Stereo card of French Generals, Henri Philippe Pétain, Paul Henrys, and Émile Fayolle and French Raymond President Poincaré in the Verdun sector. Pétain is on the left and Poincaré behind him. Henrys is in the foreground, back to the camera, and Fayolle on the right.
No.2 Pétain, Poincaré, Henrys, Fayolle devant VerdunPages d'Histoire OculaireReverse:Stéréo Édition F Meiller - Vitry-sur-Seine
"The harsh realization that France was running out of men added to the urgency of Pétain's reforms. On June 20 [1917] the General Staff in Paris published a study analyzing the effects of France's looming shortage of soldiers. The study stated:'It is not necessary to deny that after three years of war and after having supported until now the greater part of the common effort, the French army has lost many of its offensive qualities. The crisis of personnel, which can only become more acute with each passing day, can only aggravate the situation. Consequently, the day is approaching when a large offensive by us must be curtailed because we cannot fill the vacancies in our units.'"
French general Henri Philippe Pétain was given command of the French Army on May 15, 1917 after the failure of Commander in Chief Robert Nivelle's spring offensive, and as mutinies spread in the army, ultimately affecting nearly half the army. Pétain assured the soldiers he would not squander their lives, and that France would build the materiel—tanks, heavy artillery, aircraft—that could bring victory. He also set about reforming the army, ensuring officers mingled with their men, and recognizing the danger presented by France's heavy losses since the beginning of the war.
Pyrrhic Victory; French Strategy and Operations in the Great War by Robert A. Doughty, page 368, copyright © 2005 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College, publisher: Harvard University Press, publication date: 2005
1917-06-20, 1917, June, shortage, soldier shortage, manpower, manpower shortage, French army, Pétain and Poincaré, Petain and Poincare
