73 – Episode 73 Battle of Verdun
The winter of 1915 was cold and harsh, but the war became more terrible.
As both sides focus on gas development, gas clouds covering the front lines have become a common sight.
The types of gases have also become more diverse than at the beginning of the war, and a wide variety of gases, such as chlorine gas, mustard gas, adamsite, and tear gas, can now be encountered on the battlefield.
The reason gases became more diverse was to neutralize the opponent’s gas mask. For example, emetic agents such as Adam’s site played a role in forcing people to take off their gas masks, thereby exposing themselves to poisonous gas.
However, gas weapons were not invincible. At first, I didn’t know so I just dealt with it, but when I tried to respond, I was able to neutralize it with surprisingly simple means. You could replace a gas mask with a cloth soaked in urine, or you could buy one just by covering it in a bucket.
Because we were so exposed to gas, many countermeasures were known, and the power of gas was not as strong as it was at the beginning of the war.
Still, there was no change in the advantage of the side holding the gas.
The negotiating forces prepared a huge amount of gas while preparing to retake Fort Verdun. Both cylinder and shell types of attack methods were adopted.
“I heard the Germans had fun mixing gas bombs, right? “We pay the same back.”
“It’s London’s revenge.”
The negotiating forces came out with their own teeth gnashing their teeth.
Because the teacher was great, the students’ class achievement was very high.
On December 6, 1915, the British 2nd Army under Marshal Douglas Haig opened the offensive.
It started with a large cloud of gas.
“You too, try the taste of chlorine gas.”
As fresh chlorine gas airlifted from London covered the sky, the German soldiers hastily put on gas masks. A large amount of emetic agent rained down on top of him.
“Wow.”
German soldiers learned that they would die if they took off their gas masks, so they vomited while wearing their gas masks. Then, a soldier died of suffocation.
When the German army was half-disoriented by gas bombs, the negotiating forces began their assault.
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“Charge!”
With the sound of the whistle, thousands of soldiers bravely ran into no-man’s land.
However, the gas did not prevent barbed wire and enemy artillery.
The German artillerymen did not miss the moment when the infantry echelon of the Negotiation Army advanced in pitch black and hesitated in front of the barbed wire.
All kinds of gas bombs and shells fell on their heads.
“Kwaaak.”
The soldiers screamed and fell into the hellish ensemble created by the terrible gases and shells.
Some superhumans cut the barbed wire with scissors and made a breakthrough, but the first echelon was virtually destroyed.
“Next!”
However, the negotiating force command calmly charged the infantry sequentially.
Anyway, this fight was a war of quantity and attrition. Whoever could fit more soldiers into the shredder would win.
“Charge!”
The second wave bravely charged into the German positions again. This time, the Negotiation Army artillery also fired shells to the rear to hinder the German artillery attack.
Then the German infantry came to their senses.
Ta-ta-ta-ta!
Most of the soldiers charging into the trenches were scattered like beehives under the crossfire of machine guns.
Casualties had already exceeded 10,000, but the negotiating force command did not even raise an eyebrow.
“Next!”
The will to somehow win Verdun and force the German army into Alsace-Lorraine endlessly raised the threshold for sacrifice.
When the third or even fourth wave was destroyed, the infantry of the Negotiation Army were able to take over one of the German trench lines.
Just as we were about to be satisfied with the terrible victory, the German counterattacking unit waiting at the rear pushed in, supported by artillery fire.
“It’s an assault force!”
The German Stormtroopers, wearing gas masks and carrying heavy machine guns and flamethrowers, were an object of fear for the negotiating forces.
The assault troops fired machine guns to pressure the negotiators so that they could not even raise their heads, then approached the trenches and roasted all living things with fire.
“Ahh!”
In the blink of an eye, the negotiating forces lost their trench line to the German counterattacking force.
Nevertheless, the British generals were unperturbed. They calmly gave orders as if throwing pawns on a chessboard.
“Next!”
The British army had piled up a field of corpses and poured in the infantry, determined to see the end.
In just four hours, tens of thousands of people were killed in the fields of Verdun.
The loss was so terrible that the French generals watching from the side trembled. They didn’t use tactics that respected human life, but even for those generals, it was too severe.
‘Is that something a human bastard would do?’
But it was effective.
The German army could no longer withstand the offensive of the British army, which was pounding its troops like crazy, and gave up its trench line.
The British army achieved the feat of taking four trench lines in a row and advancing 1km toward Verdun.
The number of war dead who paid compensation reached 40,000.
Watching that, the French became certain of one thing.
‘The British way doesn’t work. We go our own way.’
The next day, the French 5th Army went on the offensive.
The French took a more organic offensive than the British army. When the infantry advanced, the artillery covered the barrage.
“Anyway, there are more lives saved by barrage than the risk of dying from an accidental bomb attack by an ally.”
“Even if you are scared, advance along the barrage. That’s how you live.”
The French army’s mobile barrage tactic, which took the risk of artillery shells falling within 500 meters of friendly forces, not only reduced the accuracy of German artillery fire, but also effectively blocked counterattacks by enemy infantry.
France achieved a record of advancing twice as far as the British army while suffering far fewer casualties.
Of course, the sacrifice of the French army was not small.
The negotiating army made significant advances toward Fortress Verdun over four days.
Then the Allies also began pouring supplies into Verdun.
At first, the troops deployed by both armies were not that many.
However, when the number of troops deployed by the opponent increased, there was no choice but to increase the number of troops in response. As the number of divisions deployed exceeded 30 and approached 50, Verdun was transformed from a simple battlefield into a battleground for assessing the direction of the front line.
“If we are pushed here, we will lose this war.”
The negotiating forces began pouring all their efforts into Verdun.
*
‘The Battle of Verdun.’
I felt embarrassed by the war of attrition taking place in Verdun.
The Battle of Verdun in the last episode and original history was actually a fight that started with an offensive led by the German army.
But here, the negotiating forces went on the offensive first.
Let’s say this can be done.
But, what is the reason for pushing back Verdun by pushing the troops so endlessly?
It was burdensome for the German army to be divided in a war of attrition, so they brought in allies from Poland, Austria-Hungary, and Romania and used them as meat shields, but even then they could not handle the attrition of the German army.
The number of soldiers already killed was approaching 200,000.
It is not 20,000, but 200,000.
Was hitting ‘London’ something that would cause such pain and anger?
Of course, there would be no way to attack just for emotional reasons like that.
There must be a strategic reason.
I looked down at the map and was lost in thought.
Verdun is an area on the left flank of the German Army’s salient dug into Franche-Comté.
If this road is cut, the German army will have no choice but to move its front line back to Alsace-Lorraine.
‘But still, it’s too reckless.’
I called Falkenhayn and asked his opinion about the war situation.
“It’s going very well, Your Majesty.”
“I don’t understand why this situation seems to be going well when our military is going through a meat grinder.”
“If the exchange rate is good, wouldn’t it be a good battle?”
It wasn’t wrong, but this guy wasn’t normal either.
“Even so, in my opinion, the waste is too much.”
“Then how about spreading the pressure by launching an offensive in another region?”
Huh? What kind of crazy talk is this?
Let’s open a new battlefield to reduce the war of attrition.
Falkenhein preached his doctrine of war of attrition and talked about how alleviating the pressure on his enemy was the way to reduce attrition.
I was convinced after hearing that story.
As expected, we must properly filter and listen to the stories of Junkers who are obsessed with ‘exchange costs’ and ‘war of attrition’.
‘You have to trust a reliable tank.’
“I will tell the president, I will never allow you to be intentionally offensive.”
“I understand.”
It was a bit glum, but if you keep that old man alive, hundreds of thousands more will die.
Anyway, there didn’t seem to be a clear way to respond to this battle right away.
Or, it didn’t seem like a bad idea to retreat all the way to Fortress Verdun and fight along the fortress.
Let’s borrow Hindenburg’s method of retreating to the defense line prepared in advance and drying up the negotiation forces.
In the middle of World War I, the ‘Hindenburg Line’ built by Hindenburg was a ‘wall of death’ itself that could not be crossed by the negotiating forces.
Like that traitor, it didn’t seem like a bad idea to build a solid three-layer defense line on a high ground a little away from the front line.
If the war was long, all kinds of diseases, including trench foot, would spread in the low-lying trenches, so considering non-combat losses, this side might have been better.
Trench foot is one of the representative trench diseases that causes your feet to rot if you soak them in water for a long time.
‘Retreat.’
I don’t like it, but if tanks come out, we can advance easily.
I’m stealing the traitor’s idea, but that doesn’t mean he can say anything to me.
The name of the defense line should be ‘Arm Asshole, no Kaiser Line’.
I instructed the Quartermaster General to build a new defense line behind the front line.