The troops were thus spread across the eight mile front. During the Franco-Prussian war the last fortress town fell on the hands of the Prussians.įalkenhayn plan was to bomb Verdun thus diverting the attention of the French troop who were stationed at the western front and draw them into Verdun. So practically the woods behind Verdun were easier to defend than the fortresses. Falkenhayn depended on the fact that Verdun was important to the Frenchmen symbolically rather than strategically.
This is because of its status as a fortress even during the period of the Romans and also the recognition of Verdun’ by most French men. But still Verdun remained a psychological pride for the French men. The choice of Verdun as the center of interest by the Germans was not very effective because the French men lost faith in the fortresses and the need to defend them. (Jeremy, 2002) This particular move had its disadvantage because Germany was unable to capture the Russian army and this compromised the position of the Germans. He also shifted his focus from the eastern front to the Western front, which is towards Britain. Kaiser also authorized the implementation of a siege against Verdun. He agreed on the policy of unrestricted submarines warfare’s even though he knew he risked bringing the United States into the war. Kaiser implemented the policies as he had been advised by Falkenhayn. To him this move would end the hostilities that were there.
The implementation of this policy would ensure that Britain starved. He therefore recommended a policy that would enable warfare submarines to have unrestricted merchant shipping. Britain formed an allied effort against Germany and therefore Falkenhayn believed that she must be eliminated from the war. Falkenhayn reasoned that if Germany defeated France, then Britain would seek an alliance with Germany or risk being defeated.
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