Battle Of Verdun Research Paper

At 8:15 am on February 21, 1916, a German shell crashed into the French city of Verdun (Battle of Verdun, Hazard). Germany’s General Erich von Falkenhayn sparked the costliest battle of the First World War long before the first shot was fired. In the winter of 1915-16, Falkenhayn “wrote a secret document to the Kaiser in which he urged that in the following year Germany’s main efforts on land should be directed against [France]” (Grolier 21). Falkenhayn hoped to “bleed France white” with a powerful offensive (Animated Map, BBC News). Despite the protests of other German generals, Kaiser Wilhelm acceded to Falkenhayn’s request. His target of choice was Verdun, its long history making it psychologically important to the French. The French

“Where Pétain had been on the defensive, and as careful as possible with the lives of his men, Nivelle was self-confident and convinced” that attrition was an infallible strategy (Grover 25). Newly anointed leader of the Second Army, Nivelle, was forced to handle Germany’s rapid advances. On June 7 Fort Vaux, “three miles from Verdun fell to the Germans” (Verdun: Symbol of Suffering). At this point, Germans were experimenting with new weaponry on the battlefield. The flamethrower, for example, was used by German doughboys (infantrymen) for the first time on a large scale during this battle. Also, in the evening of June 22, shells filled with phosgene, a colorless gas with an odor resembling freshly cut grass, were used on the Frenchmen. With these technological developments, German infantry pushed again. On June 23, the Germans nearly reached Belleville heights, the last stronghold before Verdun. When all hope seemed lost, “General Nivelle issued special orders […] that ended with a phrase that would become one of France’s most famous slogans of the war: “Ils ne passeront pas!” – “They shall not pass!” (Grolier 26) The French somehow held