Chapter 425 Bombardment of Verdun

The German General Staff made a detailed plan for the siege of Verdun and finally decided to launch the attack in November 1915, codenamed "Execution Ground".

Capturing Verdun was a very difficult task, but it would bring unparalleled honor to the generals leading the team.

Therefore, many German generals were eager to take on the commander of the execution ground plan.

But Falkenhayn finally chose German Crown Prince William as the commander of the main attack on Verdun, perhaps to flatter the royal family, or perhaps to get William II to approve the plan as soon as possible. In short, Crown Prince William did become the commander of the capture of Verdun.

An authoritative book on the history of World War I called "August Gunfire" describes the German crown prince in a sarcastic tone:

The crown prince was in his 30s, with a fox face, no chest, and as thin as a willow branch, not at all like the five strong brothers born to his mother every other year.

The impression given by the crown prince was that he was weak and of mediocre intelligence, not like his father at all.

But his pretentious posture was exactly the same as that of William II, and he liked to make amazing gestures.

Although William II intended to train him to become a commander, his training was far from enough. Although he had served as a colonel of the skull-headed light cavalry and worked in the German General Staff for a year, he had not served as any division commander or army commander, and directly became the commander-in-chief of the German Fifth Army.

Former Chief of Staff Schlieffen had always disagreed with the confidence of Crown Prince William. Schlieffen believed that it was unfortunate to appoint young and inexperienced commanders, and believed that such commanders would frantically hunt for personal honors, full of energy, but not interested in implementing strategic plans.

Although Emperor William became the main commander of the capture of Verdun, Falkenhayn did not hand over the original memorandum presented to the German emperor to the crown prince or his chief of staff, General Schmidt.

Falkenhayn's order to Crown Prince William was: "Attack the Meuse area in the direction of Verdun."

Crown Prince William mistakenly took this order as a signal from the General Staff asking him to occupy Verdun, but this was not what Falkenhayn expected, that is, to siege Verdun and make France bleed.

In order to achieve the goal of sieging Verdun, Falkenhayn mobilized the forces of three armies for Crown Prince William to command.

This also expanded the Fifth Army under the command of Crown Prince William to six armies, all of which were composed of Germany's most elite troops.

After the execution site operation was officially confirmed, the German army and the General Staff entered into intensive preparations.

Falkenhayn kept asking about the preparations of the Fifth Army, and then transferred a large number of artillery from the Russian front and Krupp military factories and transported them to the front of the Verdun fortress.

The previous capture of the Belgian fortress made Falkenhayn very confident that the German army could easily seize the ground positions with artillery, and the infantry attacking on the narrow front battlefield was just to occupy and consolidate the positions.

In order to destroy France's strongest fortifications and crush the French resistance, the Germans mobilized 1,200 artillery pieces and 200 mortars, including the most powerful 304mm naval artillery and 420mm siege guns.

Especially the 420mm siege gun, which is a huge artillery designed for siege and seizure of cities. The sound of the gun can be heard dozens of kilometers away, and any solid bunkers and fortifications will be blown to pieces by it.

In addition to these artillery pieces specially used for siege and seizure of cities, the German army is also equipped with weapons such as mine throwers, small-caliber high-speed guns, poison gas and flamethrowers.

Logically speaking, it is impossible for the Germans to plan such a large-scale attack in the Verdun area without being seen by the Allies.

Although there is no satellite technology for monitoring at present, the large number of spies and intelligence personnel sent by various countries to each other are not vegetarians.

In fact, this is indeed the case. As early as when the Germans began to prepare, the French intelligence agency had already grasped the intelligence that Germany was about to launch an attack.

Russia also reported from the Eastern Front that Germany had mobilized part of its main force to the Western Front, asking Britain and France to be cautious.

But at this time, French Commander-in-Chief Joffre disagreed. Joffre firmly believed that the Battle of the Somme planned by the British and French forces was more important than the German offensive, and Joffre did not think that the direction of Germany's offensive was Verdun, after all, Verdun had been a peaceful area since the outbreak of the war.

However, due to the advice of his subordinates, Joffre still sent a small number of troops to the Verdun area to increase the strength of the garrison in the Verdun area.

November 27, 1915, Verdun, early morning.

The temperature on this day was a bit cold, because the humidity in the air was very high, and the fog covered the entire earth like a veil.

If there was a thermometer, it would be found that today's temperature had reached below zero, and even the few green plants on the land were covered with a layer of white frost.

In a trench in France, the new soldier Gerry rubbed his hands gently, exhaled a breath of hot air, and followed the veterans around him to get out of the underground bunker in twos and threes, breathing the cold but very fresh air.

Including Gerry, this French army has been stationed in the Verdun fortress area for several months. All the surrounding fortifications and defensive buildings are too familiar to them. After all, most of them were built by them.

During this period, some brave French soldiers would shout to the soldiers in the German trenches not far away, and sometimes they would get the same bored German soldiers to talk back. There was no cruelty of war between the two sides.

But today, after Gerry's squad leader shouted twice to the opposite position, he did not get any response.

"Damn it! These pigs, they just know how to sleep." The squad leader cursed angrily, trying to ease the awkward atmosphere.

But it was not just this one. The German soldiers who often talked to them no longer responded, which made the French soldiers including Gerry feel a little abnormal.

Looking at the time, it was already past eight o'clock. Gerry's squad leader ordered: "Everyone, go have breakfast first, and then continue to build that damn defensive position."

The logistics of the French front-line army were still sufficient, so the troops defending the Verdun fortress could eat hot food every day, and occasionally coffee, milk and fruit.

Of course, as the weather gradually gets colder, the logistics department will also provide some inferior wine to the front-line troops to help them relieve fatigue and keep warm.

Yes, it is inferior wine. Because this kind of wine is of inferior quality, it tastes spicy, even from the throat to the chest, a proper heating artifact.

Thanks to today's cold weather, each French soldier can get a sip of inferior wine to warm them up while ensuring that they will not get drunk.

Hearing that they have to go to eat first, Gerry's troops quickly forgot that the Germans did not talk to them. After all, in this boring position, eating is more important than anything else, so why bother to care about the Germans on the other side?

But soon, the French army found something wrong. The German army not far away did not make any movement. Logically, it should be breakfast time for the German army.

Boom!

With a bombing, the silent Verdun defense line suddenly shook, and flames shot up into the sky.

The German army was no longer hiding. The artillery positions arranged at the front and in the depths, all large and small caliber artillery roared together, launching a large-scale bombing of the French positions in front.

The loud noise shook the earth, and countless shells cut through the dust in the terrifying whistling sound, pouring down from far to near, and overwhelming the French positions, causing a series of explosions and wailing.

Coincidentally, some shells exploded in the logistics department in the rear, not only injuring many French soldiers who were queuing for meals, but also the hot soup for breakfast became one of the culprits of injuring French soldiers.

The steam of breakfast, the smoke and dust from the explosion of shells, and the fog of cold weather, like suffocating clouds, completely covered the entire French position.

The dazzling red light and deafening noises continued to come from the smoke, and the continuous explosions shook the surrounding land, causing some of the fortifications that were under construction or not yet built to collapse directly, burying many French soldiers.

"The Germans are attacking! Go to the trenches and hide!" The commanders of the French armies shouted at the top of their lungs.

It is not convenient to make all kinds of food in the trenches, so the logistics department responsible for cooking is a few hundred meters behind the trenches.

Although there are certain fortifications here, they cannot accommodate so many French soldiers, and are far less solid than the fortifications of the trenches on the front line.

Under the orders of their commanders, countless French soldiers bent down and rushed into the trenches, looking for the strongest hiding place.

There are still some French soldiers who have not woken up in the trenches. With the bombing of the Germans, they have already been killed.

Gerry's situation is not very good at this time. Although he hid in the trenches in time, the aftermath of the explosion made Gerry bleed from his ears and nose, his eyes were full of stars, and his ears were roaring. He has temporarily lost his hearing.

"Gerry, open your mouth to relieve the shock wave!" Gerry's squad leader shouted and ordered.

Seeing Gerry's reaction, he knew that he might have temporarily lost his hearing, and quickly gestured to Gerry to open his mouth.

This is the experience summed up by these French veterans when facing the German bombing. Opening the mouth can effectively alleviate some of the shock waves, at least it will not make people lose their hearing due to the shock waves.

Of course, this method can only effectively prevent the shock waves generated by the explosion of shells at a distance, and it is of no help in defending against the explosion of shells.

Anyone facing the bombing can only pray for one thing, either no bombing, or a little more pain.

The worst is the kind that only bombs the legs or limbs, which not only gives people great pain, but also is likely to cause wound infection due to such serious trauma, and sacrifice a fresh life.

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