Story From Everyday

 A French soldier looking at the remains of a leg that still has a boot on during the Battle of Verdun, 1916. 108 years ago today, the Battle of Verdun, one of the longest and bloodiest battles of World War I, came to an end. The battle lasted for 10 months and resulted in over 700,000 casualties, including some 300,000 killed. The Germans designed Verdun to be a battle of attrition. The German Chief of Staff, General Erich von Falkenhayn, planned to "bleed the French white" and lure them into a battle where they would suffer heavy casualties, hoping to break their will to fight. The Germans targeted Verdun because it was a heavily fortified stronghold, and its fall would be a blow to French morale. Despite extensive German preparations, the French were largely unprepared for the offensive. The initial bombardment allowed the Germans to advance and overrun the first French defensive lines. German forces captured Fort Douaumont, the largest and highest fortification on th...

Indian Army POW in Ottoman captivity, captured following the Siege of Kut, 1916. . Colourised by @omergelirtarih. . Today 108 years ago, on April 29, 1916, the Siege of Kut came to an end on the Mesopotamian Front as the British garrison surrendered, one of the greatest Ottoman victories in the First World War. . In May 1915, British General Nixon, Commander in Mesopotamia, had ordered the Indian 6th Division under Major-General Townsend to advance northwards from Basra in Iraq along the Tigris river. . By October 1915, the Indian 6th Division had advanced over 300 miles and was approaching the historic and symbolic city of Baghdad. 1915 had been a disappointing year for the British and French, whose offensives on the Western Front and Gallipoli had been costly failures. . Russia and Serbia had also suffered huge territorial losses, prompting Bulgaria to join the Central Powers and Afghanistan to consider following suit. In order to improve the worsening situation, especially rega...

Civilians near the Austrian lines in Serbia being strung up as a reprisal for guerrilla resistance to the invaders, 1916 The Austro-Hungarian Armed Forces occupied Serbia from late 1915 until the end of World War I. Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against Serbia on 28 July 1914 marked the beginning of the war. After three unsuccessful Austro-Hungarian offensives between August and December 1914, a combined Austro-Hungarian and German offensive breached the Serbian front from the north and west in October 1915, while Bulgaria attacked from the east. By January 1916, all of Serbia had been occupied by the Central Powers. See also :  German and Austro-Hungarian War Crimes at the Start of World War One Serbia was divided into two separate occupation zones, one Bulgarian and the other Austro-Hungarian, both governed under a military administration. Germany declined to directly annex any Serbian territory and instead took control of railways, mines, and forestry and agricultural res...