**Warfare and Destruction on the Western Front of the Great War**
The Great War left an indelible mark on history and remains one of the most devastating and violent conflicts of the 20th century. MeriStation takes a look at the Western Front of this war and the impressions those who endured it have left behind.
Trinchera a trinchera, or “trench to trench,” is a term used to describe the horrifying reality faced by soldiers from the battlefront. It signifies relentless exhaustion, suffering, and hardship — a sentiment echoed by many war veterans who experienced the Western Front.
On the Western Front, soldiers experienced what is perhaps some of the most gruesome warfare ever seen. After the initial shock of the war in 1914, a stalemate quickly forced soldiers into trenches, where they would remain entrenched for years to come.
In the brutal conditions of the trenches, military tactics had to evolve in order to survive the endless bombardment of the enemy. Artillery and machine guns provided only brief respite, while the very ground beneath soldiers’ feet seemed to constantly shudder with the artillery.
The Western Front also saw the advent of chemical weapons and the introduction of new technologies, such as tanks and aircraft, accompanied by unprecedented rates of casualties. By the war’s end, countless lives had been lost and countless more irreversibly changed.
Today, veterans, historians, and those who lived through the war in some capacity are still heartbroken over the brief moment of promise and sanity that the Great War took from them. After a century since its Beginning, the Western Front still stands as a testament to the cost of armed conflict and its unforgiving consequences.