The
1916 battle of Verdun opened on 21 February when the Germans
attacked the town in an operation called Gericht - a
place of execution. The classic invasion route into France
from the east crosses two rivers. First the Moselle and then
the Meuse. Above the Meuse to its east is a 1,500ft high ridge
and in its western shadow is Verdun. In the late seventeenth
century the great French military architect Vauban included
Verdun in his defensive scheme for the protection of France
and in the Franco-Prussian war it was the last great fortress
to fall. After that war the area between the two rivers, known
as Alsace Lorraine, was ceded to Germany and Verdun thus became
a French border town, leaving in every French heart the desire
for revenge. Verdun developed a mystical significance for
the French and its slogan became Ils ne passeront pas
, They shall not pass. And they did not. The battle lasted
10 months but the city never fell. French casualties are estimated
at 540,000, German at 430,000.
This
is the sort of very brief summary that precedes each of the
27 different battles covered in our two books Western Front
- North, and Western Front - South. A more detailed description
follows in the books with a point to point battlefield tour
as well as up to date photographs.
HOW TO FIND
OUT MORE ABOUT THE BATTLE
This
battle is described in Western Front - South . Please click
here to go to details
of the guide book in which the Battle of Verdun is described.
