Verdun: The Longest & Most Horrific Battle of WWI...
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- čas přidán 22. 05. 2024
- For every nation, there are battles whose names for one reason or another mean more to their people than most. For Americans, its Gettysburg. For Australians and New Zealanders, its Gallipoli. For the British and Canadians, it’s the Somme. For France, perhaps one of the most important battles in its recent history was the Battle of Verdun. Fought almost throughout the entirety of 1916, the battle was instigated by the German Army in an effort to destroy France and achieve victory on the Western Front. Instead, the battle demonstrated France’s determination to resist and fight back over the span of 303 days of fighting - one of the longest battles not just of the Great War but in recorded history. This is the story of the Battle of Verdun. Welcome to Wars of the World.
00:00 Introduction
01:21 Bleeding France White
07:05 Preparations
11:04 Battle Commences
16:33 Ils Ne Passeront Pas!
20:18 The Cost
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Written & Researched by: Tony Wilkins
Edited by: Jamit Productions
Narrated by: Wiliam C
History Should Never Be Forgotten...
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For Canadians the most memorable battle is Vimy Ridge.
I just can't comprehend how someone could first survive something as attritional as this battle and also not completely lose sanity permanently.
That's one of the saddest things about what's happening with our Slavic brothers and sisters at the min. They'd be able to tell you all about it.😔
Sadly, some did lose their sanity completely. Even the ones who appeared to be sane from the outside looking in, had lasting psychological effects that never go away.
My great grandfather fought in the pacific during ww2. He was a quiet and loving man. Never talked about the conflict except one time for an interview where he briefly talked about it. The true effects that the war had on him didn’t show profoundly until his last year of life. He developed dementia and had a lot of flashbacks. On a few occasions he believed he was still there during the battle of pellelui. It breaks my heart that such a loving and gentle person had to spend the last part of his life stuck in that hell. He didn’t deserve that.
@@Justmemyguy so if you'd lived through that. with your older people. Why would you ever want to send your younger ones. The whole thing is a joke. Especially when your government straight up hates you. !
Mad love to your grand dad . He sounds like a true one. ! 👍💛👊
@@Free-Bodge79
Agreed. My grandfather (a Vietnam veteran) tearfully asked me not to join when I was 18 for much the same sentiment. Glad I actually listened to him.
@@Free-Bodge79the government “officials” sending children to war have no idea what war is like and frankly they don’t care. It won’t be them or their children. I think if they vote for war it’s mandatory their children and grandchildren be on the front line. There would be a lot less war.
My Great Great Grandfather fought in the French army at Verdun and The First and Second Battles of The Marne
R.I.P
Robert Alexandre André
(1889-1980)
What their generation went through can't even be put into words
Did he ever speak about it?
@@youknow227 he did a bit but you could tell it brought back some hard memories he suffered from nightmares of Verdun for years after WW1 but over the decades after he didn’t mind talking about the war
@@HunterAndre_21 Do you think we're headed for WW3?
My great great grandfather fought as well in the battle of Verdun, but for the Germans, Michael Pralat, he was an officer at the time. My grandmother told me stories of him. He was a giant, very calm and quiet. I always wondered how he managed to survive fighting the full 4 years of this atrocious war, especially Verdun. He didn’t speak much of it, it was too painful for him to talk about it. I’ve always wanted to talk to him and just see how he managed to live through all the horrors
@@Elitesyno It doesn't matter if he fought for Germany or England or France
What I've realised from stories from then is that they all don't care who wins by the end, just that it ends
Harry patch, the last WW1 combat veteran to die said a statement:
I looked out of the trenches, and saw two dogs fighting over a a biscuit, both fighting for their lives. And I realised here we were, two civilised nations, in a dirty lousy trench, fighting for what? 18 pence a flipping day
Descend into darkness
303 days below the sun
Fields of Verdun
And the battle has begun
Nowhere to run
Father and son
Fall one by one
Under the gun
yoo sabaton
The one battle that needs a movie about it
Visiting Verdun is the best way to understand the horror that was the Great War. The ominous forts, the trenches, the Ossiuary, the massive graveyards...very sad and profound. The scars of war are still very visible, 100 years later.
Awesome video!!! Had the honor of visiting Verdun for a few hours in 1999 when was still in US Army. My headquarters section flew from Fort Riley, Kansas, to Germany to participate in a warfighting exercise. We went early in order to spend a week in the Normandy area to Grafenwohr Germany, but we were supposed to spend 1/2 a day at Verdun. As with normal Army expeditions, we spent longer in the Normandy area on our last day there, so command decided to skip Verdun. Thankfully, the German bus driver that we had was a stickler for the schedule and he refused to listen to command begging him to bypass Verdun. We finally make it to Verdun and picked up the battlefield around Fort Dumont, or close by. Do remember that there was a awesome looking chapel there that was just overpacked with various bones from the French soldiers that died there - though the chapel was closed by the time we arrived, you could still look through the basement windows and see the stacks and stacks of bones. We were able to explore the immediate area on our own for about 1-hour before reloading onto the bus and leaving. Also remember visiting the site of the French trenches where the soldiers were buried alive because of the intensity of the German artillery bombardment - think that was location where those soldiers were only able to be found because of their bayonets attached to their weapons were sticking up out of the dirt. Wished we would have stayed on our original schedule when in Normandy so that we could have arrived at Verdun around noon-time like the original plan but guess that is why I was not in command of the excursion. Anyway, THANKS!!! for the memories!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think you mean the "Ossuaire de Douaumont" with the chapel. The bones in the building are actually not only of French soldiers, but also of German soldiers (. In total, there are about 130000 unidentified soldiers in the ossuary.
I also assume that by the second place you mean the "Tranchée des Baïonnettes". The French soldiers found here were not buried alive, as the myth goes. This was also confirmed by the lieutenant on duty.
The rifles were probably placed next to the fallen as a temporary marker. They were also probably intended to show respect.
After the position was conquered by German soldiers, the trench was simply filled in to carry out a kind of burial.
Awesome!! Big THANK YOU!!! for the memory corrections. Do now remember the bones in the chapel were of soldiers from both sides. As for the TRENCH - that seems to be the story have read in multiple books about the battle as well, kind of like when the Virgin Mary appeared above a battlefield during the first stages of the war - may not be true but makes for a good story. Again, Big THANKS!!! for the corrections.@@19Cronite92
This video is amazing thank you!!! This seriously shows real footage and explains the battle so well man. LITERALLY that battle was Hell. Just the insane carnage from artillery was so horrific.
I find it baffling that the leader's who instigated ww2 saw first hand the horrors of WW1
Unfortunately leaders don't mind starting Wars because it isn't them, their family or friends doing the fighting, it will be the ordinary man that will fight wars started by politicians
@@rickyclarke1757 In WW2 pretty much all sides saw people from different classes take up fighting. After that it pretty much fell on the poor.
@@rickyclarke1757could you not just mindlessly regurgitate the same shit that is posted over and over. We fucking know and you’ve somehow managed to reference one of the few instances where you’re wrong.
The Germans wanted it because they felt they’d been screwed. France basically shit the bed because the leadership refused to accept what was happening, likely because of WW1 memories. Britain didn’t want it either but Churchill did his thing. Ironically in an effort to show how wrong the Treaty of Versailles was Germany did everything they were trying to say they didn’t do.
Revenge is a powerful motive
I very much enjoyed your video and I gave it a Thumbs Up
Καλώς ήρθατε στην πόλη της ειρήνης στο Verdun αυτό γράφει όταν μπαίνεις στην πόλη γιατί ζούσα 2 χρόνια εκεί. Πήγαμε εκεί που έγινε η μάχη..πραγματικά πολύ σκληρά γεγονότα
Great Video 👍🏻
Very well done.
5:00: Verdun meaning "green nol or something I couldn't understand": where did you find that? I'm French and, as far as I know, the name of Verdun comes from the Celts who created an oppidum (a fortified village) at least 100 years BC named Verodunum which gave Verdun later on, meaning "big hill" (in Celtic language). Nothing to do with anything green.
For us Canucks it's Vimy Ridge....
I visited there a few months ago. It’s so tasteful, just left as the area was so you can see how the land was convulsed & assaulted, & some remaining woods left. It is an amazing place, with dignity, peace & reflection. The monument is appropriate, with class & dignity. For me, it far surpassed the masculinity of the Tiepval monument which I had been really looking forward to.
Best wishes.
Pat
Imagine if gopro was a thing back then
the war to end all wars...............
Accept it just paved the way for an even bigger war
Yea it didn't do as it's name says
My great grandfather was killed in this battle (on the German side), after his unit had completed their rotation and were headed back to the rear for rest and refit. Somehow artillery ranged on them and blew them apart as they were heading back to the supposed "safety" of the rear. War is hell.
For us Filipinos its the Battle of Bataan and Corrigedor island in 1941 against the Empire of Japan in World War Two
Who cares
@@LemonHead-sq5wsstfu many ppl do
Probably a few million people more than about your opinion
It is history and recent history as well.
Can you tell us more about the infamous no man’s land
Ain't nobody coming back from Verdun in one piece.
Verdun and fort de vaux were just insanity
This was a great informative video, we must not forget our mistakes in history, but oh god why did u put japanese soldiers in the video cover hahaah
Admittedly, you have only so long to give the details in these videos. Nonetheless, I think some particulars on the forts of Verdun should be explored with more vigor. Watching the video, it is hard to ascertain how the Germans got initially stopped and how was French were able to take the initiative. Instead of stock pictures a few maps with force dispositions would have been helpful.
Isn't there an area that is used as an artillery site that's considered the only "ongoing WW1 battle"? If I'm not mistaken, battlefield 1 represents it as Prise de Tahure? Its known as the battle that never ends because it's always being bombed, even if it's drills
Trenches from the North sea to the Mediterranean? where abouts on the Mediterranean coast?
While not connected, there were trenchlines in the Mediterranean from 1916-1918. Following the failed British-French disaster at Gallipoli and the need to assist the Serb & Montenegrins in the Balkans, the Entente opened up a frontline in Greece, also referred to as The Macedonian Front. Mutliple offensives were launched on the front, the most well known is the Monastir Offensive. Greece eventually declared war on the Central Powers in 1917.
The klowns who made this documentary have no idea what they are talking about. The trenches never even touched the Swiss Border...and the Somme marked the Canadians? What the hell is he talking about?!
100,000 artillery shells in one hour! That's 27 a second! What the fuck! Imagine hearing that, or being on the receiving end
The you find out that they have always been working together..
The concept of bleeding France white seems to be a bit undefined. Not an objective that can be worked on. Also, von Falkenhayn didn't actually say this until after the battle had already bogged down. It sounds like he was covering his....to cover up a mistake.
For Candians it's Vimy Ridge and Dieppe.
Fighting a war for things you don’t agree with on and politics who won’t fight it themselves
Nice AI, must have been so hard typing in that prompt
For South Africa it was the battle of Delville woods.
Falkenheim wasn immediately relieved after failing at verdun. He gambled that romania wouldnt join the war untill after the harvest. When romania joined russia before the harvest he was sacked.
How long was the Battle of Leningrad?
WW2
There wasn’t a continuous battle of Leningrad as such. It would be better described as the siege of Leningrad.
The German plan for Verdun was to bleed the French army dry in a battle of attrition. What they didn't anticipate was that thanks to the horrific human meatgrinder that Verdun became for both sides, the German army was bled dry too, with total casualties as high as 400,000 men
That's not really correct. The real objective was to quickly take Verdun and the surrounding fort's so that the German army can march onto Paris again and simultaneously strengthen its defensive position in the rear. The battle of attrition myth was an excuse made up by Falkenhayn to save face after the war.
"The bleed France white" narrative was a justification invented by Falkenhayn to justify his colossal blunder.
In reality the Germans lost as many men for a net gain of nothing...
For Canada it's Vimy Ridge
216k wounded not 216.
War should never be welcome.
Standard protocol
So. No.
It’s Waterloo
Mitterand looks like he'd rather be holding hands with the Devil.
This documentary is interesting. No background music
They were afflicted by desintery, flees, hunger, they had to drink their own urine because there was no potable water around, they were cold, and got bombarded by 1 million shells per day. And they were not allowed to leave. He'll on earth.
What is your source for Americans holding Gettysburg in high esteem? Try the battles in the pacific 🤨
There are men who survived the entirety of this battle? 😰
21:28 lol that was some bullshit
Imagine the human population if we didn’t have wars we breed like rabbits then we get shot like one
For Canadians the battle that means more to us than other nations is vimy ridge, the somme is meaningful but not like viny.
Hard to watch the rest when it starts off with an inaccuracy
For the British it was the battle of the Somme.
Probably as a combined battle it was probably Passendale third battle of Ypres 1917 where the British, Canadians, Australians and New Zealand forces fought.
Reckon the UK woukd have stayed in the EU ,if they had gone through a Stalingrad ,Berlin or Verdun.
Probably 😂
We went through the Somme and Passchaendale
That wasn't easy
@@youknow227 They weren't sieges in England though.
@@colloquialsoliloquy6391 Fair enough, but it left a ginormous mark on the ones who were there
@@youknow227 What word covers Verdun then?
Longest battle my ass, I dont recall there being half as many verduns as there were isonzos
I Isonzo's are usually divided into 12 or so battles.
Verdun is one gigantic battle that lasted a whole year, Isonzo was a series of *relatively* smaller battles that happened throughout two years
…for the Russians: Stalingrad.
For the world:
@@Pirata_Vermelhothat’s in the future against the aliens brah
@@DonRoyalX well reminded.
Utter fn waste of life.For All.
victory in war, obviously not the Frenchman's strong point.
Ah well ! Reread your history lessons if you still have them and you'll realize that your statement is very far from the real facts.
Go learn history
Do any battles in the Ukraine match the scale of this terrible one?.
Not even close
French in WW1: courageous, battle hardened, high moral, determined to win.
French in WW2: surrenders in one month.
The leadership gave up, but the soldiers fought hardly. Even in one month, there were testimony of Germans leaders who said the French soldiers were brave in their memoirs, but badly led.
Yeah, but nobody could stand up to the blitzkrieg, until the Wehrmacht overextended itself in the vastness of the Soviet Union.
@@davidpryle3935But a major contributing factor to that was Mussolini and how his armies were overwhelmed, especially in Northern Africa by the Ethiopian army. Some historians quip that Mussolini was one of the greatest assets the allied forces had because in bailing him out so often, and diverting troops and resources, had Hitler not done that, there was a good chance he would’ve taken Stalingrad and legs swaths of the eastern front, especially modern day Ukraine
@@MCFCTheMadHatter I don’t think the 2 or 3 German divisions in North Africa would have made that much difference to the 160 divisions on the eastern front, to be honest.
@@davidpryle3935 I may not have been perfectly clear. I don’t mean that 2-3 divisions would’ve allowed Germany to take all of Russia (Soviet Union), I meant that the 2-3 divisions likely would’ve been enough to take Stalingrad AND the food and supplies that kept being diverted away from the eastern front and back to Africa and other areas would’ve greatly aided in taking Stalingrad, as the Germans were so close to the city anyway (outskirts of it before supply line problems and running out of men curtailed taking the objective?)
Once you have Stalingrad, that would’ve likely had a crippling effect on Russia - once that main hub/capitol city is taken, it makes it very difficult for the encased country to launch counteroffensives in a lot of cases. Not to mention, it would be a lot easier to then selectively map out other forward objectives while reinforcing what you’ve already taken. But by no means would that difference been able to allow Germany to take all of Russia. So apologies for my lack of clarity.
Also, and to your point, Hitler also spread his forward lines to thin and did go against the advice of his general, if my memory is correct They thought it more prudent to concentrate forces on certain targets as opposed to move as a much broader line
Im so sick of this new narrator he ruins wars of the world....bring back the guy that narrated THE BATTLE OF STALLINGRAD
womp womp
Hes narrating fine.
Wasn’t that bad I was there
My Great Grandfather German Jew fought at Verdun as an artillery sergeant.
Willhelm Wurzburg R.I.P
"Operation Gericht" doesnt mean Judgment. "Urteil" would mean Judgment.
Gericht means "Court or Trial" - just saying 🤓
Horrid. Hundreds of thousands killed for nothing. A total waste.
For us regular people, yes it's senseless.
Look at it through the eyes of those that want to maintain authority and control. Was but a minor price to pay in their eyes. Black sabbath-war pigs, says all you need to know.
Look at what's going on now in the world. Makes sense to me anyway. It's sad that people would rather rule over ashes than to let people live their lives.
oh
Oh ?