Everyday Life in the Trenches
Drawings from a Belgian Newsmagazine
Rat Hunting (see Memoirs of Rat Officer)
Here is a small series of drawings taken from a 1916 issue of a war-time Belgian magazine called 'l'Evenement' which was published under German censorship. As publications went it was a small time affair especially compared to French and British magazines which went out of their way to help the war-effort in any way they could by providing stirring and patriotic material.
Not so with Belgian magazines published under the German occupation authorities. Their budget was considerably less nor were they allocated sufficient paper or printing facilities. Finding suitable material was also a problem. Often use was made of German material such as this series of drawings showing a number of scenes from everyday life in the trenches. The drawings are probably German, a deduction based upon the uniforms in a number of the drawings. But war-time magazines were at times maddeningly vague with providing specific information concerning illustrative material. Whatever the nationality of the artist, they are stil charming and informative glimpses into scenes in some of the more quiet sections of the Western Front.