The misery of rest camps

In addition to the horrors of frontline combat, Australian Imperial Force (AIF) soldiers on the Western Front endured the harsh conditions of winter in France, with rain, cold and snow. In the trenches men were frequently knee-deep in mud and many suffered from trench foot. Lice and rats thrived in the filth and unsanitary conditions. Rest camps, although offering relief from combat, were not necessarily free from other miseries and the maintenance of morale in such conditions was difficult.