Existing comment:
Artillery!
To break enemy resistance and shatter trenches, both sides used artillery. Effectively artillery fire needed an observer who could watch the shells land and communicate changes back to the firing battery by field phone or radio. The French and British used mass barrages over several days in an effort to destroy German trenches and soldiers. Although these attacks created large craters on the battlefield, it destroyed barbed wire and blew up mines, which helped the infantry. The Germans dug deeper and stronger bunkers that protected troops from all but a direct hit. They also withdrew most of their soldiers during a bombardment. When the artillery fire stopped, these troops returned to repel attackers.
Infantry soldiers lucky enough to reach their goal often lost the ability to communicate with supporting artillery. It took time to repair wire communications and radio were not common. As a result, they lost their fire support and became exposed to German counterattacks that too often drove them back to their starting point. |