The largest military operation of the times of the First World War, which was included in the annals of history under the name "Verdun meat grinder", became the first significant event of the twentieth century. The battle took place between the German and French troops on the Western Front for ten months. But, despite the huge number of victims on both sides, France was able to defend its independence. On the battlefield, both the fate of the country and its territorial integrity were decided. The English historian Alistair Hori wrote about this battle as follows: “None of the commanders-in-chief or strategists have ever imagined holding the victory by deadly bloodletting. Only the brutal character of the First World War could present such an idea, when completely hardened leaders looked at people's lives only as certain units. ”
German Strategy for 1916
The victories of previous years were given to Germany dearly. Inside the country, people were starving, but the army was stationed along the fronts. Resources were limited, and the military council identified three tasks that could be solved. They concerned the three most powerful opponents: Russia, England and France. Regarding the European giant, it was decided to support the revolutionary movement. What Alexander Gelfand immediately received 1 million rubles. England decided to fend off an unlimited submarine attack. With regard to France, it was decided to find the most promising place on the line of deployment of troops and make a breakthrough on it. Such a site was found in the form of a small ledge near Verdun. The victory on it provided an open passage to Paris, followed by the surrender of the French troops. This was followed by a competent development of the situation - the battle of Verdun.
Battle preparation
On a front section of 15 kilometers long, on one side there are two divisions of the French troops. Against them, Germany presented six and a half of its divisions and almost all the power of artillery. Thus, the Germans expected to provide a breakthrough and subsequent continuous offensive. The battle of Verdun began with the fact that the sky was completely cleared of French planes so that German bombers could do their job freely and unhindered. That is, at the very beginning of the campaign one of the planned tasks was determined - prevailing in the airspace. German fire spotters did their best. By the way, it is worth saying that the French Newport squadron was able to fully participate in the battles only in May. Thus began the battle of Verdun.
The beginning of the battle in the area of Verdun fortified site
As is already clear from the training, the Verdun meat grinder was predetermined by the German command initially. In the morning the Germans began artillery preparation, which lasted 8 hours, after which the German troops went on the offensive on one of the sections of the front - near the Meuse river. But there the stubborn
resistance of the French awaited them
. The Germans led the infantry offensive in a tight battle formation, in which individual groups were formed into a single echelon. Scouts and assault brigades moved ahead, reinforced by grenade launchers, machine gunners and flame throwers. Thus, the Verdun meat grinder on the first day was marked by the advance of the German troops two kilometers behind the French and taking their first position.
February-March 1916
The French did not expect such a powerful blow. And only after the first day began to pull up additional military units to Verdun. In addition, they counted on the help of England. But Northern Albion already fought with coolness, and even less so in a hurry to help the allies. The Germans did not change tactics: in the following days, from morning to evening, artillery worked, cultivating the territory, and by night it was occupied by infantry. All forts were lost by the French after 4 days. The French command, albeit belatedly, took measures: cars brought from other sectors of the front military units in the amount of 190 thousand soldiers and 25 tons of cargo. As a result, the German offensive was halted by a preponderance of manpower (1.5 times). The battle of Verdun has become protracted.
Naroch operation of Russians
The position of the French troops was facilitated by the Naroch operation of the Russians. At the request of the French commander in chief Joffre, the Russian headquarters undertook a distracting maneuver. On the territory of the modern Minsk region in Belarus - near
Lake Naroch - the shelling of German troops continued for two days. This was followed by worked out massive infantry attacks, which were hardly restrained by German troops. During this time, additional forces were brought up to the front sector, and the Russian offensive was repelled. But the necessary result was obtained - under Verdun, the attacks stopped for two weeks, and the French were able to provide "rear".
The battle dragged on
The French managed to create a “sacred road”, along which they intensively supplied their troops. The operation was clearly delayed. The Germans changed their tactics somewhat: in March, their main blow was aimed at the left bank of the Meuse River. But, despite all the efforts of the German troops, by May they were able to advance only 6 kilometers. Also in May, a new commander, Robert Nivelle, was appointed, who tried to organize an offensive, but all attempts to recapture Fort Duamon were leveled by the Germans, and then the French army was completely abandoned.
Brusilovsky breakthrough and the final situation near Verdun
On June 7, the Germans attacked Fort Vaud and captured it, advancing 1 kilometer into the French territory. The offensive could be continued, but in the summer of 1916, Russian troops prepared an unexpected surprise for the German army: a powerful offensive began near Lutsk. It was not possible to contain the attack. As a result, all summer the German troops were diverted to the Eastern Front, and operations near Verdun were minimized. In addition, unlike the spring campaign, the Russian troops won a real victory and occupied Eastern Galicia and Bukovina. In addition, an operation called the Brusilovsky Breakthrough was a completely new type of offensive action. German troops were weakened and forced to defend on the Western Front. In October, the French army went on a clear offensive, and by December returned to its positions at which it was at the beginning of the battle. "Verdun meat grinder" is over.
The results and significance of the battle of Verdun
The Verdun meat grinder of 1916 did not solve any strategic and tactical tasks: the French troops took their own positions. But, if we calculate the losses, then the battle of Verdun exceeded all expectations. Both sides lost more than 1 million troops, of which about 430 thousand were killed. Verdun 1916 opened the brutal era of wars of the twentieth century. But the results nevertheless were: under Verdun the German strategic plan crashed. And from that moment, military historians have noted the depletion of German military potential. We also note that in the battle of Verdun, chemical shells, light machine guns, flamethrowers, and rifle grenade launchers were first used. The regrouping of troops by road was also tested for the first time, assault groups were created, the density of artillery bombardment increased, and air assault operations were used.