Saturday, February 21 1916, dawned misty and cool. A mysterious calm settled upon the rolling hills overlooking the Meuse River. Suddenly, the calm was violently shattered by the deafening roar of massed German artillery. The Earth shook. The sky blackened. French soldiers dove for cover. Some of them cupped their ears, while others knelt down and prayed.

This was the opening salvo in what was destined to become the longest, bloodiest, and most harrowing struggle during the First World War. It was called the Battle of Verdun, and it destroyed the lives of more than 680,000 young men.

By 1916, Western Europe had been transformed into a maze of endless, untenable trenches. Neither the British, French, nor their German counterparts dared to move an inch. They were all locked in a death embrace that gave new meaning to the term, stalemate.

The German High Command was determined to break the deadlock and annihilate the French Army once and for all. As a result, they ironed out a plan called, “operation Judgement”. It called for a ferocious assault upon the ancient city of Verdun.

Verdun was once a mighty fortress during the glory days of the Roman Empire. It was reinforced many times over throughout the years. The most notable of these came in 1885, when enormous concrete forts were constructed on the ridges surrounding the city center. The Germans were well aware that it would be a tough nut to crack. So, they amassed a colossal force of men and arms to achieve the audacious task.

The spectacular battle commenced at dawn on February 21. All along an eight-mile front, the cream of the German Army, some 1,100,000 troops, supported by 542 heavy artillery pieces, 308 medium range artillery pieces, 17  420-mm Howitzers, 13  350-mm Howitzers, 2,500,000 artillery shells, and 168 aircraft barreled head long into the French defenses.

This was one of the greatest concentrations of men and guns in the history of warfare. In fact, there were more than 150 artillery pieces for every mile of the battlefield! After an incredible nine-hour artillery barrage, 140,000 German assault troops stormed forward.

Their initial objectives were two forts situated on the high ground overlooking Verdun. They were Vaux and Douaumont. If the Germans could successfully capture them, they could then direct artillery fire right down on Verdun itself as well as the bridges across the Meuse River that were sustaining the resistance. This would force the French into only two options, retreat or die.