Practice Trench (WWI)
A practice trench or training trench is a trench that has been dug for military training exercises.
Extensive training trenches would have been dug throughout Britain to prepare troops before they were sent to the front lines. Since the majority of soldiers were fresh volunteers, this would have served to build strength, stamina and experience in advance of deployment.
Trenches were dug with elaborate formations that are very recognisable from above. They would be 1-2m wide and 2-3m deep with vertical sides. A zig zag layout was used to mitigate explosions spreading down the length of a trench. There would usually be several parallel lines of trenches connected by shorter communication trenches, allowing messages to be passed between them.
Woodland is a common location for many of these systems, being regularly used for military training and less affected by agriculture and ploughing. These training trenches are largely unrecorded and are usually found through archaeological survey.
Further Reading:
What to look for:
- Geometric forms
- Very regular width and depth
- Some trenches form enclosures comprising zig-zagged lines
- Although they can be single, they are often grouped and/or part of a trench system
