Verdun and the Somme: 1916 remembered The great World War I battles of Verdun and the Somme have come to symbolise the horrors of trench warfare on the Western Front, but the sacrifice of more than two million men was a decisive factor that eventually helped to bring an end to the conflict 1916 Feb 21: German army, commanded by Erich von Falkenhayn,launches attack on Verdun,aiming to “bleed” French army to death by forcing it to defend historic city Feb 26: German advance slows as French rush in reinforcements and strengthen defences under command of Philippe Pétain,who vows to save Verdun Mar-July: Germans make several advances towards Verdun but fail to take city in face of fierce French resistance French soldiers advance during battle for Verdun Jun 4: Four Russian armies under General Alexei Brusilov launch offensive on Eastern Front,forcing Germany to send four divisions from Verdun to assist Austria-Hungary Jun 24: Allies begin week-long bombardment of German defences on Somme River to prepare for British-led offensive,aimed at relieving pressure on French at Verdun Somme FRANCE Paris Battle area Line of trench warfare 1914-17 Armistice line Nov 1918 Jul-Nov 1916 Marne Verdun Meuse 50km 30 miles Brussels BELGIUM LUX. GERMANY Feb-Dec 1916 Rhine SWITZ. Jul 1 Somme offensive begins under direction of British commander Douglas Haig.His army suffers 57,000 casualties on first day, and offensive quickly becomes battle of attrition as Allies make marginal gains but fail to breach German lines Jul 12: Falkenhayn calls off German offensive at Verdun in response to Somme fighting and situation on Eastern Front Sep 15: Britain uses tanks in action for first time during Somme offensive TRENCH WARFARE Front-line trench Thinly-held, bulk of defending troops wait in rear No man’s land Area between trenches of opposing sides. Muddy, shell-pocked terrain difficult for infantry to cross Support trench Communications trench British Mark I tank Used to clear path throughbarbed wire for infantry Armament: Two 57mmguns, four machineguns Machinegun post Front-line dugout Barbed wire Slows infantry attack Heavy artillery Positioned about 10km behind front line Reserve trench Deep dugout Oct 24: French begin counteroffensive at Verdun,regaining some ground.Battle ends with German withdrawal on Dec 15 Nov 18: Somme fighting ends, with Allies gaining only 8km in four months BATTLE AFTERMATH* Verdun: Both sides suffer huge losses – up to 976,000 in total – but battle serves as symbol of French determination and sacrifice The Somme: Losses become unsustainable –over one million combined.Offensive inflicts serious damage on German army Sources: The History Place, USMA Pictures: Getty Images, Wikimedia, Newscom *Losses include killed, wounded and missing