![]() The Germans hatched a plan to keep Britain busy by using unrestricted submarine warfare against all merchant shipping, with the intention of starving Britain out. That didn’t mean Britain wasn’t a threat, and was considered far from it. If they refused, they too would be defeated, as there forces would be severely crippled after the defeat of the allied forces with France. So the fight need not be brought to them, as they would take care of themselves.Īs for trying to crush France, this would also take care of their allies as Britain would be more open to seeking terms with Germany. Their reasoning was solid, as it looked like Russia was on the verge of withdrawing from the war. Germany considered the key to winning the war was firmly prioritized by taking control of the Western front with France. He was born in his village and, as the Mayor of Ornes, is the successor to his father and mother.The German siege of Verdun was considered the longest battle of World War I, and was important to all sides. This means that after simply having been selected as mayor for the past decade, Charles Saint-Vannes will actually face his first proper election in 2014. Though the village proper was destroyed and has not been rebuilt, there are now a few people who live just outside the “red zone” within its bounds. The village of Ornes, on the other hand, is located on the very edge of the “red zone” and part of its territory spills over to the other side. Being designated a mayor has also become a family tradition for some, passed down from grandparents to children or grandchildren.įrancois-Xavier Long, a doctor from Verdun, became Mayor of Louvemont after proving his great interest in history and military medicine. For the most part, family history and a sense of attachment to the villages is the reason for a mayor’s selection. To be designated as the mayor of one of these villages, “candidates” must send a letter to the local authorities, explaining why they want the post. ![]() But nonetheless they are still administered by unelected mayors, who are chosen by local authorities after a law was passed in 1919, symbolically maintaining their administrative existence. ![]() The area was later designated a “red zone” meaning that any construction or digging was prohibited, since the ground had been left filled with tons of leftover shells and ammunition, as well as bodies of those who died.Īfter the war, it was decided that the villages should not be rebuilt, and most have remained without any inhabitants. The bombings sculpted the landscape, pockmarking the ground with craters. Most houses were completely destroyed their former locations are now marked only by signs. People say that each square meter of the battlefield was hit by a shell and the village of Fleury alone was struck by 90,000 tons of bombs in one day, according to its mayor. It is very hard when you arrive in the area now to have any idea of what the countryside looked like before the war. An estimated 300,000 French and German soldiers were killed and over 450,000 were injured. German troops did not come through, but nine villages had been utterly wiped out. Ten months of fighting saw German and French troops being pushed backwards and forwards, and by December 1916 the French had retaken almost all the territory that had been lost. A charity named “The Western Front Association” writes that during the initial stage of the Battle of Verdun, Germany fired more than a million shells. On February 21, 1916, they started the assault with a huge bombardment.
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