It became clear very early in the First World War that artillery and machine guns had a devastating effect on the maneuverings of infantry and cavalry and that if positions were to held the men would have to be entrenched. Here is an image depicting one of the earliest trenches from the Autumn of 1914 (some historians site September 15 as the exact date when the first trench was dug) - before both sides excepted that the war was static in nature, deciding that the victory would go to the army that was best able to kill the highest number of enemies.
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