Trench warfare was combat within a trench. Trenches were seven feet wide and 6 feet deep and were supported at the bottom with duckboards. This duckboard was to protect soldiers feet from being submerged in water and prevent illnesses like trench foot.The front of the trench had a parapet made with sandbags to absorb bullets. The trenches were highly infested with rats, and since there was not enough water for frequent washing, lice tormented them. The trenches had stale odours of perspiration, as well as alkaline smell of clothing. Trench warfare took place in France in 1916 on the western front with the French German, and British armies all digging trenches. The failed Schlieffen Plan caused a stalemate in the trenches where no army would make advancements. The trenches were created because the Germans did not want to retreat into their country and be caught in a two front war with Russia to the west, and Britain and France to the east.