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IN THE WARS

Amazing pics show WWI heroes with lost limbs and holes in their faces fighting back to fitness more than 100 years ago

Fascinating collection documents how wounded troops adapted to life with prosthetic limbs and the results of pioneering facial surgery

THE end of the First World War proved just the start of a battle for many of those injured in the conflict.

And these extraordinary photos show how troops fought back to health after serving their countries so selflessly.

 These injured troops enjoy a card game as they get used to life with prosthetic arms
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These injured troops enjoy a card game as they get used to life with prosthetic armsCredit: News Dog Media
 French officer Maurice Antoine Gayton had his left arm amputated from below the elbow after he was injured
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French officer Maurice Antoine Gayton had his left arm amputated from below the elbow after he was injuredCredit: News Dog Media
 Belgian solder Edouard Van Landschoot had to undergo two operations on his right leg after he was injured in Liege in 1914
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Belgian solder Edouard Van Landschoot had to undergo two operations on his right leg after he was injured in Liege in 1914Credit: News Dog Media
 Dental surgeon Mikael Schweitzer was responsible for the facial reconstruction of these French troops
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Dental surgeon Mikael Schweitzer was responsible for the facial reconstruction of these French troopsCredit: News Dog Media

The collection documents wounded troops adapting to life with prosthetic limbs and the results of pioneering reconstructive surgery on horror facial wounds.

They form part of the Seven Men, One Leg exhibition from the Europeana.eu collection.

From the outbreak of the war, special schools were set up across Europe where disabled soldiers were trained to use prosthetic limbs.

There they received training for a wide range of roles ahead of their return to society. They included accountants, tailors, shoemakers, carpenters cabinet makers, horticulturists and that of manufacturers of wooden toys.

The apprenticeship period tended to last between six and eight months.

The exhibition also demonstrates how many World War I soldiers suffered severe facial injuries.

 Hermann Peschel practices his writing using a prosthetic arm
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Hermann Peschel practices his writing using a prosthetic armCredit: News Dog Media
 The progress of this unnamed soldier who suffered a horrifying facial wound was documented in its entirety
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The progress of this unnamed soldier who suffered a horrifying facial wound was documented in its entiretyCredit: News Dog Media
 A french soldier lies on an operating table before he has an arm and a leg amputated
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A french soldier lies on an operating table before he has an arm and a leg amputatedCredit: News Dog Media
 These injured troops overcame their injuries by making toys in a workshop in Lyon, France
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These injured troops overcame their injuries by making toys in a workshop in Lyon, FranceCredit: News Dog Media

The trenches protected the bodies of soldiers, but in doing so it left their heads vulnerable to enemy fire. Soldiers would frequently stick their heads up above the trenches, exposing them to all manner of weapons.

Wounds were inflicted to the face by gunshots or shrapnel. Where bullets normally produce straight-line injuries, twisted-metal shards, from shrapnel blasts, could rip-off a face, or damage it so badly that it made a person unrecognisable.

Facial injuries were often so horrific that living with the disfigurements sometimes kept people from returning to their families and victims suffered extreme psychological damage.

 These English troops were taught carpentry skills as part of their rehabilitation
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These English troops were taught carpentry skills as part of their rehabilitationCredit: News Dog Media
 A soldier displays his disfigured hand on a visit to an orthopaedic equipment centre in Clermont-Ferrand, France
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A soldier displays his disfigured hand on a visit to an orthopaedic equipment centre in Clermont-Ferrand, FranceCredit: News Dog Media
 A wounded English solder takes a walk with the help of a French nurse
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A wounded English solder takes a walk with the help of a French nurseCredit: News Dog Media

Pioneering plastic surgery helped to reconstruct the faces of badly injured soldiers who needed extensive bone, muscle and skin grafting to restore their appearance. Nevertheless, the home front had great difficulties in getting used to the reconstructed faces.

 Injured troops with crutches compete in a race while on the road to recovery
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Injured troops with crutches compete in a race while on the road to recoveryCredit: News Dog Media
 These British troops with missing limbs attempted some gardening as they got used to their new limbs
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These British troops with missing limbs attempted some gardening as they got used to their new limbsCredit: News Dog Media
 French troops use gardening to get used to their prosthetic limbs in Clermont-Ferrand, France
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French troops use gardening to get used to their prosthetic limbs in Clermont-Ferrand, FranceCredit: News Dog Media


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