Had no such attack taken place on the Somme, albeit an overwhelming failure, then the city of Verdun would surely have fallen completely into German hands taking with it the French will to fight on across the Western front. It will be forever remembered as its own slaughter, particularly for the British, yet in the context of Verdun, the Somme was a relief effort. Drawn up to stretch the German army across the French landscape, the Somme was successful to this extent. The Sacred Way, Verdun | Credit: Getty ImagesĪ factor which helped the French to hang on to Verdun was the battle of the Somme. This resulted in German casualties rising considerably. The German forces stepped up the attack, leaving them vulnerable to French counter-attacks. The tide changed for the first of many times when the forces led by Crown Prince Wilhelm changed from Falkenhayn’s plan. The initial days of the attack saw the Germans make significant ground towards Verdun with the capture the tallest of the 19 towers protecting the town. This was the prelude to the first of many German attacks to claim the ancient city. In an eight-hour period on February 21st, 1916 two million shells fell in and around Verdun. The sheer scale of what was to come was shown through the opening bombardment by the Germans. If Verdun was in German hands, then it was hoped by the German high command that the French spirit would crumble. The strategic position and patriotic significance of Verdun made it a perfect point for the Germans to attack. Verdun was chosen by Falkenhayn as the point to punch a hole through the allied lines for two reasons. It was an offensive masterminded by General Erich Von Falkenhayn to break the Allies in spring 1916 before fresh British troops arrived on the Western Front. It was the longest and one of the bloodiest battles of the First World War, lasting over 300 days at the cost of a combined estimated total of one million casualties on both sides.
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