WWI, why did the Germans throw so much into Verdun? Didn't they realise it was a meat grinder?

Question

Verdun was a good position to defend as far as I can tell. So why did the Germans focus so much on such a strong point? Why didn't they target a weaker position on the front line?

Answer 1

All of you never read the old Life magazine fifty year commemorative series on the war that started in 1964 I guess. The basic idea behind Verdun in German thinking was it would bleed the French white. They never thought ahead to the point it would do the same to them......I hate to say this but the Maginot line was designed from hindsight. It did not exist until WWII and the Germans flanked it in weeks. They attacked through the Ardenes in Belgium...

Answer 2

the whole war was a waste the first world war was a fare for the posh toffs, the allies were lions led by donkeys

Answer 3

For much the same reason that the British and French threw so much into the Somme.  The idea was that sooner or later the attackers would finally crack the enemy, overwhelming the ability to make up the massive losses, and finally break through the staleate of trench warfare.  In both places, it was a desperate gamble, and in both places, the technology of machineguns and artillery and reinforced trenches in depth overcame the ability of mere men, no matter how many were pressed into the attack.

Answer 4

The main reasons the Germans focussed so much on Verdun was for political reasons. It was a prestige target, like Ypres was for the British. It didn't have much strategic value, in fact it would probably have made sense to withdraw from the position, but for the French to have lost Verdun would have been a political disaster. Consequently, the Germans knew the French would do anything to hold it, and therefore concentrated on 'bleeding the French white'. It almost worked; it's often said that the French army was never the same again after Verdun, and that it broke France as a world power and even led to their defeat in World War 2. However it ended up about as costly for the Germans as it was for the French.

Answer 5

Look to General Grant in American History:

"Bleeding the French white" puts it well. The idea was attrition, it didn't matter how many German soldiers were killed as long as they were killing more French soldiers.

In fact, according to wikipedia's statistics, this was achieved. The battle wasn't so much a massive assault as it was a huge artillery battle. The Germans got the jump, they killed more French.

In fact if you look at Niall Ferguson's The Pity of War, which features a very large, computed study of casualty rates during WWI, the Central Powers were far better at killing/injuring enemy troops than the Allies (I believe on average throughout the war the casualty rates were 1 [Germany/Austria]: 1.5 [Allies]). Strategically Verdun was a victory for the Central Powers, but they lost out in strategy in other areas, largely by not countering British naval blockade and due to the effect on morale of the USA joining the War.

Answer 6

don't forget in ww1, the general dies before the attack ever took place

so, another general took over, who didn't understand the war plan

he changed it, which is one of the main reasons that germany lost the war

Answer 7

There's a good chance that the Germans would have succeeded at Verdun if it had not been for the British campaign on the Somme.

(the British did not want to attack *there* or *then* but it became necessary.)

The German losses on the Somme were *greater* than the British, against popular "knowledge".

A war of attrition is not necessarily pointless, though it can't be other than bloody.

As for the view above:

"the whole war was a waste the first world war was a fare for the posh toffs, the allies were lions led by donkeys"

The casualty rate for officers was higher than for troops in WW1.

And the "Lions/donkeys" quote is actually a false one.

See "Mud Blood and Poppycock"

and "Forgotten Victory.  The First World War: myths and realities."

Answer 8

Don't mention the War !

Answer 9

The idea was to bleed the French white regardless of the casualties, and it's so much easier for people to make an order like that when they don't have to lead the attack themselves