Some Germans were armed with a new weapon, the flamethrower. An officer recorded, “We are surrounded by wounded and dying men whom we are totally unable to help.” Once the barrage ceased, German assault troops rose from their trenches and pushed forward. The German artillery crews were instructed that “no enemy line is to remain un-bombarded,” and that “nowhere should the enemy feel safe.” The French were overwhelmed by the relentless onslaught. On February 21, 1916, more than 1,220 German guns around an eight-mile perimeter fired two million shells at the French in the opening eight-hour bombardment of the battle. His scheme to inflict a relentless slaughter on the enemy and win the war was called Operation Gericht-a term loosely translating as “judgment” or “place of execution.” He planned to lure the French army into a battle of attrition, expecting that his opponent “would be compelled to throw in every man they have.” Falkenhayn anticipated a kill-ratio of five French for every two Germans. Falkenhayn targeted Verdun because of its position on the Allied line and its sentimental value to the French people. ![]() In his estimation, this would then force the British to sue for peace. In a letter to Kaiser Wilhelm II in late 1915, Falkenhayn argued that the war would only be won by bleeding France to death and draining its will to fight. The British sector of the Western Front also did not lend itself to offensive operations. ![]() Out of reach across the Channel, this great foe could not be assaulted directly. German General Erich von Falkenhayn regarded the British as the most formidable of the Allied Powers in the Great War.
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