![]() With the Germans struggling to maintain their efforts at both the Somme and Verdun, the French took the opportunity to launch a series of powerful counterattacks. However, whilst the opening of the Battle of the Somme was disastrous for the British, the effort required from Germany to defend against the British to the north whilst also fighting the French at Verdun proved almost impossible to maintain. One of these diversions would have terrible consequences for East Sussex. The British launched diversionary attacks before attacking on the Somme in an attempt to draw German soldiers away from both that battlefield and the fighting at Verdun. Planning for the British and French attack at the River Somme had begun at the end of 1915 but now, with so many French soldiers needed to defend Verdun, the British army would have to take on more of the responsibility for their coming attack. The ferocity of the German attack at Verdun had taken the French almost by surprise and would lead to dramatic changes in strategy for the rest of the year. However, despite this, no French assistance could be sent and Vaux too was captured by the Germans. Having been badly gassed and wounded Valiant succeeded in delivering its message before dying. Memorial Plaque to Valiant the pigeon who tried to save Fort Vaux – image courtesy of Chris Kempshall ![]() The fall of the fortress caused uproar in France and popular opinion demanded that the town be defended and the fortress retaken. If Falkenhayn had wanted to ensure that the French would not abandon the battlefield at Verdun he ensured it with the capture of Douaumont. As a result the key feature of the defenses around Verdun had been left empty and toothless and was captured with barely a shot being fired. In the confusion leading up to the initial German attach, the French military had neglected to rearm the fortress and return it to the normal compliment of defenders. Inside they found a small group of French soldiers and maintenance staff. Finding the guns at the fort strangely silent small parties of German soldiers entered the huge building. German soldiers carrying flamethrowers and hand grenades seized French trenches and, by the end of the day, had traveled over three miles towards the city itself whilst receiving negligible casualties.īy 25th February the German infantry had reached the mighty fortress of Douaumont. The German artillery opened fire at 7:15am on 21st February 1916 and over the course of ten hours fired over one million shells before the German infantry attacked. Despite this, however, the German attack was to have fearful repercussions. ![]() However, bad weather delayed the German offensive from 12th to the 21st February, thereby giving the French the extra time they desperately needed. As a result the Germans would be able to ‘bleed France white’.īy the time the French realised that Verdun was about to be attacked they were almost too late to adequately prepare. With this theory in mind, Falkenhayn’s objective is often suggested to be the slow destruction of the French army in order to force them to make peace and, as a consequence, rob Britain of its strongest ally.īy launching the attack at Verdun, such a potent French symbol, it is claimed that Falkenhayn knew the French would not be able to abandon the city and would be forced to fight continually to defend it. ![]() In many ways 1916 was the year of ‘attrition warfare’ – the act of wearing down an opponent’s army and inflicting as many casualties as possible over a period of time whilst preserving your own force. The actual aim of Falkenhayn’s attack remains contentious even today. In charge of this attack would be General Erich von Falkenhayn. At the end of 1915 the German military had decided to launch an attack on Verdun for the start of the following year.
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