The Battle of Verdun 1916
Fought in France in 1916 between France and Germany, Verdun was the worst battle of the First World War; indeed, it may well rank as the worst battle in history.
Instead he proposed to fight a war of attrition: ignore the rest of the Entente and pick a location the French would always defend and then kill so many of them that they’d collapse in defeat at the losses, at which point Britain would come to terms.
Falkenhayn picked the heavily fortified region of Verdun, a key defence in the minds of the French, but one on a salient which meant Germany could, with just a limited attack, bombard their enemy from three sides. France would be ‘bled dry’. In order to protect morale, Falkenhayn kept his junior commanders in the dark about the plan, telling them they were fighting to take a target rather than fighting for attrition. Indeed, part of keeping Verdun secret involved not telling Germany’s Austrian allies, a major problem at a key point later in the battle.
Verdun itself was a town with rings of hills around it with fortresses on top: around twenty major forts and forty smaller ones. The Meuse River ran through, splitting Verdun into Right / Eastern and Left / Western banks. However, the French had greatly reduced the garrison of Verdun and removed many of the guns, believing the Germans would not attack it again, and falling prey to the military thinking that forts had little place in both modern wars and French attacking spirit. The result was a hollow concrete shell, a weakpoint in the line. Those on the spot, who complained, were sacked or reassigned.
The French put up stiff resistance, including Colonel Driant, whose death may well have saved him from a court martial over complaints that Verdun was underdefended, and whose defence held the Germans up at a crucial time. Over the first few days the Germans broke the first, second and third lines and closed in on Fort Douamont. For an attack designed to kill Frenchmen, it look like Verdun might actually fall. German guns had overwhelmed their opposition and the French were in danger, but the Germans didn’t realise how close they were.
The fall of Douamont typified the early phase of the conflict. Joffre had stripped the garrison to use elsewhere, and reduced it to fifty six elderly men, so when the Germans attacked they pushed on and on, closer and then into Douamont , all the while wondering why they had not been attacked. The French all thought someone else was reinforcing it, and a terribly small force of Germans, acting largely on initiative, took the fort without firing a shot. The Germans were stupefied. However, Falkenhayn didn’t celebrate this early victory: he worried that the rest of Verdun might fall equally fast and ruin his war of attrition. Meanwhile the French were falling back, leaving the right bank at risk.
Now the battle changed. Rains prevented the Germans from bringing their guns up to support their advance, and French guns could now survive and fire back into the Germans, who took an increasing number of casualties. Falkenhayn refused the reinforcements which may well have taken Verdun when the French were still weak: he still didn’t want conquest, but to set his trap.
The Plan: Attrition
The largest single battle ever fought in history, the Battle of Verdun began as a cynical tactic. German commander Falkenhayn mused on how to secure a breakthrough in the stalemate of the Western Front, but decided against trying to take more land.Instead he proposed to fight a war of attrition: ignore the rest of the Entente and pick a location the French would always defend and then kill so many of them that they’d collapse in defeat at the losses, at which point Britain would come to terms.
Falkenhayn picked the heavily fortified region of Verdun, a key defence in the minds of the French, but one on a salient which meant Germany could, with just a limited attack, bombard their enemy from three sides. France would be ‘bled dry’. In order to protect morale, Falkenhayn kept his junior commanders in the dark about the plan, telling them they were fighting to take a target rather than fighting for attrition. Indeed, part of keeping Verdun secret involved not telling Germany’s Austrian allies, a major problem at a key point later in the battle.
The State of Verdun
Falkenhayn had picked the right place. Verdun was one of the most heavily fortified locations in the world, and a key site in the French military mentality. The Western Front had actually wrapped itself around Verdun, causing it to stick out from the main defensive line.Verdun itself was a town with rings of hills around it with fortresses on top: around twenty major forts and forty smaller ones. The Meuse River ran through, splitting Verdun into Right / Eastern and Left / Western banks. However, the French had greatly reduced the garrison of Verdun and removed many of the guns, believing the Germans would not attack it again, and falling prey to the military thinking that forts had little place in both modern wars and French attacking spirit. The result was a hollow concrete shell, a weakpoint in the line. Those on the spot, who complained, were sacked or reassigned.
The Attacks Commences
As Germany prepared, they achieved almost total air supremacy over the sector, covering the railways lines they laid and preventing the French from seeing the massive build-up of resources. Some reports did get back to French commander Joffre, but he rejected them as scaremongering. With seventy two battalions ready, the Germans started shelling on February 16th 1916, having been delayed by snow, a pause which let extra Frenchmen get into the fort and might have saved it. Then the Germans attacked, at first with small patrols sticking to cover and probing, the next day storm troops. This tactic had been designed by Falkenhayn to slow down the advance if it was going well.The French put up stiff resistance, including Colonel Driant, whose death may well have saved him from a court martial over complaints that Verdun was underdefended, and whose defence held the Germans up at a crucial time. Over the first few days the Germans broke the first, second and third lines and closed in on Fort Douamont. For an attack designed to kill Frenchmen, it look like Verdun might actually fall. German guns had overwhelmed their opposition and the French were in danger, but the Germans didn’t realise how close they were.
The fall of Douamont typified the early phase of the conflict. Joffre had stripped the garrison to use elsewhere, and reduced it to fifty six elderly men, so when the Germans attacked they pushed on and on, closer and then into Douamont , all the while wondering why they had not been attacked. The French all thought someone else was reinforcing it, and a terribly small force of Germans, acting largely on initiative, took the fort without firing a shot. The Germans were stupefied. However, Falkenhayn didn’t celebrate this early victory: he worried that the rest of Verdun might fall equally fast and ruin his war of attrition. Meanwhile the French were falling back, leaving the right bank at risk.
The French Meet Expectations
But the French didn’t disappoint Falkenhayn. Although in 1914 Joffre had ordered Verdun abandoned, and wasn’t hugely against it in 1916, the French Chief of Staff, de Castelnau had what, to the Germans, was the right idea. He travelled to Verdun to decide what to do. He agreed to send the Second Army under Petain to reinforce Verdun. They also decided these reinforcements should occupy as much as the right bank as they still held, and not fall back to the left or beyond: the French had committed numbers to the defence of Verdun just as the Germans hoped. Petain quickly sorted the French out despite having caught double pneumonia, opening up an effective supply route to bring men and material into Verdun, defending it so every inch had to be fought over.Now the battle changed. Rains prevented the Germans from bringing their guns up to support their advance, and French guns could now survive and fire back into the Germans, who took an increasing number of casualties. Falkenhayn refused the reinforcements which may well have taken Verdun when the French were still weak: he still didn’t want conquest, but to set his trap.
Source...