So in the Battle of somme if there were any soldiers hurt where would they go? would they head back to base or just stay on the battle field and try to get other soldiers to help them?
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The idea is that you keep going forward unless you’re so messed up that you cannot move at all.
In other words, if you were so lucky as to find someone to CARRY you back, then perhaps you might make it to a forward triage center where life-threatening wounds could be treated, then be evacuated to a real hospital further back.
Recall, however, that antibiotics still are one world war away, so even if you survived the first mauling, there still would be an epic battle facing infection before you. Many “only wounded” died from this later on.
Nurses were behind the lines at hospitals. Stretcher bearers would scoop the wounded up or friends would carry the wounded back to the trenches. The wounded would then be sent to field hospitals.
Many soldiers were left stranded in no mans land where they would die slow deaths.
Injured soldiers had to head back to aid stations set up behind the front lines, if possible they made their own way back, teams of stretcher bearers would wander around the battlefield looking for wounded, but there was never enough teams for all the wounded (about 6 teams for every 1000 men – 2 men per team) in addition to that doctors would also wandered the battlefield, they did not help to get you back however, all they did was too give you very basic treatment before leaving you to look for more wounded, if you were too wounded to make it back unaided, what would happen would be (if your lucky) another soldier would take your rifle and stick in upright in the ground, this made it easier for aid parties to spot wounded in the high grass or mud of the battlefield. uninjured soldiers were not allowed to help injured back, as this was considered cowardice (i.e they avoid fighting by finding an excuse to get away) any soldier found doing this risked getting shot as a coward)
There are thousands of stories of very badly injured men making their own way back to the aid stations, one guy i read about had both feet blown off at the ankles – he recovered both feet (still in their boots) tied the shoe laces together then hung his feet around his neck and crawled 1km back to the aid station – it took him 8 hours.
Many badly wounded guys survived for days out in the battlefield waiting for someone to find them and get them back.
it is amazing what the body can endure and to be willing to do – to try and survive
As for nurses they would be in field hospitals anywhere from 10 to 30 km behind the lines