Soldiers smoked cigarettes for many reasons.
An obvious appeal was their practicality when compared to other forms of tobacco consumption. They were small and lightweight, quick to light, and could be easily stored to protect them from the dampness of the trenches.
Soldiers smoked cigarettes for many reasons.
An obvious appeal was their practicality when compared to other forms of tobacco consumption. They were small and lightweight, quick to light, and could be easily stored to protect them from the dampness of the trenches.
Cigarettes also relieved a frequent enemy of soldiers at the front: boredom. Smoking a cigarette while performing fatigues or during free time helped to pass the days. Sharing cigarettes in these moments offered an opportunity for soldiers to socialize with their comrades which aided in promoting and maintaining unit cohesion.
They were also useful to mask odors. The strong smell of tobacco smoke, which was practically inescapable in the trenches, was preferable to soldiers when compared to the smell of the unburied, decomposing bodies which surrounded them or the smell of the unwashed inhabitants themselves.
Image: “Two Canadians using a hole made in Boche barricade near Lens, as an outdoor smoking room.” September, 1917. Library and Archives Canada. Ministry of the Overseas Military Forces of Canada fonds. a001827, no. 3396765 (O-1861A).
Soldiers smoked cigarettes for many reasons.
An obvious appeal was their practicality when compared to other forms of tobacco consumption. They were small and lightweight, quick to light, and could be easily stored to protect them from the dampness of the trenches.
Image: “Two Canadians using a hole made in Boche barricade near Lens, as an outdoor smoking room.” September, 1917. Library and Archives Canada. Ministry of the Overseas Military Forces of Canada fonds. a001827, no. 3396765 (O-1861A).
Cigarettes also relieved a frequent enemy of soldiers at the front: boredom. Smoking a cigarette while performing fatigues or during free time helped to pass the days. Sharing cigarettes in these moments offered an opportunity for soldiers to socialize with their comrades which aided in promoting and maintaining unit cohesion.
They were also useful to mask odors. The strong smell of tobacco smoke, which was practically inescapable in the trenches, was preferable to soldiers when compared to the smell of the unburied, decomposing bodies which surrounded them or the smell of the unwashed inhabitants themselves.
© Canadian Centre for the Great War, 2021
© Canadian Centre for the Great War, 2021
