Battle of Verdun

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The First World War was one of the largest wars in world history, bringing serious disasters to the world, especially European countries. 33 countries participated in the war, and nearly 1.5 billion people worldwide were involved in this disaster. At the same time, as we enter the era of hot weapons, a large number of new weapons such as airplanes, tanks, artillery, and poison gas have also joined in, causing irreversible damage to the world's ecological environment. In this war, the Battle of Verdun, known as the Meat Grinder, was particularly brutal and became the deadliest battle in European history.

Background of War

The reason why the Battle of Verdun is called the Meat Grinder is precisely because of the brutality of this battle. This is the most brutal and long-lasting battle of the entire First World War The opposing sides, Germany and France, deployed over 100 divisions in this battle, resulting in over 200000 deaths. It can be seen from this that the intensity of the war is also jokingly referred to as a meat grinder.

At the beginning of this battle, in 1914, due to the stalemate between Germany and France on the western front, neither side was able to form an overwhelming advantage, and the positions changed hands repeatedly. So in early 1916, German Commander in Chief von Hankin turned his attention to the strategic fortress of Verdun on the French Eastern Front. This is a fortress in a small city in northeastern France. It may not seem ordinary in ordinary times, but it is the main road leading to the French capital Paris, known as the "Paris Gateway". Since the early years, when the German army failed to attack Verdun in 1914, the French army has become increasingly confident in their fortress, believing that the German army can no longer capture this place. Therefore, after this, the fortress will no longer be reinforced or strengthened. The purpose of the German army was to carry out surprise attacks, deal fatal blows to the French army, and consume their vital forces in order to force France to surrender.

In early 1916, before attacking Verdun, the German army began to aggressively increase troops in the Champagne region on the western front, which led then French Commander in Chief Fexha to believe that the German army intended to capture this area on the western front and then invade Paris through this route. So he deployed a large number of troops in Shambani. However, at the same time, 17 divisions under the Fifth Army of another German surprise army and their aircraft artillery were quietly approaching Verdun under the command of German Crown Prince Wilhelm. As the German movement became increasingly apparent, the French army realized that the German target was Verdun and began to quickly support Verdun. God did not do it. In early February 1916, when the German army launched a full-scale attack on Verdun, the weather delayed their advance, undoubtedly buying time for the French army. On February 21st, in accordance with the principle of keeping the direction of the assault confidential, the German army used more than a thousand artillery pieces and fired over a million shells to carry out a concentrated bombing of the front line along more than 40 kilometers, lasting for more than 8 hours, with the intention of maximizing the elimination of the French army's living forces. Then, with flamethrowers and a large number of superior troops as pioneers, the first defensive position of the French army was breached on the same day, and the second and third lines of defense were successively breached in the following days. In just two days, the German army had advanced five kilometers, and the French army was forced to retreat in the face of such powerful firepower.

The French High Command urgently appointed the then commander of the French Second Army, B é tain, as the frontline commander of Verdun. He began to mobilize all forces to fight to the death against the German army in Verdun. The German army utilized the Barodique Verdun highway and organized nearly 4000 trucks to continuously transport supplies to the front line within a week, causing the French army to repeatedly attempt to recapture their positions without success. And this is also the earliest large-scale transportation campaign in the history of war to use cars. Due to the initial delay caused by the weather, the later French support troops quickly arrived and began to strengthen their defense in depth. Verdun has a total horizontal defense area of 112km and four defensive positions. The depth of the entire fortress reached 15-18km. Not only that, there are permanent fortifications and fortress areas behind the four defensive positions, and the defense capability is not strong. It was precisely due to the French army's subsequent strengthening of defense depth and the significant consumption of ammunition by the German army on the front line that the German army lost the best opportunity to break through the French defense line.

Frontal attack

In early March, the German army began to change its strategy. Firstly, the width of the frontal attack was expanded to 30 kilometers. Then the assault direction began to shift to the west bank of the Meuse River, attempting to surround Verdun from the west while eliminating the threat of French artillery on the west bank and continuing to strengthen the attack on the east bank. Differently, the German army began to steadily advance instead of hastily attacking. But this strategy also encountered stubborn resistance from the French army, and ultimately only captured a few small strongholds. Not only did it fail to achieve strategic goals, but it also made enormous sacrifices. Faced with consecutive setbacks, Prince William, the commander-in-chief of the German army attacking Verdun, began to worry. If this battle ends in the defeat of the Germans, not only will his position be precarious, but even his father's throne in his own country will be challenged. So he began to try using a new weapon - poison gas.

From April to May, the German army began to concentrate their superior artillery on the French army on the west coast, using new weapons including airplanes, flamethrowers, and poison gas. However, on Hill 304, the French army encountered stubborn resistance. By the end of May, the Germans had ceased their attacks. On the east coast, the French support troops arrived, and the combat troops were replaced in rotation, constantly launching counterattacks and changing positions repeatedly, which to some extent delayed the German attack. After a brief rest, the German army regrouped again in early June and launched a large-scale offensive. After seven days of fierce fighting, the German army occupied the important stronghold of Vaud in Verdun. In the second half of the year, the German army used phosgene gas bombs and tear gas. As a suffocating gas, phosgene gas bombs mainly attack human lung function. After contact, symptoms such as coughing, chest tightness, vomiting, and chest tightness may occur., It will cause the French army to lose combat effectiveness, and those severely poisoned will die within a few days. The most notorious was the mustard gas used by Unit 731 during the Japanese invasion of China.

In the attack in late June, the German army threw 110000 gas bombs at the French army, causing heavy casualties and even approaching Verdun, which was less than three kilometers away, but was eventually stubbornly repelled by the French army. As of the 24th, the French army was forced to abandon the second line of defense by the powerful firepower of the German army, but then the problems of the German army began to gradually emerge. Due to the rapid advance, the subsequent artillery advantage could not keep up and instead exposed itself within the range of French artillery fire. However, due to continuous artillery bombardment on the battlefield, the ground turned into a quagmire, delaying the follow-up of French artillery fire, and ultimately the German army occupied Montfort. The next day, the German army concentrated their powerful firepower and occupied the Montfort. Subsequently, the French commander Fexia appointed the then general as the commander-in-chief of Verdun. On the day General B é tain led his 20th Army into Verdun, he learned of the news that the fortress had fallen.

Due to the inability to advance to Verdun, the Germans stopped their attack and instead launched an attack on Mount Homme. After more than three months of fierce fighting, the German army captured two villages in the west of Verdun and the eastern fortress of Voorburg, but both sides suffered heavy losses. But when the French front-line command was preparing to preserve its strength and prepare for defensive operations, it was resolved by the French Supreme Command, and then General Neville, who was attacking, became the front-line commander of Verdun. After the Battle of Mount Holm, the next target of the German army was the Suvi Fortress. On June 22, 1916, the German army began releasing poison gas into French positions. The next day, they launched an attack with over 60000 superior troops, but did not take it all at once. The battle continued until early September.

Event ends

With the start of the Battle of the Somme, the German army was forced to withdraw some troops from Verdun to deal with the Anglo French coalition in the north. The Russian army launched an offensive in the summer, the Battle of the Somme, which led to the German army deploying more troops in the direction of Verdun. The subsequent offensive was only aimed at restraining the French army ahead. After several months of effort, although the German army had entered the French defense lines in the north and east of Verdun, they did not make a breakthrough. By the end of August, the German Chief of Staff was dismissed and the German Emperor began ordering a halt to the attack. In autumn, the overall combat power of the German army was exhausted, and the German commander-in-chief was changed from Ludendorff to the commander of the Battle of Verdun. In July, the German army launched their final offensive, but still faced resistance from the French army. At this point, the German army was no longer able to reorganize its advantages to resist and attack the French army. At the end of October, the French army began a strategic counterattack, using new 400mm artillery and Xu Jin barrage shooting technology, and a few days later recaptured Fort Mendor. In early November, the German army abandoned Woburg, and in mid December, they completely retreated to the front line at the beginning of the battle. In mid December, the French army's return to work almost recaptured all the positions occupied by the German army, and the Battle of Verdun basically ended here. In the past ten months of fighting, both sides have deployed nearly 2 million troops and fired nearly 40 million shells. The number of casualties has also set a historical record. Until now, Verdun is still known as a meat grinder and a hell on earth.

strategic significance

Overall, the Battle of Verdun was an important turning point in World War I. It was a crucial battle in which the German army suffered a serious setback in their attempt to break through France in one fell swoop, while also losing a significant amount of manpower and material resources. It caused Germany's military capabilities to begin to decline, and the initiative in the war began to lean towards the wisdom of the Allied powers. In 1917, the German Austrian camp began to decline and ultimately surrendered in 1918. With the end of World War I, the Battle of Verdun had a certain positive significance in advancing the course of the war. From the outcome of the campaign, it appears to be a very typical battle of positions and attrition. The number of participants and casualties on both sides is unprecedented. According to post-war statistics, the German army suffered losses of over 400000 people, while the French army suffered losses of nearly 500000 people. This battle also provided some experience for the defense operations of various countries. At the same time, as a turning point in World War I, it led to the failure of the German Empire. Although the legal losses were more severe during the war, they did not achieve the initial strategic goals of the German army. Although the Battle of Verdun brought France to the brink of collapse, almost all French troops participated in the battle due to the shift of troops to frontline command at that time. The German army did not have a rotating force, so they had to charge forward desperately, attempting to lightning down the fortress of Verdun. Once this combat mode is frustrated, it will seriously affect the combat effectiveness of the troops. But this battle also left a serious shadow in the hearts of French soldiers, even leading to a mutiny. It is worth mentioning the use of weapons in this war. In this battle, both sides used the most advanced weapons and equipment at that time. For example, France used large caliber fire cannons, while Germans also used weapons of mass destruction such as flamethrowers and gas bombs.

Why did it become the most brutal battle?

Why was the Battle of Verdun the most brutal of World War I, rather than the Battle of the Somme? After all, relatively speaking, the casualties in the Battle of the Somme were even more astonishing, almost twice as many as those in the Battle of Verdun. There are two main reasons. Firstly, in terms of the significance of the campaign, both Germany and France took the initiative to expand the scale of the war. The German army intended to completely eliminate the main force of the French army through the Battle of Verdun. Therefore, the French army cannot compromise and can only defend with all their might. This was also confirmed in the subsequent battles. The French army continued to deploy divisions to this area, resulting in significant casualties. Similarly, the resistance of the French army also surprised the German commander at the time, Falkin Han. In the months long counterattack by the French army, the German army also suffered equally devastating casualties. So continuing to fight on both sides has no strategic significance. It will only increase the number of casualties between Germany and France. Upon learning that the German Crown Prince had dropped out of school, he was rejected by Falkenham. This highly aggressive German general was unwilling to accept this result, so he continuously deployed more troops, hoping to defeat the French army in one fell swoop. At this moment, the French army also gritted their teeth, constantly increasing their troops, and both sides became gamblers.

The second reason is firepower. The firepower intensity of this battle even exceeded that of World War II. The most important thing is that the French army defended the fortress located in the mountainous area, which was more effective in concentrating the firepower of the German army. However, the French army could not retreat either, as their goal was to preserve the medicinal herbs, so they could only be constantly bombarded by rare artillery, especially since the German army used a lot of heavy artillery in this battle. Both Germany and France are under cover from each other's firepower, making it difficult to determine their respective positions. Meanwhile, with the use of poison gas, it was a painful defensive battle for both sides' soldiers, especially French soldiers, which is why the French army once rebelled in this battle.