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Verdun - October 1916

Raemaekers, Louis, 1917, Chromolithograph
Verdun - October 1916
Verdun - October 1916
Verdun - October 1916
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Category
Library Item
Item no
32917
Title
Verdun - October 1916
Description
"The Fort of Douamont was described by the Kaiser as the main pillar of the Verdun defences. This was in February 1916 when the great German offensive was launched against it, and this bastion and its approaches were captured. The struggle for its possession continued for months, and it was retaken by the French on 22 May only to be lost again after two days of terrible bombardment. On 24 October 1916, after an intense artillery preparation, the enemy's front was broken everywhere along a length of nearly four and a half miles and to a depth in places of two miles, and what was left of the village and fort of Douamont passed once more into French hands, in which it was since remained. The French communiqué issued that evening stated that: 'Prisoners are pouring in. Up to the present 3,500, including 100 officers, have been counted. Our losses are small.' The following day it was reported that: 'The number of unwounded prisoners counted up to the present exceeds 4,500.'"
Artist / maker
Date
1917
Size
35.3 x 25.7 cm
Location
Art and Design Library
Copyright
Louis Raemaekaers' drawings are reproduced by kind permission of the Louis Raemaekers Foundation.