Militairen bij een hulppost aan het front in de Dolomieten, vermoedelijk Italianen 1916

This photograph shows what are believed to be Italian soldiers at an aid station on the Dolomite front, and was taken by Henri de Rothschild sometime during the First World War. The presence of Rothschild, a banker by trade, at the front is itself indicative of the war’s disruption of European social norms. The photograph offers a matter-of-fact view of life on the front. The makeshift structure, the weary soldiers, and the harsh environment all speak to the brutal realities of trench warfare in the mountains. The war marked a turning point in military history. It challenged older, aristocratic notions of heroism and valor. Instead it ushered in a new era of industrialized warfare and the trauma that it brought with it. To fully understand this photograph, and others like it, we can consult military archives, personal letters, and other historical documents. Only then can we grasp the complex social and political forces that shaped this moment in history.