Trench Talk: Slang and Banter in WW1

The First World War was one of the most catastrophic and impactful events in British history, and the soldiers’ experience of it has often been boiled down to mud, blood, poison gas and ‘going over the top’. But, there are aspects of life that were fundamental to a soldier’s experience that have been simply overlooked. For example, the ‘Trench Talk’; the way in which the soldiers communicated with one another, how they voiced their feelings and emotions, and even, how they interacted with the public back home. Slang and banter would be crucial parts in how the soldiers on the front experienced and dealt with the horrors of war.