Daily Routines
Daily routines in trenches would vary between regions, nationalities, and individual platoons, but they were generally similar. The soldiers would regularly rotate through a basic sequence of fighting in the front line, followed by a period of time in the reserve or support line, then a rest period. Each morning and evening, before dawn and dusk, men on both sides would climb up onto the fire-step with a rifle and bayonet for a "stand to". This served as a preparation for possible attack. After the stand to, the officers would inspect the men and their equipment. Then they ate breakfast and at this time, both sides adopted a brief truce in which neither side would shoot at the other. The night patrols and raids (previously mentioned) were also part of the daily routine because the most offensive maneuvers were in the dark. The soldiers also had to maintain the trenches which required constant work. Some of that work included the repair of shell damaged walls, removal of standing water, creation of new latrines, and movement of supplies. During the few rest periods soldiers got, the men could nap, read, or write letters back home.