Barbed wire

Barbed wire is a type of fencing wire constructed with sharp edges or points arranged at intervals along the strand(s). It is used to construct inexpensive fences. A person or animal trying to pass through a barbed-wire fence will suffer discomfort and possibly injury. Barbed-wire fencing requires only fenceposts, wire and fixing devices such as staples. It is simple to construct and quick to erect by a skilled fencer.

Human-proof fencing

Most barbed-wire fences, while sufficient to discourage cattle, are passable by humans who can simply climb over the fence—or through the fence by stretching the gaps between the wires using non-barbed sections of the wire as handholds. To prevent humans crossing, many prisons and other high-security installations construct fences with razor wire, a variant which instead of occasional barbs features near-continuous cutting surfaces sufficient to severely injure anyone who climbs on or over it.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Barbed wire is also used in war. Much of the artillery bombardment on the Western Front in World War I was aimed at cutting the barbed wire that was a major feature of trench warfare. The wire was not designed to stop the passage of men, just to impede them long enough to kill them with machine guns.

Related Topics:
Artillery - Western Front - World War I - Trench warfare

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~