tremendous onslaught which would bring
the war to a triumphant close.

We should next examine the reasons prompting the Germans to select
Verdun as the vital point, the nature of the scene of operations, and
the manner in which the preparation was made.

[Sidenote: Strategic advantages to be gained.]

[Sidenote: Verdun railways dominated by Germans.]

Why did the Germans make their drive at Verdun, a powerful fortress
defended by a complete system of detached outworks? Several reasons may
be found for this. First of all, there were the strategic advantages of
the operation. Ever since the Battle of the Marne and the German
offensive against St. Mihiel, Verdun had formed a salient in the French
front which was surrounded by the Germans on three sides,--northwest,
east, and south,--and was consequently in greater peril than the rest of
the French lines. Besides, Verdun was not far distant from Metz, the
great German arsenal, the fountain-head for arms, food, and munitions.
For the same reasons, the French defense of Verdun was made much harder
because access to the city was commanded by the enemy. Of the two main
railroads linking Verdun with France, the Lerouville line was cut off by
the enemy at St. Mihiel; the second (leading through Chalons) was under
ceaseless fire from the German artillery. There remained only a
narrow-gauge road connecting Verdun and Bar-le-Duc. The fortress, then,
was almost isolated.

[Sidenote: Iron mines of Lorraine.]

[Sidenote: Extent of Lotharingia.]

For another reason, Verdun was too near, for the comfort of the Germans,
to those immense deposits of iron ore in Lorraine which they have every
intention of retaining after the war. The moral factor involved in the
fall of Verdun was also immense. If the stronghold were captured, the
French, who look on it as their chief bulwark in the East, would be
greatly disheartened, whereas it would delight the souls of the
Germans, who had been counting on its seizure since the beginning of the
war. They have not forgotten that the ancient Lotharingia, created by a
treaty signed eleven centuries ago at Verdun, extended as far as the
Meuse. Finally, it is probable that the German General Staff intended to
profit by a certain slackness on the part of the French, who, placing
too much confidence in the strength of the position and the favorable
nature of the surrounding countryside, had made little effort to augment
their defensive value.

[Siden