Letters from the Trenches

Twelve and a half million letters were sent to theWestern Frontevery week. In 1914 the Postal Section of the Royal Engineers had a staff of 250 men. By 1918 the Army Postal Service employed 4,000 soldiers. Letters only took two or three days to arrive from Britain. Even soldiers in thefront linetrenches received daily deliveries of letters.
Soldiers were also encouraged to write letters to friends and family in Britain. Most men decided it would be better to conceal the horrors of the trench warfare. As a result of theDefense of the Realm Actthat was passed in 1914, all letters that the men wrote should have been read and censored by junior officers.
Some officers could not bring themselves to read their men's letters and these arrived in Britain unaltered. For example, LieutenantJohn Reithlater admitted in his autobiography,Wearing Spurs(1966): "I did my best to take an interest in the members of my platoon personally. In manual exercises and in extended order drill in a field I could take none; and they knew it. I was supposed to censor their letters home, but I informed them that they were on their honour not to say things they should not say, and I handed over the censor's stamp to the sergeant." /
What is the main reading the letter doing?

The following are a few letters sent from British troops to their families.

Primary Sources

(1) Private H. F. Leppard of East Grinstead wrote a letter to his mother on 19th December, 1914. The letter was not censored.

The soldiers at the front need more rest. While in the trenches the water is over our knees most of the time. The war is going to last some time yet, and might be another twelve months before it is over. The war has only just begun and its going to be a war of exhaustion. After the regular armies have done their work it means that all the young lads at home being trained and disciplined and will take our place in the field. The sooner people understand this, the better, it will be for the nation.

(2) Private Stanley Terry of 15 North End, East Grinstead, wrote a letter to his family in November, 1915. The letter was not censored.

We have just come out of the trenches after being in for six days and up to our waists in water. While we were in the trenches one of the Germans came over to our trench for a cigarette and then back again, and he was not fired at. We and the Germans started walking about in the open between the two trenches, repairing them, and there was no firing at all. I think they are all getting fed up with it.

(3) Private James Mitchell of 7 Church Lane, East Grinstead, wrote a letter to his father on 17th October, 1914.

We started away just after dawn from our camp and I think it was about an hour later that we encountered the enemy. They were on the opposite side of the valley and as we came over the brow of the hill they opened on us with rifle fire and shrapnel from about 900 yards. We lost three officers and about 100 men killed and wounded in that half hour. I do not want any more days like that one. (this section censored) Anyway we drove the Germans back and held them there for eight days. I cannot tell you all I should like to, as it would never reach you.

(7)John Reith,Wearing Spurs(1966)

I did my best to take an interest in the members of my platoon personally. In manual exercises and in extended order drill in a field I could take none; and they knew it. I was supposed to censor their letters home, but I informed them that they were on their honour not to say things they should not say, and I handed over the censor's stamp to the sergeant. I was thankful when our three days in billets were over and we were back in trenches again. I was still dreaming about Sailaway and Transport, still bewildered almost every time I woke, but there was at least a chance of something happening in the trenches and one was clear of CO and Adjutant.

(8)Harold Chapin, a self-censored letter to Calypso Chapin (23rd May 1915)

I have been up to my eyes in work (at the main dressing station in " ----- ") since Sunday morning when the British and French attack began (or rather when its fruits in wounded began to reach us. The actual attack began on Saturday night). Nominally I have been on night duty in the operating tent, but naturally with wounded and wounded and wounded flowing in neither night nor day duty means anything. I had had eight hours sleep in three days, when heavy fighting out here developed and the message came down for more bearers, so out I came with a dozen others by horse ambulance (time two a.m.) and going on on foot just as day was breaking, found a Regimental M.O. in a room in a gutted house with some half dozen wounded and two or three dead on the floor about him. His own regimental stretcher bearers were carrying and carrying the long mile down to a spot where an ambulance could meet them, in comparative safety. I gave a hand with my party of six and between us we carried down two: you have no idea of the physical fatigue entailed in carrying a twelve stone blessé a thousand odd yards across muddy fields. Oh this cruel mud! Back in " ----- " we hate it (the poor fellows come in absolutely clayed up), but out here, it is infernal.

After watching the short clip on trench warfare and reading the letters written by British soldiers your assignment is to write your own letter home.

Directions: You are a 16 year old British private (low ranking military member), your job is to deliver mail to the people in the Trenches, and to collect their mail to be sent back home. You spend your days running around the trenches and frequently entering no man’s land to do so.

Write a letter home to your family explaining what you see, and what you do on a daily basis. (Minimum 2-3 paragraphs)

After your letter answer the following questions. (On the same piece of paper as your letter.) (2-3 Sentences each)

  1. Would your letter be censored by an officer? Why or why not? (Highlight/underline areas in your letter that would be censored).
  2. Things that would be censored would be names of locations, details about supplies (weapons etc), and anything that would give the Germans an advantage if they read your letter)
  1. IF you were an officer, would you censor your soldier’s letters? (You have been ordered to) why or why not? Explain.
  1. Why do you THINK World War I developed trench warfare? How did armies fight before? How might technology have changed the way people fought from the 1800’s to the 1900s? (1 paragraph minimum)