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VERDUN – STADTINFORMATION
Verdun - medieval German: Wirten, official name before 1970 Verdun-surMeuse) is a small city in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern
France. It is a sub-prefecture (arrondissement) of the department. It is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital of the department is the slightly smaller city of Bar-le-Duc.
Verdun (Latin: Verodunum, meaning "strong fort") was founded by the Gauls
(as its Celtic name shows; "Dunum" is the Latinized version of a Celtic word
meaning oppidum). It has been the seat of the bishop of Verdun since the 4th
century AD, with interruptions. In the Treaty of Verdun in AD 843, the empire
of Charlemagne was divided into three parts.
The city has been famous for Dragées or sugared almonds from 1200 onwards; they were distributed at the baptism of French princes.
Verdun was part of the middle kingdom of Lotharingia, and in 1374 it became
an Imperial Free City of the Holy Roman Empire. The Bishopric of Verdun
formed together with Tull (Toul) and Metz the Three Bishoprics, which were
annexed by France in 1552 (recognized in 1648 by the Peace of Westphalia).
From 1624 to 1636, a large bastioned citadel was constructed on the site of
the Abbey of Saint Vanne. In 1670, Vauban visited Verdun and drew up an
ambitious scheme to fortify the whole city. Although much of his plan was built
in the following decades, some of the elements were not completed until after
the Napoleonic Wars. Despite the extensive fortifications, Verdun was captured by the Prussians in 1792, but abandoned by them after the Battle of
Valmy. During the Napoleonic War, the citadel was used to hold British prisoners-of-war. In the Franco-Prussian War, Verdun was the last French fortress
to surrender in 1870. Shortly afterwards, a new system of fortification was begun. This consisted of a mutually supporting ring of 22 polygonal forts up to 8
kilometres (5.0 mi) from the city, and an inner ring of 6 forts.
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VERDUN IN WORLD WAR I
The Battle of Verdun (Bataille de Verdun) was fought from 21 February – 18 December 1916 during the First World War on the Western Front between the German and French armies, on hills north of Verdun-sur-Meuse in north-eastern
France. The German Fifth Army attacked the defences of the Région Fortifiée de
Verdun (RFV) and those of the Second Army garrisons on the right bank of the
Meuse, intending to rapidly capture the Côtes de Meuse (Meuse Heights), from
which Verdun could be overlooked and bombarded with observed artillery-fire.
The German strategy intended to provoke the French into counter-attacks and
counter-offensives to drive the Germans off the heights. French attacks would be
relatively easy to repel with massed artillery-fire and super-heavy guns.
A German attempt to capture Fort Souville in early July was repulsed by artillery
and small-arms fire. To supply reinforcements for the Somme front, the German
offensive was reduced further, along with attempts to deceive the French into expecting more attacks, to keep French reinforcements away from the Somme front.
In August and December, French counter-offensives recaptured much of the
ground lost on the east bank and recovered Fort Douaumont and Fort Vaux. An
estimate in 2000 found a total of 714,231 casualties, 377,231 French and 337,000
German, an average of 70,000 casualties for each month of the battle; other recent estimates increase the number of casualties to 976,000 with 1,250,000 suffered at Verdun from 1914–1918. The Battle of Verdun lasted for 303 days and
became the longest and one of the most costly battles in human history.
VERDUN TODAY
Today, Verdun produces its income mainly from the service sector: Tourism,
administration and diocese. The main sights are the military cemetery, the
museums of the area and the cathedral with the World Peace Centre in the
Episcopate Palace. Every summer, the spectacle Des Flammes à la Lumière
(from flames to light) portrays the happenings of the Battle of Verdun in World
War I.
Source: Wikipedia
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