At the start of the First World War many of the soldiers and Generals were prepared for a short open war. The weapons that the services were equipped with reflected this. Rifles and swords were the most common assault weapons provided for the new recruit in 1914: swords mainly for the officers. Pistols and bayonet's were also common pieces of basic weaponry.

As it became evident that the war was not going to be an open conflict new and more deadly weapons were introduced to the battlefield. The Machine Gun of course was paramount in the reasons for trench Warfare occurring in the first place. Alongside this deadly new weapon were other, never seen before methods of killing and maiming. 

Gas was used as a weapon, leaving the front line troops reliant upon good fortune and a good gas mask. 

The Barrage was developed as a means of attacking. Big Guns were brought in, often from ships, to bombard the trenches of the opposing force. These were complemented by the development of the tank, the aircraft and other weapons such as the Flamethrower.