Chemical warfare in the battle of Verdun essay

Chemical warfare started long time ago in the history of wars. It is estimated that this goes beyond the Second World War into the First World War when the colonial forces were struggling for supremacy in the Europe,

American and the world beyond. During this time, colonial powers that were more dominant included the British, the French, Italians and the Germans. This paper therefore tries to examine the use of chemical warfare in the battle of Verdun. It is a chemical warfare in the battle of Verdun essay.

This battle dates back to the 1915 where the Germans staged their plan to attack the French at the fortress of Verdun. It was sparked by a letter written by Erich von Falkenhayn, to the Kaiser, Wilhelm II, in the December of that year. This was in the attempt to lure the British into coming to an agreement with the German after the defeat of the French. It is recorded that the German leader ignored their oncoming battle with the Russians and resorted to defeat the western giants, French.

Chemical warfare was used in this battle at Verdun to subdue the French enemies; by the use of tear gas, the Germans attacked the French army at the fortress of Verdun in 1916 in the month of February. Several soldiers from the French side were left dead while the Germans claimed victory.

Later on, the war moved to another fort, Fort Douaumont where a more dangerous gas was used . The Germans further used phosgene gas at Bar-le-Duc to Fort Vaux. These events are considered as the origins of chemical warfare, a type of war tactic that has greatly affected mankind for centuries.