A bestiary of war: Humanimalities in the trenches

Abstract

Collectively perceived as the vastest and bloodiest human carnage of the contemporary age, World War I was also stage to the mobilization and termination of hundreds of thousands of animals, brutally dragged into a conflict. Always present in the daily lives of soldiers and on all combat fronts, animals were direct actors in this war zone, performing various roles, from communication agents to informants, from transport, scouting, surveillance and first aid missions to simple companionship and affection. However, and despite the abundant literary corpus that pays testimony to the post-war period, celebrating the scale of animal belligerence, the contribution of the non-human soldier seems to have been forgotten or relegated to the background of this apocalyptic scenario, where man holds centre-stage. Thus, the main goal of this study is to remember the actions of these silent and outcast heroes who shared with their human companions the agonies of war and the horrors of catastrophe. We will focus our attention on the relationships (be they companionship, friendship, mutual support or repulsion) established between human and non-human combatants throughout the four years of shared existence in the hell of the trenches, where the limits between humanity and animality quickly dissolved. These reflections will rest, as far as possible, upon testimonies of war from soldiers of the CEP (Portuguese Expeditionary Corps), thus revisiting memories of the Portuguese presence in World War I.