunned, they had fewer resources overall.
@TheWeeaboo not really first years if war Soviets were far ahead of the Germans. French were in ww1 and my nation still was having fun with French in building tanks for not this war. I think British tanks Valentine and Matilda were good. In the end if the war Germans were ahead on tanks. Americans had tank advantage in 1942 43 against most of the axis but in 1944 they Russians had better tanks while americans were trying to modernize their tanks which they did quite good but wasnt enough compared to germans.
Yeah actually kinda was they could have won had they umm idk not attacked Russia in the dead of winter or idk push their lines as quick as they had. If they had played a turtle game then results would have been vastly different
AkselHelp Trans they could do a out how he was a bit of a dictator and how he only cared about the 1%! It would really reveal who he actually was instead of the president who freed the slaves.
They were also built in zigzags to limit the blast if a artillery shell landed in one section. This architecture influenced the design of the landship, the to sponsons were at the left and right so they could shoot into both sides of a trench.
Generals- "There's a stretch of open ground defended by machine guns and barbed wire: we'll attack there at regular intervals." Generals- "There's a stretch of open ground targeted by artillery and shelled regularly: that's where we'll live." Soldiers- "Did they just say 'we'?"
Good video. One other and maybe the most important reason why trenches were built in a zig-zag formation is to absorb the shockwave and shrapnel created by a direct hit of an artillery shell in the trench. Saving lives and preventing more damage. Furthermore, it also provides crossfire capabilities when the enemy attacks.
There's a WWI Memorial in Kansas City, MO. They have a mocked up German Trench and a mocked up British trench, The difference is staggering. Like the video says, the German trenches were amazing. It was like the Hilton vs a Super 8.
Little did we realize that this video would still be relevant in 2023. Nor that trench warfare would be showing up on YT feeds as something we would want to be finding out about 100 years after first introduced.
( British soldier ) my feet are wet they dont have this at the German side ( British Officer ) WEL WHY DONT YOU GO LIVE WITH THE GERMANS THAN? ( British soldier ) I THINK I WIL *gets* *shot* *by* *German* *machinergunner*
@@mannyfernandez7028 even if he was foolish the Germans almost never lost any of their own land, the 2-4 times the actually lost on their own territory, they gained it back, when they lost land, it was land from enemy territory that they gained. The germans did very well but had heavy causualties like 50% of 13 million soldiers, and
pierce sherry Germans are not very outnumbered until US joined the war.For exp in Summer of 1916 they had 2.85 million soldiers in Western Front while combined Allies had about 4 million soldiersAlso on East Germans had 1.7 million soldiers against Russians.İn March of 1918 they had 192 divisions+3 brigades on Western Front comparing 110 French and 68 British Empire divisions.They had more front line strength than the Allies during most of Spring Offensive until 2nd Battle of the Marne.Look at Wikipedia Spring Offensive.Also Germans had massive amounts of heavy artillery compare other nations.
@@theresecoco1887 even if germany had the strongest army in the world, they still would have lost because of A) they needed oil, but were running out and had now way to get more B) Hitler would've inevidebly made another mistake C) very small navy
My great grandfather died thanks to these. He didn't die in one, but he died years later due to circulatory issues caused by living in them from the mud. Entente side, maybe he would of lived longer had he been in a German trench.
Germans had the right idea.
"If we're gonna be stuck here, we might as well make it right"
But what happens when the opposing forces take over those beautiful trenches ! You go back to square one and half to start digging again. Major problem in ww1 was to get out of this style of military planning. The weapons had advanced a great deal however the way they fought was still an old way of doing battle. It took all sides a long time to realize they could no longer put thousands of soldiers in a straight line and have them simply march toward eachother until close enough to open fire.
@@thegt3clickcrash329 also I'm still surprised that they could even live on those trenches, how come the artillery didn't get them? Surely at some point they knew exactly where the enemy entrenches are
TheWeeaboo If you think about it if the Germans won WW1, we wouldn’t have WW2 cause Hitler’s rise to power was mostly due to the German’s unrest after the unfair terms they dealt with. So really I kinda wish the Germans won then. WW2, not so much.
@@zombies4evadude24 To think WWI was caused because something happened between two countries and due to weird written treaties, allies of those two countries had to get involved because of it when it should have been something that was handled between just those two.
@TheWeeaboo no one would be speaking german if they had won WW1. Were they speaking french or english after? No they went back to doing what they were before the war, but with a ton of shame which eventually led them to fascism. And who died and who lived in WW1 had nothing to do with anything other than luck. You could have an army of arnold schwarzeneggers circa '84 but if their objective is to charge at a trench lined with barbed wire and mounted machine guns while they get bombarded with mortars, armed with only a single shot rifle, you can expect to lose most of your men. That was quite the elaborate setup just to be able to bring up what a "fat society" we live in
British: Free to play
Germany: Premium deluxe dlc map pack
General Yeah ikr
BUY ONE GET ONE FREE!
FOR TWICE THE PRICE!
Germany: *Still loses*
its not all nice to the germans, near the end german were on starvation rations.
Well yeah
British soldiers: "Feeling cold and wet from mud and catching illnesses"
German soldiers: "Bring me another of those french crossaints Hans !"
croissants are austrian
@@hockeymichael0912 theres always one....
hockeymichael 09
Hans: “You mean ze _Austrian_ croissants, Kommandant Fritz?”
Fritz: “Ja, ze _Australian_ croissants. Meine liedblingsart!”
Hans: “... Why are you my superior?”
@@hockeymichael0912 such a party pooper
*HANS BRING ZE SCHNITZEL!*
welcome to the German 5 Star premium trench
I wonder how many defected to Germany because the amenities were better
@@mwbgaming28 many...
@@fxllenhorrors3668 and how many defected back during WW2 lmao
Yeah
@@mwbgaming28 many.........
One interesting note, during morning when the frontal charges happened on both sides, the sun was at Germans' back and shining in the eyes of the British/French. Also could play a part in Germany's favour.
Wraithweave So the allied were blinded by the sun?
yes
Wraithweave it was rather foggy and things like that during ww1
Wraithweave (me seeing your thumbnail)
what the? where did that fly come from? **constantly smacking screen** dafuq?
I dead felt like a bug was on my screen
English Trenches: normal
German Trenches: *PIMP MY TRENCH*
Edit: well thanks for the likes lads and lasses and everything in between
Welp, here comes German memes.
Englishmen: We have a couple trenches here and there, we sleep on the floor.
Germans: We live in a society
That One Irish Guy q
Ol
Germans: Trench (iced out💎)
😂😂 well done m8
I love how at 3:08 there’s a flower pot. And the German soldier to the left is kind welcoming us into this trench/house.
Yes. But that's not a flowerpot. That is a wine bottle with a flower in it.
@@garypulliam3740 well ya gotta improvise sometimes
The movie "1917" shows this really good when the two british soldiers are entering a german trench and it's really well built even with stone
France: Our trenches uses the ground and nature
Britain: We have Wooden rooms for Officers and Beers
Russia: We have Vulnerable Forts that can blow up in 3 minutes
Germany: We have Underground Hotels
Immortal Heavy Vietnam: *tree*
Isis: hey look a cave
Underground Hotels: Trivago
but Russia still murdered Germany
@@zhangyulun2683 you do know that russian pulled out of ww1
"Even their rats are bigger than ours!"
Wait is that a trip wire
STEP BACK!
*BOOM*
uhg uhg
HMMMMPF HHHMMMMMPFFFF!!!!!
British: We have trenches
Germans: We have underground mansions
Tony Stark: We have a hulk
John Hammond: We have a T-Rex
we have internet
Jack Sparrow: I’ve got a jar of dirt
Cody. You get a like just for that
“I HAVE THE HIGH GROUND”
*loses*
if only Obi-Wan had trained them
Basically if Anaking just threw his lightsaber at Obi1 instead of jumping.
jbond5150 which would be tactical errors... lol!
@@zts99 shhh logic only hurts these idiots
@jbond5150 I read this in a German accent lol
WW1: This will be a fast moving war, so don’t get comfy.
WW2: This will be a grueling stalemate, lets invest in trenches and bunkers that are more comfy like the Germans did in WW1 rather than investing in fast-moving tank tech like we did in WW1. This’ll work.
Wait a minute...
yep :)
Maybe the Germans should have focused more on winning instead of trenches, since they lost twice.
salty Alex
You'd think they'd realise, given how the first world war developed over time...
British: "Perfect spot, lads. Dig in here and we'll take the field!"
Germans: "Ja, ja. Zis will do. Dig in hier und we'll chill!"
*wheezes*
Please stop believing it was germans vs british!
Bcuz it WAS germans vs British :)
@Vequio Ourax But didn't the germans fight the british?
@@gmatsue84 multiple other nations joined in the fighting to. The most memorable was the Brits vs the Germans.
Imagine the two armies seeing each other build on the same day
Comrade Traviski “oh hi fritz”
“Oh hallo Johnson”
"Soooo" "How is the war going?"
@@PretzlcoatlTheFirst Germans, 1916: Oh hi Mark 1 tank
They would start a war
I do believe this did happend.
I believe that another reason for why there were zig-zags were to protect the soldiers from artillery. The zig-zags would prevent the artillery shrapnel from traveling throughout the whole trench.
AwesomeDude333 and shockwave from the explosion as well
I have never even heard of the theory suggested in the video, and suspect it is incorrect/something they saw in an article and presumed was correct. However you’ve got to let them make mistakes as they consistently put out good and informative videos for less advanced/knowledgeable people.
What they said was absolutely correct. The staggering and cornering on trench systems prevented Gas, Shrapnel, and enemy infantry from quickly killing all soldiers on the line rather than just those in that section
Aristichus they didn’t say that, they said it was so soldiers couldn’t shoot straight down the line
okay, and that's true, so whats your point? Just cause you haven't heard of zig-zag trenches doesn't mean they are "fake" or not historical. I can tell you it is 100% correct. It was so effective that it was replicated in wars to come. In the US infantry guide it even mentions that trenches should never be constructed in a manner that allows the enemy a sight-line of more than 15 meters if possible.
British: alright men, this is going to be quick and dirty, so don't get to fancy with this place.
German: this is going to be a long fight, boys. Get comfy, and make this place an underground mansion!
Welp. . .
Justin Curry this is why I love germans.
Well while the Jerries were making electric lighting systems, wine cellars and comfortable living areas we Brits were making tanks and advancing battlefield tactics. I’d still rather be in a Jerry trench though.
False. The British were working on tanks, it was the Germans that advanced battlefield tactics. Common history that Germans focused too much on Infantry Tactics, while the British focused on mechanized warfare more.
Then the Germans got impatient and started to attack again. Thus the Kiaserschlat the offensive that was supposed to give them victory sealed their fate as the vanquashed.
Who would win:
a highly complex dugout with many layers, zigzag, and design for efficient to the touch
Or
An armored boi
WELL, it would actually force the charging soldiers to take different sides
France
USAball russia
None
You’re talking about Wonder Woman of course
Trenches: *exists*
Rats and disease:It’s free real estate
lmao
Dank memes r Dank well played
Dan that's good
I assume you got this idea from Justin Y. His comment is right above yours and you replied to his. And both include rats inside the trenches.
Dank memes:exist Normies: it’s free -real estate- memes to ruin
Germany: It's over Great Britain, I have the high Ground!
Great Britain: You under estimate my power!
Shirazi Wine Co. nice
Lol both the wars were lost if the US did not intervene.
@@siddharthkumar2138 You got any proof for that?
@@siddharthkumar2138 Despite the fact that in ww1, the British had created tanks which could cross trenches and were way ahead of german techology. Also, D-day was planned way before us intervention. The Americans just tagged along and then claimed that they did all of the work.
@501st Legion Canada is the one supplying directly to the UK at that time.
we are losing objective butter
iZozxX :P not butter I can't put it on objective toast
RUSH BUTTER CYKA BLYAT
XD
go go go we're being bombed at objective butter
We have lost the sector... RETREAT!
I'd pick the German side for their nice and well-built trenches
except for losing the war of course.
You would also pick up the side that didn't get enough supplies like food and the side where you could be put to a job that would net you with a summary execution if you were captured.
The Government loss the war not the soldiers.
Stabbed in the back?! Didn't you get the memo that that myth is fake and it was military that failed to win the war?
I keep seeing you everywhere
Zuzu can't win a war when you got a retarded ally everytime who helps the enemy more by exposing fronts
After carefully reviewing all 2.9k, thought I’d add this overlooked fun fact: Zig-zag trenches also reduced the effect of shrapnel from incoming artillery rounds, although no doubt blast and concussion effects were still fatal near the blast site.
Interesting fact
Glad someone mentioned this
But those effect also have problems getting around corners so the zig-zag was useful there too.
Interestingly enough, the blast wave is not lethal even relatively close range if there is a barrier behind you and the blast. If the barrier holds the blast wave will not get you.
I believe they tested this theory in myth busters.
You have to consider what blast wave actually is. It is a wave of force, a compression of air traveling at high speed, something physical, so to speak. It cant just go through hard objects and destroy something behind without going around the object or destroying the object itself!
I loved that you guys talked about how the trenches were zigzag. That same tactic is still employed and taught today for trenchworks In the army
Over the top boys!
Amateur Historian 2 seconds later everyone gets killed by machine guns 💀☠️💀
How was this comment 5 days ago if the video was posted 10 min ago
Juan Tobar They support the channel by donating. In return these donors get early access to the videos. Think of it like a pre-alpha for video games.
I don’t get it
Juan Tobar patrons get to watch videos earlier
I feel so sorry anyone ever had to go through that. I hope they’re all peaceful and happy in heaven
Probably not seeing as the whole do not kill and turn the other cheek thing
@@NameHere2243 I personally believe god is very smart, and he doesn’t judge based on an objective rule. He knows our souls and what’s in them, and he’ll judge them knowing there was a war
@@dumbgenious1960 yeh but the nazis probably don't deserve to go. neither the allies because of numerous war crimes. so do they still go?
@@NameHere2243 this was ww1? No nazis (yet)
@@NameHere2243 I’m not gonna judge them but god will. Keep in mind nazis we’re just world war 2 soldiers that came from Germany which they couldn’t conteol
Because of this channel I got A* in my history test! Thank YOU!
GovernorJET it’s August
Annonomuys Doge yeah but people in the southern hemisphere are in winter, even if it still is hot, therefore they are still in school.
What do your tests ask ? Weird Jobs in History ?!
No. About WW1 and Experiences in the trenches / How they were set up etc
GovernorJET so you happened to have a test right after this was uploaded about trench systems?
Soldier: what is for dinner? Commander: fried lice Soldier: do you mean rice Commander: no fried lice
@@TheLordrain12 What's for dinner?
Fried lice
You mean fried rice?
No lice
Lice were common in trenches
its a joke from horrible histories
Well it is better than Baldrick's Rat au Van
Lol i remember watching that in third grade
Lordrain12
Fried rice is a dish. Lice are little insects.
I’ll let you figure out the rest
My grandfather was a carpenter pre world war 1 so when he went over he spent most of his time shoring up the dugouts with wood. One fell in on him and injured his back.
I think being in world war 1 about to enter no mans land must have been the worst time in history to be a soldier
being on the eastern front in WWII walking for days just to eventually freeze to death.
or being on the pacific front where you are walking through jungles and have to watch out for traps and ambushes by the Japanese defenders and in alot of cases watched as civilians threw themselves and their children off cliffs to "escape" the Americans (really hurts moral when the American soldiers were thinking they were liberators who would get praised like the Americans in France and Italy were)
Eastern front wased a mess.
The thing wased so ugly that the USRR havent enought weaponds for everbody. But they neede better nunbers to have one advantage over the germans, so some soldiers only recived amo and they would take the guna from the ones that died.
The thing wased so precarius that they sended women to the front ( something very rare in that time ).
ale Solís I think D day was worst knowing you were walking into incoming fire.
Matthew Donnelly Stalingrad wased very worst than D day. Just see the numbers 20 milions russians died in the war. This is more than any other country. They would often not evaciate the citys so the soldiers would fight knowing that failing would mean that ther woman and children would be in the hand of the nazis.
Jeezus, imagine the size of the rats in those trenches.
Jesus Christ I just got here and now ur here
You son of a bitch
Light mike knight calm down
Good dinner
Justin Y. Weeaboo
2018: oh, interesting
2020: _taking notes_
2021: still taking notes
You mean, Polish-Czech War of 2020?
2022: *INTENSELY TAKING NOTES.*
At 3:05 to 3:11 that is a hotel in a trench.
With rats
@@1tems only in british
@@discotech6178 and germans
Mostly in british
@@discotech6178 say that again but slowly
1:14 captain Blackadder
In the stickiest situation since Sticky the stick insect got stuck on a sticky bun.
@@szithaanu9934 wibble
Now where’s George?
Very informative and good information. But you did miss an important note on the German trench system. The German trenches were stronger to the front towards the enemy. But were also weaker in the rear. They did this so if the first trench was lost that recapturing it would be easier done. Also for artillery as it would land either on the front side or in the trench. The bunkers would be fine but if the trench was lost the Germans could bombard it and cause collapses making the allied defensive position weaker.
What source did you use for that bit of information
Smart dudes.
Video was well presented
Not really, it was highly simplistic and detailed only the defensive lines of the first half of the war. It also missed the fact that in most places there were actually THREE trench Lines, each made up of the lines detailed.
By late war the defenses had changed, the front line was little more than a series of defensive listening and watch posts designed to do nothing more than slow the enemy down and bunch them up in the Battle Zone behind. The Battlezone was dominated by an interlinked series of strongpoints and defensive positions often anchored on bunkers, which created interlocking fields of fire. It was a system based on defence in depth and was often 12 - 20 MILES deep.....
You cannot cover the defensive intricacies of the trench systems in WWI with a simple 3 and a half minute video.....
@@alganhar1 Sure its highly simplistic cuz its simple history.
@@alganhar1, hints the name....simple history
So are my bawls
@@alganhar1 You missed the point of this channel.
Werent the trenches cut in corners because it helped against fragmentation so a single explosion would cause less damage?
I think so...but plz don't quote me
Heard so mortars don’t completely wipe out an entire section either
On top of that support trenches had a lot more importance than Simple History stated. Often commanders expected to lose the firing trench in the event of a large scale enemy attack. The purpose of the two front trenches was to have the firing trench inflict enough damage that, in the event of a successful enemy attack, the remaining forces would be too exhausted/damaged to hold the trench. At that point they would send the support trench to retake the firing trench and hopefully counterattack against what they believed was now weakened enemy defenses. Sadly, this was cyclic, as the counterattacking forces would face the same problem when they encounter the support forces of the enemy.
tl;dr the commanders were kind of fine with losing the firing trench. It's when they lost the support trench that they'd start to sweat.
POOTIS LUKIS QUOTES YOU
They literally said in the video it was so the enemy once in the trench couldn't fully shoot down the trench
German: jumps into British trench
*Realizes they all have shotguns*
*British realized the germans has flammenwerfer*
Model A 10 hunter
Germans: use mustard gas against the allies
The allies: * grabs shotguns* parry this you filthy casual
@@pearlyyubtub Germans: Don't worry, if we sit back here long enough, that shotgun fellow might be blown to bits.
@@nepnepguythegreatestofall *bayonet rushes and stabs the german before unloading all 6 rounds* oops
And once again simple history puts my history teacher out of a job
Little facist needs digestable history to avoid the parts where your ideology get crushed on every continent, every era, huh?
@Rowan Melton yes concentration camps, terrified population and dystopian authoritarianism is not a failure..
Encrypted Wizard capitalist pig
Child soldier at 1:18
Solid Water The guy looks like unshaved Hitler!
Solid Water really kids would be in this war
Jonathan Lee apparently yea watch his child soldiers video
That’s why I love “Simple History” they include other small details in there video!
Good eye!
I know it's all brutal and not funny but I find these kinds of methods and techniques super interesting. People tried to make systems as efficient as possible.
Thanks for the video.
It is crazy to even think so many people had to fight in these horrible conditions.
TitoistBoi at least they only fought in small shifts
They don't always in the trenches for months. The soldiers were always rotated
They were rotated but still the conditions were unbearable making disease one of the biggest threats (and death) in trench combat
hello I am a titoist, and I like 15% unemployment
Karim Moop
>Yugoslavia had 11th biggest stabdard of living in 70s
Trenches were built in zig zags not so enemy soldiers couldn’t shoot down them...
They were done that way so that if a shell landed on the trench the shrapnel wouldn’t take out the whole line but instead just that small section.
Wow. You are defeniently tge first person to say this
It’s not really about the shrapnel it’s more about the shockwave the shrapnel is not going to take out a whole line the shockwave tho can
Its both
Thank you
It also creates overlapping lines of site for defense but who is tracking that. Lol
Britain: A Damp
Germany: Emirates 1st Class
Germans always had the more comfortable trenches, and more safer trenches. The Germans were usually more ready.
to loose the war despite being superior
They lost on the strategic level. Doesn't mean they were inferior on tactical or even operational level. They were out-manned and outgunned, they had fewer resources overall.
They where starved to death on a national level
Prolly that means to not start a war if you gonna be outmanned and outgunned.
Yep
Plot twist:
The Brits only charged towards the Germans cuz they wanted those nice trenches
Lol
Lol your comment has 69 likes lets leave it that way.
99likes welp no 100likes:)
Cool
Germans: *Builds great trench systems*
British: *Builds tanks*
Germans: *Surprised Pikachu face*
@TheWeeaboo
Debatable.
TheWeeaboo A7V thicc
@TheWeeaboo not really first years if war Soviets were far ahead of the Germans. French were in ww1 and my nation still was having fun with French in building tanks for not this war. I think British tanks Valentine and Matilda were good. In the end if the war Germans were ahead on tanks. Americans had tank advantage in 1942 43 against most of the axis but in 1944 they Russians had better tanks while americans were trying to modernize their tanks which they did quite good but wasnt enough compared to germans.
Andrew Fishburn nah
Germans: Turn bullets around to penetrate tanks
British: Wait, that's not how it works
RIP FOR EVERYONE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE TRENCHES
Kevineitor199 what are caps?
Justinian I Comment stealer
Zepitoco Games Bruh all the letters are uppercase, “caps”
Zepitoco Games what comment stealer , that is my own comment , I swear to god
Kevineitor199 I want everyone to see this comment , pray for all who lost their lives in the trenches
1:14 is that Captin Blackadder?
yes
Simple History nice
Simple History..Do karl marx
I was going to ask the same question...
Nice detail. I've watched every series of blackadder a dosen times over. Noticed something very familiar the moment I saw him.
Germany : *Built an underground Hotel*
War: Am I a joke to you?
Not an underground hotel, multiple underground hotels
Yes.
Yeah actually kinda was they could have won had they umm idk not attacked Russia in the dead of winter or idk push their lines as quick as they had. If they had played a turtle game then results would have been vastly different
I wouldn't say so, since entire Germany had famine at the time.
@@bigmoniesponge food
Watch out for the tank. You gotta jump on it if you want that lightning staff piece
Clay Soggyfries lmao bro bo3 origins just watch out for the giant Kiser bot lol
Origins
You gotta make sure tho to get the wind staff from their 300 foot long leviathan robots.
Wat?
Don't forget the recording
0:26 Everyone knows that the best way to dig is to tap the ground with the top of a pickaxe.
It a pickaxe with a shovel on the other size
Then they draw them using the pick size
Amazing how well the channel's evolved since this video came out. I hope it keeps getting better
The animation for the pickaxes is so weird. They're going up instead of down lol
Again Awsome video Guys keep it up so we can learn simple history. Edit: Simple History can you do episode about Abraham Lincoln?
Sure can!
Thank you Simple History!
AkselHelp Trans how do you get a rank
AkselHelp Trans they could do a out how he was a bit of a dictator and how he only cared about the 1%! It would really reveal who he actually was instead of the president who freed the slaves.
You get a heart cus you are a sponsor you kiddo
“It’s over Britain I have the high ground”
“You underestimate my power”
*treaty of Versailles*
French at 1940: Oh boy!
trench warfare again.
Germans at 1940: Nein.
It's BLITZKRIEG TIME!
Gsrmans at 1940: Are you sure about that?
*MAGINOT LINE INTENSIFIES*
HANS
GET TO ZE TRENCH
Soul Knight ZUM GRABEN
HOLGER
DE RUSSE KOME!
Nein GET TO DA *GERMAN MACHINE GUNS*
FOR THE MUZALAND
use minenwerfer
I consider the subject of history, a true hobby. And this channel its so fun and educational. Hello from Colombia and thank you
Britain: Trenches are temporary.
Germany: But TRENCH is eternal
Is that JoJo reference?
I think its a doom reference
@@Uragan00829 I think is a doom eternal reference
You fools, it’s a Mario reference
@@GooserMan I
apologize my foolishness, I't obviously Mario reference. Will you forgive me?
They were also built in zigzags to limit the blast if a artillery shell landed in one section. This architecture influenced the design of the landship, the to sponsons were at the left and right so they could shoot into both sides of a trench.
1:14 Blackadder?
Yusuf Can Çelik indeed
Darling? :)
Good old Edmund
No, I am afraid the line is very chhhhrjkkldjkkkkkk-ckhhhhh-shhhhh...beep-beep.
@@droger00 a wandering minstrel I E I E crcchh gale force 4
I learn so much of you guys. I love history and this channel gives me all the information I need. Thank you Simple History :)
The poor cartoon soldiers must of been through it all. I can only sympathise. True heroes.
I'm forever grateful to the young men that had to endure these unimaginable conditions.
I love how you've added in Blackadder within the Dugout.
trench foot: :|
french foot: >:)
@my mom degenerate
o O
Grabenfuss.
Interesting video, this could lead to a new series about warfare strategies; you could talk about the blitzkrieg, the Napoleonic wars strategies, etc.
I just wanna thank this video as I was making a ww2 Minecraft map and this video has helped me a lot
Uhhhhh this is a WW1 video.
we might not know that somewhere in WW1 there's a fight who builds a better trench than the other
This was very interesting I think I might have a go at building a LEGO Trench
biscuit builds you should do it
Nice Video! I love how even in Battlefield 1, you can see a distinct difference in quality between the French oder the German trenches.
Generals- "There's a stretch of open ground defended by machine guns and barbed wire: we'll attack there at regular intervals."
Generals- "There's a stretch of open ground targeted by artillery and shelled regularly: that's where we'll live."
Soldiers- "Did they just say 'we'?"
It's a long way to Tipparary.... It's a long way to go!
Why do I keep seeing you in each comment section now
Becouse you enjoy the same content. ^^
It's a long way to Tipparary...To the sweetest girl I know
Goodbye Picadilly
Farewell Leicester Square
I know this ww1 brexit song.
Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag and smile, smile, smile
Good video. One other and maybe the most important reason why trenches were built in a zig-zag formation is to absorb the shockwave and shrapnel created by a direct hit of an artillery shell in the trench. Saving lives and preventing more damage. Furthermore, it also provides crossfire capabilities when the enemy attacks.
*C A M P E R S* !
Lol😂
Loved the video! Could you possibly make a video on the armored trains that were used in The Great War.
There's a WWI Memorial in Kansas City, MO.
They have a mocked up German Trench and a mocked up British trench, The difference is staggering. Like the video says, the German trenches were amazing.
It was like the Hilton vs a Super 8.
Yes, but they also weren't a pleasant place to live in.
1:14 was that captain blackadder standing in the right?
How fancy do you want your trench to be
Germans: yes
@Anglus Patria I think British.
This is my favorite video for some reason I found it fascinating and caused a spark for love of wars, so.... Thank you Simple History!
3:05
“I have space in my backpack, should I bring more weaponry?”
“Nah bring a vase and pick some tulips mate”
Not a vase. Wine bottle.
0:30 Why they be digging with them iron pickaxes thats not the Minecraft way
Satpreet Bhatoa they need shovels
that's an entrenchment tool one side is flat like a spade the other is a pickaxe
@@jackcloud4728 r/woooosh
@@raphuscucullatus7845 it's a combination of a shovel and a pickaxe
jack cloud r/wooosh
Little did we realize that this video would still be relevant in 2023. Nor that trench warfare would be showing up on YT feeds as something we would want to be finding out about 100 years after first introduced.
( British soldier ) my feet are wet they dont have this at the German side
( British Officer ) WEL WHY DONT YOU GO LIVE WITH THE GERMANS THAN?
( British soldier ) I THINK I WIL
*gets* *shot* *by* *German* *machinergunner*
I was hoping he would surrender and befriend the Germans on Christmas.
*gets tied to pole and shot by British firing squad*
@@Taco_Boy-ly7fp meanwhile on front: *gets kicked out of trench on Christmas Eve by German general*
quickly the reason the german trenches used sharp turns was so that if an artillery shell hit in the trench it wouldn't spread very far
No surprise, I love this channel; but this was a well put together video explaining trench warfare...
Wasn’t the trench system zig zagged because of artillery and the shock waves?
Enfilading was a consideration as well.
Not only. It was for both.
Gabe Sanchez Crazy thing is that it didn’t save lives, it reduced casualties
Well... actually for both and for enemies to have a hard time navigating.
TheWeeaboo no, a casualty can also be an injured person.
The Germans always had it better and still lost
@@theresecoco1887 also tanks
led by a foolish maniac who thinks hes better than his generals
@@mannyfernandez7028 even if he was foolish the Germans almost never lost any of their own land, the 2-4 times the actually lost on their own territory, they gained it back, when they lost land, it was land from enemy territory that they gained. The germans did very well but had heavy causualties like 50% of 13 million soldiers, and
pierce sherry Germans are not very outnumbered until US joined the war.For exp in Summer of 1916 they had 2.85 million soldiers in Western Front while combined Allies had about 4 million soldiersAlso on East Germans had 1.7 million soldiers against Russians.İn March of 1918 they had 192 divisions+3 brigades on Western Front comparing 110 French and 68 British Empire divisions.They had more front line strength than the Allies during most of Spring Offensive until 2nd Battle of the Marne.Look at Wikipedia Spring Offensive.Also Germans had massive amounts of heavy artillery compare other nations.
@@theresecoco1887 even if germany had the strongest army in the world, they still would have lost because of A) they needed oil, but were running out and had now way to get more B) Hitler would've inevidebly made another mistake C) very small navy
Nice. I liked the illustration during your explanation.
0:06 is the soldier in the tan uniform the officer or a comander?
Idk
Must be officers who carry sidearms, anything other than a rifle
South Park version of simple history 👍🏽
thank you so much you helped me with my history project best youtuber ever
1:19 Captain Blackadder?
Can you do a video history of flintlock firearms? By the way I enjoy your history videos. keep it up!
My great grandfather died thanks to these. He didn't die in one, but he died years later due to circulatory issues caused by living in them from the mud. Entente side, maybe he would of lived longer had he been in a German trench.
The trenches at Beaumont-Hamel are really amazing. Most of the trenches of both Germans and British are still visible.
*salutes*
Trenchs had a huge weakness to then the wing hussars arrived!!!
Nice video thanks for getting to the point and not trying to hit the 10 min mark
Imagine all the nasty things found underneath the wood floor they walk on.
Called duckboards
German soldiers were using golden fish to measure that - if the fish never came back, it means the water is higly poisonous.