Verdun Battlefield World War I

Verdun has always been a strategic defense position in northeastern France dating to pre-Roman times.  During WW I, it became a focal point for the German advance into France because of its location close to German communication lines.  Sitting within the valley of the Meuse River, the northern right bluff overlooking the river would give Germany an ideal location to attack the 22 fortified locations around Verdun.  A side tactic of the Germans was to fortify a ridge overlooking the Verdun Valley.  This positioning caused the French to commit to a war of attrition, by committing troops to the Verdun battle so they could not be used elsewhere.

Around the outside of the Douaumont Ossuary, every few feet there is a window at ground level.  Looking through the window is a small chamber containing bones which have been found on the battle field.  Unable to identify the remains, the bones are placed in one of the rooms under the ossuary.  There the remains of an estimated 130,000 troops are resting.

By 1870, Verdun had evolved from a defensive capability into a series of 22 forts forming an outer ring about 5 miles outside of city with an inner ring of 6 forts.  This is a formidable arrangement which led the area to being a critical link in the German aggression during World War I.  Subsequently this made the area a strategic link that the French Army had to hold to stop the German aggression.

The German plan was to begin advancing to Verdun on February 12, 1916.  The advance was held up by snow until February 16.  The initial bombardment began on February 21 followed by infantry advancements.  The French were totally unprepared, but were able to hold the battle lines.

Fighting continued, becoming self-sustaining killing ground known as “the hell furnace” as troops from both sides were fed into the fighting over the next 4 months until a combined Anglo-French Somme River offensive was launched on July 1.  The Somme River offensive helped relieve the pressure of the French forces at Verdun because Germany was unable to maintain both fronts and was forced to withdraw troops from Verdun.

Fort de Douaumont was determined ineffective at the start of the war because it was unable to withstand the bombardment of the German’s 420mm Gamma Guns.  This resulted in a pullback of troops leaving the fort undefended.  It was captured by a German raiding party, 19 officers and 79 men, without a fight giving German control of the largest and highest of the forts protecting the city of Verdun.  The Germans remained in control of the fort until the First Offensive Battle of Verdun in October 1916.

The day we toured Fort de Douamount was cold and spitting rain.  The interior corridors/tunnels connecting the various rooms seemed to reflect the weather outside.  Unfortunately for the troops occupying the fort it was like this all the time, cold, damp, and dark.

The World War I Meuse-Argonme American Cemetery and Memorial is the final resting place of 14,246 American soldiers.  Most of them died in the Meuse-Argonme Offensive.  The chapel hold the remains of 954 Americans whose remains were never recovered or identified.  Photo by Michiel Hendryckx, downloaded from Wikipedia.