Battle of Flirey

The Battle of Flirey (French: 1re Bataille de Flirey) was a First World War battle fought from 19 September – 11 October 1914. It resulted in a German victory against the French army. The battle cut most of the roads and railways to the strategically important Fortified Region of Verdun (Région Fortifiée de Verdun [RFV]) and was to have a large effect on the course of the war.

Background

The Woëvre Plain stretches from the city of Luxemburg, south to the French city of Toul and has been a common route of attack between GermanyThe German Empire, also referred to as Imperial Germany, the Second Reich, as well as simply Germany, was the period of the German Reich from the unification of Germany in 1871 until the November Revolution in 1918, when the German Reich changed its form of government from a monarchy to a republic. During its 47 years of existence, the German Empire became the industrial, technological, and scientific giant of Europe. Germany and FranceFrench Third Republic was the system of government adopted in France from 4 September 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed during the Franco-Prussian War, until 10 July 1940, after the Fall of France during World War II led to the formation of the Vichy government. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the French colonial empire was the second largest colonial empire in the world only behind the British Empire. France. The plain is flanked on the western side by a series of mountain ranges (the Hauts de Meuse) along the Meuse River and along the eastern side by a series of mountain ranges along the Moselle River. A series of German fortifications were built before the war, along the Moselle (especially around the city of Metz), while across the border, a matching set of French fortifications was established along the Meuse around Verdun and Toul.

In the first months of the First World WarWorld War I, also known as the First World War, or the Great War, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in one of the largest wars in history. The war drew in all the world's economic great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. View World War I »First World War, the Oberste Heeresleitung (OHL: German High Command) were the first ones to realise the increased effectiveness that artillery and machine-guns gave to the defence and seized various terrain features that would be easy to defend. Recognising that it is easier to defend the heights alongside the Meuse (as opposed to the plain between the Moselle and Meuse), a German attack was planned to seize the heights, to deny access to the Woëvre Plain to the Allies, isolate Verdun and reduce the ability of the French to attack German territory.

Battle

The attack commenced on 19 September, with German cavalry from Metz skirmishing with the French defenders in the Dieulouard–Martincourt area. Flirey, the woods around the village and Seicheprey were quickly captured. French reinforcements arrived on 22 September but could not stop the Germans from advancing. The German advance then changed direction, moving from southerly to south-west. By 24 September, the town of Saint-Mihiel was captured and villages of Flirey, Seicheprey and Xivray recaptured. More French reinforcements arrived on 27 September but as the Germans were now firmly entrenched, French counter-attacks between Flirey and Apremont resulted in little change in the front line. French counter-attacks continued until 11 October.

Aftermath

The battle created a salient projecting into the French lines south of Verdun, named the St Mihiel Salient. Of the two roads and one railway that led to Verdun, all but a minor road were closed, which imposed severe supply difficulties on the French troops in the RFV. The city was enveloped on three sides and neutralised as a base for French offensive operations. The area was to see much fighting over the rest of the war. Despite attempts by the French to reduce the salient in the First Battle of Woëvre in early 1915, the First Offensive Battle of Verdun in late 1916 and the Second Offensive Battle of Verdun in 1917, the salient was not reduced until the Battle of Saint-Mihiel in September 1918.

RESOURCES
This article uses material from the Wikipedia articles "World War", "World War I", and "Battle of Flirey", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.