The Verdun battlefield in France saw one of its most dramatic moments of World War I on March 20, 1916, when French Lieutenant Colonel Émile Driant’s troops, in a desperate defense, were overrun at Côte 378 by a massive German offensive

The Battle of Verdun, which had begun on February 21, raged for 300 days, becoming the longest and one of the bloodiest engagements of the war. Though exact events on any single day are hard to isolate, mid-March saw ferocious fighting as the Germans pushed closer to Verdun’s inner forts. Ultimately, French forces held Verdun at terrible cost – “Ils ne passeront pas” (“They shall not pass”) became a French rallying cry – and Verdun came to symbolize French determination and the horrific attrition of WWI.