French infantry charge near Fort Vaux, one of the bastions of Verdun. In March 1916, the village of Vaux changed hands 13 times. The fort fell to German forces the morning of June 7.Illustration by Léon Taa. . . ., 1916.
La Bataille sous Verdun, 1916Charge d'infanterie, prise du Fort de VauxThe Battle around Verdun, 1916Infantry charge near Vaux FortLogo: ELDVisé ParisReverse:Imp. E Le Deley, Paris
"'. . . the English are arriving here every day.'. . . 'I can't wait to find out where you are going there are a great many from around here who write to say that they are going to Verdun you already know . . . but as for me when will I know too. H. hasn't written for more than a week and he usually writes every day Is it the change of location or has something happened to him everyone wants to know.' . . . 'B's son who belonged to the Twelfth at Notre-Dame-de-Lorette has been at Verdun for the past week.'"
Excerpts from letters by Paul Pireaud and his wife Marie, the first paragraph from Paul, the second from his wife, both from March, 1916. Paul was with the 112th Heavy Artillery Regiment which was about to be transferred to Verdun where the battle for the sector had been in progress since February 21. Commanding the defense, French General Henri Philippe Pétain kept the sector supplied and reinforced, rotating men and units through in roughly eight days. To free French troops for service at Verdun, the British were extending their line. Notre-Dame-de-Lorette is in Artois, and had been the site of Battles of Artois in 1914 and 1915. Marie's punctuation is minimal.
Your Death Would Be Mine; Paul and Marie Pireaud in the Great War by Martha Hanna, pp. 95, 96, copyright © 2006 by Martha Hanna, publisher: Harvard University Press, publication date: 2006
1916-03-19, 1916, March, Verdun, Battle of Verdun, Pireaud, Paul Pireaud, Marie Pireaud, Verdun infantry charge
