Battle of Verdun Bleed the French white By
Battle of Verdun “Bleed the French white” By: Rachel Moore, Astika Joshi, Noah Wong, Selena Ando, Aaron Harris
Thesis The failed Schlieffen Plan by the Germans prolonged the war and Germany’s hope to conquer France, thus leading to a bombardment with artillery and trench warfare at Verdun, France. Seeking to gain territory and demoralize the French, the Germans attempted to conquer Verdun. However, during this war of attrition, the victorious counterattack of the French army against the Germans, amidst suffering immense losses, symbolizes France’s ability to effectively defend their country against enemy invaders. Although, , in the end, the Battle of Verdun proved to be an insignificant victory for the French against the persistent Germans, as the conflict and trench warfare only shifted a few kilometers closer to Paris at the River Somme, where the British entered to support the French.
Background on the Battle Lasted from February 21 st, 1916 to December 16 th, 1916. Verdun is a small stretch of land located on the heights above the Meuse River, with twenty major forts and forty smaller ones Verdun is located just under 140 miles away from Paris, the initial first step of the Schlieffen Plan. Named the “bloodiest, worst, and longest battle” French General Philippe Pétain in charge of the defense at Verdun, later recognized a hero German Chief of General Staff Erich von Falkenhayn, under Kaiser Wilhelm II,
Causes of the Battle: Pride, Politics and Tactics On February 21, 1916, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany launched a "limited offensive" against the French bastion of Verdun-- the French were taken by surprise The Kaiser failed in his initial onslaught, then developed a new strategy; to lure the French army to a place where they would have to defend-- Verdun, France The Germans believed the French would resist their effort to seize Verdun with “every man they had” because of its sentimental value and position on the allied line. Germany hoped to cause enough casualties that the French public would demand peace and wanted to gain Verdun as their territory
Western Front during the Battle of Verdun Dotted line (left) in map shows Germany's advance to the Meuse River as of July of 1916 Franco-British forces counterattack in autumn of 1916 Forced Germany back to position where they started offensive
French soldiers coming out of the trenches
The Battle The Allies were able to overcome the German luftsperre (air blockade) and the initial surprise of the Fokkers to eventually establish aerial superiority German artillery bombardment: 100, 000 shells per hour The defense of Bois des Caures is overwhelmed French counter-attack to reclaim Bois des Caures fails and Brabant is captured On February 24 th, the Germans push the 51 st Division off the Bois des Frosses leading the French second line of defense falling The Germans than take Fort Douaumont and Pétain took command of the Verdun area
The Battle Expansion On March 4 the Douaumont Fort falls to the Germans capture Forges, Regnéville, the Bois des Courbeanux and Côte de l’Oie. Le Mort A major attack by the Germans is launched to attack both sides of the Meuse Pétain is now commander of Army Group Centre and Nivelle is the commander of the Second Army There was repeated attacks on Le Mort-Homme by the Germans The French try a counter attack against Fort Douaumont which fails
The Battle Continues The Anglo-French offense of Somme draws France and Germany to the north away from Verdun The Germans final major offense of Operation Gericht does not accomplish its objective of taking Souville French launch a counterattack resulting in recovery of some key landmarks including Fort Douaumont August 28, Falkenhayn resigns and Paul von Hindenburg replaces him Hindenberg than commands all offenses be at Verdun French advance and recapture Fort Vaux
Effects of the Battle of Verdun High death tolls 337, 000 German casualties, to France’s 377, 231 casualties Landscape surrounding the city Nine villages destroyed —Beaumont, Bezonvaux, Cumières, Douaumont, Fleury, Haumont, Louvemont, Ornes, and Vaux Lead to the Battle of Somme The large number of casualties and effects it had on the French Army was the primary reason for the British starting the Battle of the Somme in July 1916
Effects of the Battle Explosive shells The French Interior Ministry estimated that over 10 million shells remained in the soil around Verdun Zone Rouge (“Red Zone”) Big loss for Germans Plan backfired Sacrificed many of men and lost many weapons (due to poor distribution) Win for the French-- boosted their spirits Reporting
Works Cited “Battle of Verdun. ” Infobase Learning , online. infobase. com/Auth/Index? aid=150531&itemid=WEHRC&article. Id=45182. (SA) History. com Staff. “Battle of Verdun Ends. ” History. com, A&E Television Networks, 2009, www. history. com/this-day-in-history/battleof-verdun-ends. (SA) Truman, C N. “The Battle of Verdun. ” History Learning Site, The History Learning Site , 17 Apr. 2015, www. historylearningsite. co. uk/world-war-one/battles-of-world-war-one/the-battle-of-verdun/ (SA) “WWI Battle Of Verdun Chapter VI Comments On The Battle Of Verdun. ” WWI Battle Of Verdun Chapter VI Comments On The Battle Of Verdun, www. vahs. org/wwi/chap 06. htm. (SA) Horne, Alistair, and ALISTAIR HORNE is the author of a trilogy on French-German battles (1870 -1940) that includes "The Price of Glory, " an account of the Battle, of Verdun. "The Longest Battle. " New York Times, Feb 17 1991, New York Times; US Newsstream(AJ) Bidou, Henri. “Battle of Verdun. ” Britannica School, school. eb. com/levels/high/article/75085. (AJ)(SA)(RM) Battle of Verdun. " World History: The Modern Era, ABC-CLIO, 2017, worldhistory. abc-clio. com/Search/Display/309566. Accessed 5 Feb. 2017. (AJ) “The Battle of Verdun. ” History Learning Site, www. historylearningsite. co. uk/world-war-one/battles-of-world-war-one/the-battle-ofverdun/. (AJ) (RM)
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