Samarra Archaeological City is a large archaeological site (width varying from 8 km to 4 km.) north of present-day Samarra(Iraq). Today I was scanning the site with Google earth and I noticed a widespread trench system. At first I thought that these trenches were the result of the latest conflict in Iraq until I came across this information: "As a tourist destination, Samarra has been one of the key sites in Iraq…A complete system of British WWI trenches presents an opportunity for a special kind of tourist - the military historian or amateur." (http://www.globalheritagefund.org/where/samarra.html) I am not an expert on trenches, so can someone tell me these trenches are all from WW1, or are these combined with newer earthworks? I am also interested in any information about Samarra during WW1. Use the following link to see the trenches: http://maps.google.nl/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=nl&geocode=&q=Samarra,+iraq&sll=52.469397,5.509644&sspn=4.886702,14.194336&ie=UTF8&ll=34.23477,43.875076&spn=0.003238,0.006931&t=h&z=18&iwloc=addr

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thanks

If you use the search facility and type in Samarra there will be a few threads to digest

Diane

Samarra is some eighty miles north of Baghdad and was captured by the British on the 24th April 1917 where they set up a forward HQ. The scorching summer of that year made campaigning an uncomfortable business so little fighting took placer andf it would have been at this time that the trenches were dug. Digging trenches would have been hotter work than campaigning. Little advances were made until the weather cooled down in September. The trenches would simply have been a means of giving the soldfiers something to do during this period of inactivity. Here is a quote from a soldier 'Most things in camp were too hot to touch - even inside a tent the rim pf a tumbler burnt a man's mouth; dust and sand scorched the soles of men's feet through thick-soled boots'.
Ron