How much did the soldiers dig? A quantification of WW1 remains in Argonne, France

The Franco-German front lines of the Argonne Forest in northern France, now partially preserved under forest cover, were the subject of a geoarchaeological survey that aimed at documenting the geomorphic impact of WW1 on battlefield topography. An archaeological field program, including pedestrian survey and excavation, was combined with geoarchaeological survey, archival research, and a large-scale lidar survey, the goal being to map and quantify all surface war remains within the study area and their postwar morphological history. These data allowed for the calculation of variations in landscape relief (as displaced sediment volume) related to the construction of the trenches as well as sediment displaced through artillery shelling. Results show that displaced sediment volumes range between 1000 and 2000 m³/ha, and reflect the intensity of trench warfare on the landscape; we are able to document differences in trench building and maintenance between the French and German sides, as well as how artillery shelling altered the landscape. The lidar data, when combined with military maps produced during the war, as well as field verification, highlight the persistence of the now long-abandoned trenches and wider landscape.