Verdun was a French town built on highly fortified, almost impenetrable hills. It was also surrounded by a double ring of fortresses. However, France had been neglecting the defense of Verdun throughout the war. They judged the fortifications to be useless and Verdun to be an unimportant target.

Germany made the final decision to attack Verdun by December 24, 1915. Preparations were secretive and hardly anyone else knew of the German objective, Verdun. Over 1,200 guns were prepard for this purpose. Germans began their attack on February 21 with the heaviest bombing that had ever occurred, lasting over 9 hours.

The condition of fighting was terrible and trenches were so muddy that they had to be constantly rebuilt. It reaked of urine and human waste. Soldiers even died from their feet always being soaked in the mud. Their feet would become soggy, rot, and become infected.

The battle lasted for 11 months and 28 days with many charges and attempts by the Germans to capture French hills and forts. Casualties numbered over 700,000 and yet the battlefield was not even ten square kilometers. It finally ended with the German command's conclusion of defeat on December 19, 1916.