Communication During War - military communication during World War I

The website, Anzac Portal, provides an informative summary of developments in technology, including communication, during the First World War. There were many developments in communication between 1914 and 1918.

Communication between the soldiers in the trenches and headquarters was essential. At the beginning of the war messages were relayed by runners - soldiers carrying messages from one place to another -  cyclists, or the use of animals such as pigeons or dogs as well as other animals. Pigeons carried messages strapped to a leg back to their base.

Other early methods of communication sometimes used were heliographs where sunlight was used to flash messages via moveable mirrors,  signalling flags, signalling lamps and whistles for transmitting Morse code. A problem when using these methods was that the enemy could also often see or hear the signals. Therefore more secretive methods needed to be used.

Early forms of telephones could be used in the trenches but they were connected by cables which could be easily cut or destroyed by explosions.

Some armies used portable Morse code machines to communicate between headquarters and those in the trenches. 

A new development during the war was the Fuller phone which included both Morse code and speech which was coded to protect the message from the enemy.

Fuller phone - Imperial War Museum

Aircraft could also be used to drop messages in canisters to trenches if necessary. Aeroplane pilots could use a hand-free microphone to keep in contact with headquarters and pass on observations from the air.

Wireless was also used to send messages between ships at sea duty or during battle.

New technical developments provided the possibility of collection of intelligence from intercepted telecommunications such as wireless signals from German Zeppelins. This provided both the location and anticipated targets of Zeppelin attacks.

Early in the war observation balloons which flew or were tethered at a great height behind the front lines carried observers trained to spot enemy troop movements and collect intelligence. Dirigibles (airships) which were more manoeuvrable and tougher than traditional hot air balloons were developed and could be seen above the trenches on the Western Front.

As balloons became a target from opposition forces they were heavily defended by anti-aircraft guns on the ground and patrolling fighter aircraft.

The use of aircraft gradually increased during the war and they were used for observation as well as for aerial warfare.