Fascinating afternoon in the trenches

As the centenary year of the start of WW1 gathers momentum, the activity in Kilcullen on the commemoration is also moving along, writes Brian Byrne. Col Des Travers's talk on 'Life in the Trenches' yesterday was fascinating, and sobering when we saw just what hardship the millions of young soldiers on all sides faced on the front lines.



It was preceded by an unexpected demonstration of weapons, uniforms, medals and other WW1 memorabilia shown by collectors and re-enactors Dave Levine and Dermot O'Connor, who also provided fascinating back-stories about many of their items.



By the time Des Travers's presentation ended the 50 or so people who came along were very au fait with terms like parapet and parados and fire step, traverses, front line and support and reserve trenches, the preferred measurements for trench construction, and why they were built in zig-zag patterns. Also we were given a sense of the sheer horribleness of the existence the occupants endured.



His talk, with illustrations and rare film clips, meant that when the field trip part of the afternoon to Flagstaff Hill on the Curragh followed, all who trekked along through the wind and the occasional squall could well understand how the training trench systems there worked.



And later to reflect on the futility of the whole conflict and its enormous waste of resources and, most of all, lives too far ahead of their prime when they were extinguished.

More pictures from the day here.