Military communication made great strides in WWI. At first, wireless telegraphy was used to connect generals to their armies (or admirals to their fleets), but the system was problematical because the messages could be easily intercepted. This led to the use of codes which resulted in an expansion of the field of cryptography. Because of poor communications, the course of the war was impacted by the Battles of the Marne and Tannenburg. The defeats of the German army advancing on Paris and the Russian army advancing into Germany were partly caused by lack of communication between high command and the armies in the field. Telephones seemed to be the answer to the communications problem. They were reliable and did not need codes. The problem was wires could be cut, especially by artillery fire. Still, thousands of miles of wires covered the Western Front. Here is a picture of a portable phone that has been tapped into a phone line. This allows the officer to contact either his front line or his artillery for a fire mission.
https://www.britannica.com/technology/military-communication/From-World-War-I-to-1940
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