Trench warfare I understand has been a known practice in warfare for hundreds of years, maybe not working the same way or for the same reason each time, but it's very handy. I'd like to know if there were instances of trench warfare closer to what we see in WW1 or the American Civil War during the Seven Years War, and if not, what was the most common type of combat during this period?
Hi- great question. In short, yes. This a period of tactical organization that we broadly call, "linear warfare" as infantry and cavalry soldiers were often deployed in long and shallow formations of ranks and files on the battlefield. Despite this, whenever troops fought over urban environments, siege warfare employed a geometric system of trenches. This was complete with occasional attacks on the trenches by the opposing side, and artillery fire to silence enemy battery positions.
Beyond siege warfare, when an army felt threatened in the open field, they would often entrench in order to protect their position. (Bunzelwitz 1761, Valley Forge 1777-1778, Yorktown 1781) This could occasionally lead to field armies becoming besieged in trench warfare, as happened at Yorktown during the American War of Independence.
Building entrenched camps was a skill that most major armies cultivated during this period across the Atlantic World. One of the best examples of this is Frederick II of Prussia's camp at Bunzelwitz in 1761, where the entire Prussian army was ringed by entrenchments, complete with a primitive type of anti-personnel mines. (http://kabinettskriege.blogspot.com/2016/07/valley-forge-vs-bunzelwitz-position.html)
For more on this period of warfare, and with special reference to entrenchments and fortifications, see:
Christopher Duffy, Military Experience in the Age of Reason, (1988)
--------------------------, Fire and Stone: The Science of Fortress Warfare, 1660-1860 (1975)