Chapter thirty-two: Verdun or the Mincing Machine
For several thousand years of warfare, a battle, however great the scale, had been a matter of hours. This was still the case in 1914, but for the exception of a few battles from the Napoleonic wars onwards -Leipzig, Gettysburg...-, which increased the span to days. The real change was inagurated by the Russo-Japanese campaign, when battles had to be measured in weeks. With the Great War the standard became months. And there was not a longer battle than Verdun, which holds the duration record, extending from January 30 to November 4, 1916 (1).
The front prior to the beginning of the Battle.
]The German way of "softening" the enemy trench line.
Apparently, General von Falkenhayn saw the battle as an accelerated attack followed by a breakthrough, which would en in an unchecked and continuous advace. The German offensive was based on firepower rather on manpower, and its main agent was to be an intense artillery bombardment, making up for its relatively short duration. To increase their chance of surprise, the Germans constructured none of the customary "jumping off" trenches close to the enemy lines, confident that their tremendous artillery bombardment would enable their infantery to cross the wide No Man's Land unmolested (2). With their rear preparations were less successful, but, although the Intelligence branch at the French HQs was thus able to deduce the German intentions, the Operations branch disregarded the warning (3). To make everything worse, the French fortresses at Verdun had been partially dismantled after the easy fall of the Belgian and Russian fortresses. Thus, all the heavy guns in them were removed -a removal that lasted until two weeks prior to the actual offensive. To cover the area, the commander, General Herr (4), had not enough men or material to garrison the frontline. It was was incomplete and had scarecly any shell-proof cover. It's hardly surprising that when the blow fell, the trench system was blotted out.
After being delayed for a week by, fog, heavy rain and high winds, the German offensive (codename Gericht, "Judgement") began on 20 January 1916 at 7:15 am with a ten-hour artillery bombardment by 808 guns, that fired close to 1,000,000 shells along a front about 30kms long by 5kms wide. More than half of the German artillery firing on 20 January was heavy, the most numerous guns (470 guns) being 210mm and 150mm howitzers. Twenty six super heavy long range guns, up to 420mm in caliber, were also aimed at some of the forts and the city of Verdun itself. This incessant pounding or "Trommelfeuer" ("drum fire" - a barrage fired not as salvos but rather by each gun in random succession) was the heaviest and longest artillery preparation ever inflicted since the beginning of the Great War. The ground carried the noise it produced as a rumble that was heard a hundred miles away. This massive preparation was followed by an attack by four armies. The bombardment completely pulverized the French trenches, phone lines, and artillery. French forces took massive losses during this bombardment. Some soldiers were ripped to pieces or buried underneath the earth, and human remains were seen hanging in tree branches. German forces then began their push. French forces resisted from all sides, and by the end of the first day, the Germans had suffered about 600 casualties.
French troops going intno a communication trench that would led them to the frontlines.
In the second day of the offensive the French defenders had fell back from their second line of defenses, but the arrival of reinforcements avoided the disaster. By January 25 the French resistance stiffened under its new commander, General Petain (5), and the German advance began to loose momentum. It was not to stop at all until February 10th, when the German assailants had lost effective artillery cover by advancing too fast in the early stages of the attack. With the battlefield turned into a sea of mud through continual shelling, it was more and more difficult for German artillery to follow forward in this very hilly terrain. German infantry's southward advance also brought it into range of French field artillery massed on the opposite bank of the Meuse river.
French soldiers attacking the enemy
By then the Germans had taken Le Mort Homme and Forts Douaumont and Vaux. Their advanced trenches were at just three miles of Verdun, but they could advance no further. This was largely accomplished by the vicious resistance of the French soldiers and the uninterrupted, night-and-day trucking along a narrow departmental road: the so-called "Voie Sacrée" which kept the French army at Verdun alive. Also, von Falkenhayn had exhausted the magre resource he could use for an offensive in the West. Then began the second part of the offensive, which von Falkenhayn claimed that was to "bleed white" the French army. During March 1916 the French failed to reoccupy Fort Douaumont. The assault had been planned by recently promoted General Robert Nivelle, who had replaced Petain -promoted to lead the overall Centre Army Group, which still included the Verdun sector, for his successful defence-. It involved also using massive artillery preparations, but failed. Then, by early May, the Germans pressed westwards in the Dijon area, but just as a distraction for a renewed onslaught against Verdun. This time, however, the French were ready and the attack came to a bloody end and von Falkenhayn retook his defensive strategy with gusto. Furthermore, he had additional reasons to stop attack, as it was obvious that the British were preparing themselves for a big operation somewhere - Ypres, apparently.
French 87th regiment in trench at Hill 34 outside Verdun
The front was to remain calm while the big Allied offensive took place, further west. Then, in October, the French launched a major counter-offensive to recapture Douaumont, which was finally taken on November 4. Thus the battle of Verdun came to an end. After almost nine months of battle, the two armies were almost back to their initial positions.
French military casualties at Verdun are recorded as 250,000 men including 40,000 killed, 65,000 missing and 140,000 wounded. Total German casualties at Verdun are recorded as 170,000 men. The statistics also confirm that at least 70% of the Verdun casualties on both sides were the result of artillery fire. The shell consumption by French artillery at Verdun totalled 23.5 million rounds. German sources document that their own artillery, mostly heavy and super heavy, fired off over 21 million shells.
The Battle of Verdun —also known as the Mincing Machine of Verdun or Meuse Mill— became a symbol of French determination to hold the ground and then roll back the enemy at any human cost. The fact that the French High Command had been caught unprepared by the assault in February 1916 and that, in some examples, had stuck to useless onslaughts unsoported by less guns than needed, was overlooked by the joyful France, which needed another symbol to add to the Marne.
Von Falkenhayn had failed. He had not bleeded white the French army, even he had caused more casualties than he had suffered. However, the French army was still capable of fighting and German was facing a coordinated Allied offensive on three fronts.
[GAME NOTES: Well, the IA did attack Verdun -or so so-, albeit briefly, in January, but, apparently, it did not like facing several well entrenched French divisions with some big guns, so, after some days of getting beaten, the IA stopped -wise IA. Of course, as it was January and I had to had Verdun regardeless of the opinion of the IA and seein that the German army did not move his grey ass to go for a fight -"SISSIES!!!!", that would say MY Halifax-, I prepared a dirty trick, that is, I left just a few divisions to be massacrated, as the IA only moves when it seens that the enemy is awfully week, while keeping a big pack of reserves near to race towards the attacked place to bloody the IA's nose. After a couple of times of doing that, I decided to keep the troops in place and began attacking. Then I saw June incoming and... well... you shall see...
Why did I kept attacking? For the sake of repeating -so so- history and because it was a way to get used to future "pushes". And because I was sending French soldiers to death, after all.
Just kidding, you know.
About getting used to future bloodbaths, of course ]
(1) Well, the real battle lasted from February to December, but the IA and me had other ideas.
(2) Does it sound familiar to you? If not, just wait a bit...
(3) Like the "Ardennes are unpassable", yeah. Is it a French tradition to get caught with their trousers down or what?
(4) A British called French, a French called Herr, a German called François and a Russian called von Rennenkampf... [INSERT YOUR RANT HERE]
(5) Well, he was already there, so, why not using him?
@Nathan Madien: It was too obvious, methinks... Yes, I have a soft spot for Teddy since he kicked Spain out of Cuba
(bearing in mind that with the lost Spain also lost the Phillipines, were not for the dead, one could argue that it was a bargain
), so, I couldn't allow Wilson and his petty arguments to drive me mad. If someone has to make me go nuts, Teddy will be the man!
@quaazi: He tried, he tried...
@yourworstnightm: And with just one hand, as with the other would be busy with his cigar.
@c0d5579: That would be a show to see!
@El Pip: I was tempted, Pip, I was
very tempted, but, as he cannot feel anything from his navel downward, I decided to allow him to keep his balls.
For the use he's going to make of them... I'm sorry for the FIA, but it's going to look for another president.
Two birds down with a single shot, I guess...
@trekaddict: Yes, he did.
@Nathan Madien (2):
That settles the question, methinks