Verdun, Battle of

(Feb. 21–July 1916) Major engagement of World War I between Germany and France. As part of its strategy of war by attrition, Germany selected the fortress of Verdun as the site it believed France would defend to the last man. After a massive bombardment, the Germans advanced with little opposition for four days before the reinforced French army under Philippe Pétain slowed their advance. For two months the hills west of the Meuse River and north of Verdun were bombarded, attacked, and counterattacked. By July, Germany, which was also engaged in the Battle of the Somme, had abandoned its strategy of attrition, and France gradually regained its forts and territory. The devastating losses included more than 400,000 French casualties and nearly as many German casualties.