Lesson video

Hello, I'm Mr. Marchant, and I'll be your history teacher for today's lesson.

I'm really excited to have you joining me as we explore today's subject, and my number one priority will be to help ensure that you can meet our lesson objective for today.

Welcome to today's lesson, which is part of our Edexcel unit on medicine in Britain.

By the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to explain the range of conditions which required medical treatment on the Western Front.

There are two keywords which will help us navigate our way through today's lesson.

Those are shrapnel and wound.

Shrapnel are small, sharp pieces of metal that fly through the air when a bomb explodes.

And a wound is an injury, especially one that is made by a bullet or sharp object.

Today's lesson will be split into three parts, and we'll begin by focusing on the trench environment.

Trenches were intended to help protect soldiers on the Western Front.

However, conditions in trenches also led to soldiers suffering from a range of health problems which required medical treatment.

These conditions affected both the physical and mental health of soldiers.

British trenches on the Western Front were often wet and muddy.

As trenches frequently flooded, soldiers had little choice but to stand in cold and muddy water for large periods of time.

As a result, up to 75,000 soldiers suffered from a condition known as trench foot.

In its first stage, trench foot caused painful swelling at the feet.

If it advanced to its second stage, gangrene set in.

For any soldiers suffering from the second stage of trench foot, it was necessary to amputate their foot in order to save the rest of their leg.

Preventative action, which focused on keeping feet dry, was key to protecting soldiers from trench foot.

For instance, from 1915 onwards, soldiers were requested to change their socks twice per day and were also told to cover their feet with whale oil to create a protected barrier against cold and wet conditions in the trenches.

So, thinking about what we've just heard, why was trench foot so common on the Western Front? Was it because trenches were often hard to move around, because trenches were often overcrowded, because trenches were often under attack, or because trenches were often wet and flooded? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said the correct answer was D.

Trench foot was so common on the Western Front because trenches were often wet and flooded.

Trench fever was a serious condition caused by contact between soldiers and lice, although it was not proven until 1918 that lice were responsible.

Trench fever was not deadly, but it was widespread, affecting half a million men who suffered from flu-like symptoms such as severe headaches.

To prevent the spread of the disease, delousing stations were set up so soldiers could bathe and clean their clothes.

Nevertheless, issues like overcrowding meant that most trenches remained unsanitary, so soldiers remained in contact with lice and continued to suffer from trench fever throughout the war.

Some soldiers also suffered from shell shock on the Western Front.

Shell shock was a mental condition caused by the trauma of warfare, but it did have some physical early symptoms, such as tiredness and uncontrollable shaking.

As the condition became more advanced, some soldiers experienced severe psychological distress.

80,000 cases of shell shock were recorded in the British Army.

Those suffering from the condition were often given rest and food, and some were even sent to specialist hospitals in Britain, like Craiglockhart Hospital in Edinburgh.

However, shell shock was poorly understood at the time.

This encouraged the view that some sufferers were simply cowards, and led to some soldiers with shell shock receiving punishments for not fighting.

So, let's make sure we have a secure understanding of what we've just heard.

How many British soldiers developed trench fever? Was it fewer than 2,000, 50,000, or half a million? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said the correct answer was C.

Half a million British soldiers developed trench fever during World War I.

And which medical condition were delousing stations intended to prevent? Was it shell shock, trench fever, or trench foot? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said the correct answer was B.

Delousing stations were intended to prevent trench fever.

Let's try one more question.

This time we have a statement which reads, "Soldiers suffering from shell shock were never given any care." But is that statement true or false? Pause video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that that statement was false.

But we need to be able to justify our response.

So why is it that that original statement was incorrect? Pause video here and press play when you're ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said, "Although some shell shock victims received punishments, it was common for soldiers to be given rest and food, and some were even sent back to Britain to receive care." So now we're in a good position to put all of our knowledge about the trench environment into practise.

I want you to identify the causes and responses for each of the medical conditions, shell shock, trench fever, and trench foot, which are shown in the table.

So pause the video here and press play when you're ready to reflect on your responses.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that task.

So I asked you to identify the causes and responses for each of the medical conditions shown in the table, and your answers may have included, for shell shock that it is caused by the trauma of war, and it was responded to with rest and food, but also sometimes with punishments.

For trench fever, you should have said that it was caused by contact with lice and by overcrowding.

And that responses to it included delousing stations for bathing and cleaning clothes.

And then finally, for trench foot, you may have said that this was caused by standing in cold mud and water and it was responded to by changing socks twice per day and rubbing whale oil over feet, and also, in the worst cases, through amputation.

So well done if your own responses look something like those answers we've just seen.

And now we are ready to move on to the second part of our lesson for today where we're going to think about wounds on the Western Front.

World War I involved the use of more mechanised, increasingly powerful weapons, such as machine guns and explosive shrapnel shells.

Bullets and shrapnel fired for these weapons were able to cause severe wounds for soldiers on the Western Front.

Advances in gun technology pose a significant threat to soldiers during World War I.

For instance, rifles could fire accurately across large distances, and machine guns were capable of shooting 450 rounds per minute.

In both cases, the bullets these guns fired were capable of penetrating deeper into the body, piercing organs, fracturing bones, and causing significant bleeding.

Indeed, bullets were responsible for 39% of wounds suffered by British soldiers on the Western Front.

Even more soldiers were injured by high explosive and shrapnel shells, which accounted for 58% of wounds on the Western Front.

The blast from a high explosive shell was enough to kill or wound soldiers immediately.

However, many explosive shells fired on the Western Front also contained shrapnel, meaning that their blasts killed and wounded many more soldiers by scattering shrapnel across a wide area at high speeds.

The majority of shrapnel injuries were to the arms and legs, but a significant number of soldiers also suffered head injuries.

To protect soldiers against rising numbers of head wounds, the Brodie helmet was introduced in 1915.

The Brodie helmet had a steel cap and a strap to ensure it remained in place if there was an explosion, and proved very effective, as fatal injuries from head wounds fell by 80% after its introduction.

So, thinking about what we've just heard, what percentage of wounds on the Western Front were caused by bullets? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that 39% of wounds on the Western Front were caused by bullets.

And let's try another question.

This time we have a statement which reads, "Brodie helmets offered effective protection against shrapnel." But is that statement true or false? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that that statement was true, but we need to be able to justify our response.

So why was the original statement correct? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said, "Brodie helmets gave soldiers more protection against shrapnel and helped to reduce fatal head wounds by 80% after their introduction in 1915." Bullets and shrapnel also posed a secondary danger to soldiers.

When bullets and shrapnel entered a soldier's body, they could also introduce fabric and soil into the wound, causing infections.

In fact, many injured soldiers died from infection rather than their initial wounds.

If local soil was introduced to a soldier's wounds, this could prove particularly problematic, as this contained large amounts of the bacteria responsible for tetanus and also for gas gangrene.

Whilst tetanus vaccinations were introduced for the end of 1914 to help protect soldiers, there was no cure or vaccine for gas gangrene.

Surgeons dealing with patients suffering from gas gangrene infections often had to amputate a limb.

If they didn't, the infection could spread rapidly and kill a soldier in just one day.

So, thinking about what we've just heard, I want you to change one word to correct the following sentence, which reads, "If soldiers were infected with gas gangrene, vaccinations were used to prevent the infection spreading through their body." So consider, which word appears to be incorrect in that sentence, and what should it be changed to? Pause the video here and press play when you are ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the incorrect word was vaccinations and that this should have been changed to amputations.

If soldiers were infected with gas gangrene, amputations were used to prevent the infection spreading through their body.

So, we're now in a good position to put all of our knowledge about wounds on the Western Front into practise.

I want you to explain two reasons why bullet and shrapnel wounds were so dangerous on the Western Front.

Ensure that your explanations refer to two distinct reasons and that they include specific factual details to support your points.

So pause the video here and press play when you're ready to reflect on your responses.

Okay, well done for all of your effort on that task.

So I asked you to explain two reasons why bullet and shrapnel wounds were so dangerous on the Western Front, and your answer may have included, "One reason why bullet and shrapnel wounds were so dangerous on the Western Front was because they were capable of inflicting a lot of damage.

The use of new rifles, more powerful machine guns, and explosive shells meant that bullets and shrapnel travelled at high speed and could penetrate deep into the body.

Consequently, soldiers with bullet or shrapnel wounds might suffer from a range of problems such as pierced organs, fractured bones, and significant bleeding." Your answer may also have included, "Another reason why bullet and shrapnel wounds were so dangerous was because of the risk of infection they created.

Bullets and shrapnel could introduce fabrics and soil into the body, causing infections.

On the Western Front, the local soil contained a bacteria responsible for gas gangrene infections.

Because there was no cure for gas gangrene, many wounded soldiers who developed this infection either died or had a limb amputated to prevent the spread of the infection." So well done if your own responses look something like those ones which we've just seen.

And so now we're ready to move on to the third and final part of our lesson for today, where we're going to think about gas attacks.

Poisonous gas was another weapon used by both sides during World War I.

Gas attacks were amongst the dangers which British soldiers feared most whilst fighting on the Western Front.

During the second battle of Ypres, the German army used chlorine gas as part of their attack on British forces.

This was the first of many times in which poisonous gas would be used as a weapon during World War I.

Chlorine gas suffocates those who breathe it in, creating breathing difficulties and even causing death in some cases.

The German army also used other types of gas during World War I.

Phosgene gas was first deployed in 1915.

Phosgene has similar effects to chlorine, but is quicker acting.

Soldiers exposed to it could be dead within two days.

Mustard gas was also used as a weapon from 1917 onwards.

Mustard gas burns skin, makes the eyes sore, and causes internal and external blisters around the body, which could begin to bleed.

Many of these injuries had lasting effects.

Over 90% of soldiers exposed to mustard gas suffered eye injuries, with some experiencing temporary or permanent blindness that took weeks or months to heal.

The injuries often required extended medical treatment, left many soldiers unable to return to active duty.

Death was not a common consequence of gas attacks, though.

6,000 British soldiers died as a result of gas attacks.

But this only accounts for 1% of deaths on the Western Front and was much less than 185,000 men injured by gas attacks.

In part, this is because gas masks were provided to give soldiers protection from these weapons.

Initially, gas masks were basic, and some soldiers even had to rely on urine-soaked cotton masks to protect themselves.

Nevertheless, by July, 1915, all soldiers were equipped with a gas mask, and these became more effective over the course of the war.

By 1918, sophisticated masks used chemicals to neutralise any poisonous gas.

All the same, poisonous gas was a powerful psychological weapon which terrified many British soldiers.

The fear created by poison gas was partly due to the fact it inflicted slow and painful deaths on its victims. For instance, mustard gas often took four to five weeks to kill its victims. So, let's make sure we have a secure understanding of everything we've just heard.

When were all British soldiers on the Western Front equipped with gas masks? Was it July, 1914, July, 1915, July, 1916, or July, 1917? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said the correct answer was B.

By July, 1915, all British soldiers on the Western Front had been equipped with gas masks.

And which type of poison gas causes internal and external blisters around the body? Is it chlorine gas, mustard gas, or phosphene gas? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that the correct answer was B, mustard gas could cause internal and external blisters around the body.

And now we have a statement on the screen, which reads, "Gas attacks were extremely deadly during World War I." But is that statement true or false? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to see the right answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said that that statement was false, but we need to be able to justify our response.

So why is it that that original statement was incorrect? Pause the video here and press play when you're ready to check your answer.

Okay, well done to everybody who said, "6,000 British soldiers died as a result of gas attacks, but this only accounts for 1% of deaths on the Western Front.

However, mustard gas could cause temporary or permanent blindness, so gas attacks was still feared by soldiers." So, we're now in a good position to put all of our knowledge about gas attacks into practise.

I want you to study the painting.

How can a painting be used by historians to understand the dangers posed by gas attacks? You should refer to details in the source and to your own knowledge as part of your answer.

So pause the video here and press play when you're ready to reflect on your response.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that task.

So I asked you, how can a painting be used by historians to understand the dangers posed by gas attacks? And your answer may have included, "The painting shows a group of soldiers standing in line.

The soldiers are wearing bandages over their eyes and are each holding onto the person standing in front of them.

Many other soldiers with similar bandages are shown lying around on the floor.

This shows that gas attacks could affect many soldiers and lead to problems such as temporary or permanent blindness for those who were exposed to poison gas.

The picture also highlights the fact that many victims were injured but not killed by gas attacks.

Indeed, while 6,000 British soldiers did die from gas attacks, this only accounted for 1% of deaths on the Western Front and was just a small fraction of the 185,000 soldiers wounded during gas attacks." So, really well done if your own response looks something like that model, especially if you were including both details from the source and your own knowledge as part of your answer.

And so now we've reached the end of today's lesson, which puts us in a good position to summarise our learning about conditions requiring medical treatment on the Western Front.

We've seen that conditions in trenches made soldiers on the Western Front vulnerable to trench, foot, trench fever, and shell shock.

Bullets and shrapnel killed and wounded many men by causing bleeding, piercing organs, and fracturing bones.

Bullets and shrapnel exposed many wounded soldiers to deadly infections such as gas gangrene.

British soldiers were also attacked with poisonous gas by German forces.

And gas attacks terrified most soldiers, but only accounted for a small proportion of deaths in the British army.

So, really well done for all of your efforts during today's lesson.

It's been a pleasure to help guide you through our resources today, and I look forward to seeing you again in future as we continue to think about medical history.