?Trench Warfare in World War One World War One was a global war centered in Europe which started in 1914 and lasted until 1918. During the war, millions of soldiers were killed, various advancements were made in military technology, and a wide range of different warfare techniques were developed. Among the newly established warfare techniques, trench warfare was a fundamental technique and component of the First World War which the Western Front encompassed. However, it can be argued that trench warfare had a detrimental effect on the Australian soldiers both physically and mentally in World War One. The numerous pests of the war as well as the harsh conditions of the trenches resulted in painful diseases and infections. Furthermore, the trauma of battle often caused mental manifestations which caused anxiety, insomnia, and a near-catatonic state to the Australian soldiers involved in the First World War. To understand the adverse effects that trench warfare had on the soldiers, a basic knowledge of the trenches is necessary. Trench warfare was a form of land warfare using occupied fighting lines in which opposing armies could conduct battle. The warfare tactic was established when the Germans dug-in to the ground when pushed back by Allied forces to avoid losing more land. When the Allies realized that they were unable to break through this line of defense, they too dug protective trenches for battle (Daniels, 2014). Essentially, trench warfare was the result of two armies facing a stalemate. The trenches were dug in sections (zigzags) rather than straight lines so that if a shell explodes inside one of these traverses, or an enemy gets into one, only that section would be affected (Baker, 2014). The trench layout consisted of a frontline, which was lightly occupied by soldiers, a support line, where soldiers would retreat to if the front line is bombarded, and the reserve line, where reserve troops would amass for counter-attacks if t