Live-and-Let-Live.

This is coolbert:

During World War One [WW1], it was not uncommon for certain sectors of the "front" to become known as "quiet sectors".

Places [sectors] where both sides refrained from serious combat.

A modus vivendi, informal, was reached so that the normal vicissitudes of trench warfare came to a basic halt. Neither side would engage in offensive combat action against the other.

"mo·dus vi·ven·di - - 1. manner of living; way of life; lifestyle. 2. a temporary arrangement between persons or parties pending a settlement of matters in debate."

"vi·cis·si·tude - - 1. a change or variation occurring in the course of something. 3. vicissitudes, successive, alternating, or changing phases or conditions, as of life or fortune; ups and downs"

Restraint seems to have foremost in the minds of soldiers on both sides:

"In one section the hour of 8 to 9 A.M. was regarded as consecrated to 'private business,' and certain places indicated by a flag were regarded as out of bounds by the snipers on both sides."

"The quartermaster used to bring the rations up... each night after dark; they were laid out and parties used to come from the front line to fetch them. I suppose the enemy were occupied in the same way; so things were quiet at that hour for a couple of nights, and the ration parties became careless because of it, and laughed and talked on their way back to their companies."

This situation was rarely the result of some sort of high-minded ethical motivation.

Rather, as argued on one particular web site, was the result of mutual cooperation made possible by psychological considerations for survival!!??

This is called the "The Live-and-Let-Live System in Trench Warfare in World War I".

I would offer an alternative reason as to why some sectors became known as "quiet".

The terrain of the area had become so chewed up by trench warfare that above-ground movement had become more or less impossible.

"The real reason for the quietness of some sections of the line was that neither side had any intention of advancing in that particular district."

[the above quote from that same web site as cited linked previously.]

Trench warfare as practiced in WW1 was enormously destructive of the landscape. The two parallel trench systems as dug by both sides usually had:

* "a main trench system of three parallel lines, interconnected by communications trenches"

* "Behind the front system of trenches there were usually at least two more partially prepared trench systems"

* Found within a trench system would be dugouts, listening posts, and strong points [redoubts]. Between the parallel lines would be a maze of barbed wire entanglements of amazing depth.

The entire area on both sides of the trenches to some depth would be pockmarked like the surface of the moon, and then some. Craters from the incessant shelling from all caliber guns of ever increasing caliber as the war continued year after year.

The see-sawing battlefields of WW1 quite often saw movement of only a few miles at a time back and forth. IF EVEN THAT. SOMETIMES THE MOVEMENT WAS MEASURED IN MERE YARDS! EACH MOVEMENT NECESSITATING THAT NEW TRENCHES, DUGOUTS, STRONGPOINTS BE DUG AND MANNED, FURTHER ENTANGLEMENTS OF BARBED WIRE MAZES BE PUT IN PLACE, ETC.

THE LANDSCAPE OF A WW1 BATTLEFIELD HAD BECOME VIRTUALLY IMPASSABLE EVEN FOR FOOT MOVEMENT. THE BREAKTHROUGH OFFENSIVE SO DESIRED BY THE GENERAL STAFFS OF THE VARIOUS COMBATANTS HAD BECOME IMPOSSIBLE.

This is in all likelihood for the REAL REASON SOME SECTORS OF THE WW1 BATTLEFIELD BECAME KNOWN AS "QUIET"!!

coolbert.