Herbebois and la Wavrille 1916-1918 –
Beginning and End of a Battle
The Herbebois is a ravine-rich forest area located south of the village of Azannes-et-Soumazannes and west of the town of Gremilly. In February 1916, the area was one of the essential starting points for the German attack on the fortress belt of Verdun. From September 1918, the Herbebois was the scene of bitter German defensive efforts that lasted until the armistice on November 11, 1918.
Attack – February 21 – 24, 1916
The order of German Crown Prince Wilhelm – commander of the 5. Armee (Fifth Army) – for the intended attack on Verdun began with the two well-known sentences:
Especially in the area of the Herbebois, it became apparent that the expectation of artillery preparatory fire breaking any French resistance was too optimistic, even with the deployment of more than 1,200 German guns and about 150 Minenwerfer (trench mortar) on an attack front of just 20 kilometers.
Herbebois was located in the sector of advance of III. Armeekorps (III Corps) (6. Infanterie-Division (6th Infantry Division)) under the command of General Ewald von Lochow. For the attack, Infanterie-Regiment Großherzog Friedrich Franz II von Mecklenburg Schwerin (4. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 24 (24th Infantry Regiment) as well as Infanterie-Regiment General-Feldmarschall Prinz Friedrich Karl von Preußen (8. Brandenburgisches) Nr. 64 (64th Infantry Regiment) were designated. Ahead of them, elements of Sturm-Bataillon Nr. 5 (Rohr) (5th Assault Battalion) were to clear the way for the infantry. The German positions were located southwest of Azannes in the area of the Kap der Guten Hoffnung (Cap de Bonne Espérance). To the French positions, open terrain over a distance of up to 1,000 meters had to be crossed.
On the French side, to the west, stood the French 72nd Infantry Division as well as in the area of Herbebois and la Wavrille the French 51st Reserve Division under the command of General Boulangé with elements of the French 164th Infantry Regiment (164e RI), French 243rd Infantry Regiment (243e RI) and French 327th Infantry Regiment (327e RI).
A phased approach was planned: On the first day of the attack, after massive artillery preparation, the forward French line was to be taken and the second line either taken or reconnoitered to such an extent that on the following day, after renewed massive artillery preparatory fire, the attack could be carried forward to the southern edge of the Herbebois. The attack scheduled for February 12, 1916, had to be postponed repeatedly due to bad weather. On the evening of February 20, 1916, the weather cleared, and the forecasts promised a longer period of good weather, so that the Crown Prince issued the order to attack for the following morning.
Promptly at 08:00 on February 21, 1916, the artillery preparatory fire began. It lasted until about 17:00. Then the German assault troops climbed out of their trenches and began the storm on the edge of the Herbebois, expecting that no significant resistance would stir there anymore. However, that was not the case.
The German troops encountered heavy defensive fire. Also due to the lack of reconnaissance of the attack terrain, the leading elements of Sturm-Bataillon Nr. 5 (Rohr) (5th Assault Battalion) were completely wiped out. Only on the left wing did elements of Infanterie-Regiment 64 (64th Infantry Regiment) succeed in advancing beyond the forward French positions. The rest of the regiment remained lying at the edge of the forest under heavy fire. Infanterie-Regiment 24 (24th Infantry Regiment) also made no headway. Only the “Knoch-Graben”, which ran across open terrain immediately in front of the assault departure position, could be taken. Because of the massive losses, a continuation of the attack no longer seemed possible on this day.
After a cold night with snowfall, the units were to make up for the previous day’s disappointments on February 22, 1916, and storm the French main position. This was located about 1,000 meters inside the Herbebois, specifically on the northern ridge of the Chemin des Renards, which the Germans called Andreas-Schlucht.
The attack was to be launched after three hours of artillery fire. However, the French had used the break in the fighting to bring up reinforcements in the form of elements of Infanterie-Regiment 233 (233rd Infantry Regiment) from the Fosses-Wald. When the German troops advanced around 12:00, they came under massive machine gun and infantry fire. On this day, too, it was not possible to take the main French position. For the German troops, the second freezing night began. The French artillery had recovered from the heavy blow of the previous day and subjected its own first position as well as the rear German areas to heavy fire. High losses and numerous casualties from frostbite occurred.
On February 23, 1916, the third day of the attack, the decision was made. Once again, elements of the 24th and 64th Regiments advanced at 12:00 following heavy artillery preparatory fire. In the morning, in the sector of the 64. Infanterie-Regiment (64th Infantry Regiment), it had been possible to knock out a French machine gun nest that had prevented any progress on the previous days. Although it was ordered that initially only the companies of the 24. Infanterie-Regiment (24th Infantry Regiment) should advance, the commander of II./IR 64 (II./64th Infantry Regiment), Hauptmann (captain) Curt Osterroth, decided to attack immediately. It succeeded in storming the French main position. Through this success, the attack progressed overall. In the sector of the 24th Infantry Regiment, however, all attempts at a frontal advance failed once again. The attack only succeeded when several companies under the command of Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Haupt enveloped the French positions as far as the Wald von Ville and rolled them up from the flank. The French retreated in a panic into the Chaume-Wald. In the Andreas-Schlucht, elements of the 9th Company of Regiment 64 captured a French 16.7 cm naval gun. By the morning of February 24, 1916, the southern edge of the Herbebois could be reached.
during the Battle of Verdun
After the difficulties of the first three days, February 24, 1916, had brought a turning point across the entire attack front. Everywhere it had been possible to pierce the French defense lines up to 2 kilometers deep. In addition, the forward French artillery positions could be neutralized. Countless guns were captured. Now the units of the V. Reservekorps (V Reserve Corps) that had remained passive until then under General Erich von Gündell advanced east of the Herbebois and captured the completely destroyed village of Ornes. The troops of the XV. Armeekorps (XV Corps) under General Berthold von Deimling advanced from the area west of Etain through the Woevre-Ebene towards Verdun starting from the morning of February 25, 1916. On February 25, 1916, Fort de Douaumont fell. In June 1916, after its capture had already been falsely reported at the beginning of March 1916, Fort Vaux could also be captured. By this time, however, French resistance had already consolidated.
After its capture on February 24, 1916, the Herbebois was located in the rear area of the actual combat operations. Camp areas and artillery positions were established in the forest terrain as well as the adjacent ravines (Herbebois-, Birnbaum, Kap-Schlucht).
When the German offensive stalled in mid-1916 and it became apparent that a decisive advance was hardly possible, the construction of rear fallback positions began. The defensive tactics were changed. Instead of holding a position at all costs, a deep outpost zone was created, which in the event of a major French attack was to be evacuated while fighting and recovered in an immediate counterattack.
Out of the former French main position at the northern edge of the Andreas Gorge in the Herbebois emerged a holding line, the Hagen-Stellung. The former assault departure position at the elevation of the hamlet of Soumazannes became part of the Volker-Stellung. To the east, the Kriemhild-Stellung connected, running across the Romagner-Rücken through the Spincourt forest towards the village of Senon. Behind it, further positions were planned, which, however, were no longer built. Thus, east of Etain, the Vulkan-Stellung was planned, which was conceived as the last bulwark before the Reich territory following the evacuation of the Woevre plain.
At the end of August 1916, Generals von Hindenburg and Ludendorff assumed the Supreme Army Command. On September 2, 1916, when the French regained the initiative due to their material superiority, the cessation of all offensive efforts before Verdun was ordered. In a major offensive at the end of October 1916, the French recaptured Fort de Douaumont. In December 1916, another major offensive led to the withdrawal of the German units to the edge of the assault assembly positions at the beginning of the battle in February 1916. That was the end of the Verdun Offensive, although heavy fighting continued into 1918. Now, however, it was the French who were attacking. The Germans occupied the withdrawal line prepared in the meantime, which ran with its forward part north of Bezonvaux through the Chaume Wood over the infamous Vaux-Kreuz-Höhe and with a second position from Beaumont north of Ornes to the twin heights 307/310. With this outcome, the front in this sector initially stabilized until 1918.
Fall 1918 – The End
Over the first half of 1918, relative calm returned to the sector around the Herbebois. Many of the units deployed alternately in this area had already been on site in 1916. The soldiers hardly recognized the area; the formerly existing forest had largely given way to a crater wasteland. Due to the bad weather, the dugouts were in a wretched condition. The trenches marked on the maps had either not been constructed or were unusable.
From early September 1918, the 15. Infanterie-Division (15th Infantry Division) took over the sector from the Caures forest to the eastern edge of the Herbebois. In the area of the Caures forest, Austrian troops were deployed with the Jäger-Regiment Marchan. The Wavrille forest as well as the Herbebois were assigned to the Infanterie-Regimentern 160 (160th Infantry Regiment) from Bonn and 137 (137th Infantry Regiment) from Strasbourg.
The essential key position was the Wavrille height, located west of the Herbebois and dominating the surroundings. Recognizing its strategic importance, the construction of a bunker line was begun at the end of 1916, which was now incorporated into the positions. According to orders, the Wavrille height belonged to the outpost zone, meaning it would have been evacuated in the event of a major French attack.
Throughout September 1918, there were no major actions. The Germans used the time to expand the positions. This also included wiring the gorges leading east, in particular the Herbebois and Kap gorges, and securing them against a French breakthrough. At the end of September 1918, prisoners were brought in who reported on an impending major French attack.
In the early morning of October 8, 1918, French drumfire suddenly set in and the French launched a strong attack in the direction of the Wavrille-Höhe. Although no reserves were available anymore, the positions could be held by Infanterie-Regiment 160 (160th Infantry Regiment). During a renewed attack on October 9, 1918, the French achieved penetrations into the German lines. The heavy fighting continued until October 12, 1918. On this day, the French were supported by American units. Despite the now great superiority of allied forces, they did not bring about a decisive breakthrough.
During October 12, 1918, elements of the 1. preußischen Landwehr-Division (1st Prussian Landwehr Division) arrived as reinforcements. The previous attacks had also cost the Allies strength, and activity initially subsided. In early November 1918, heavy French artillery fire resumed, and larger operations occurred. As the situation in the neighboring division sectors became threatening for the Germans and American units advanced through the Meuse Valley toward Longuyon starting November 6, 1918, a flank threat arose for the troops stationed in the Herbebois area.
On November 7, 1918, the withdrawal to the Kriemhild position on the Romagner-Rücken was ordered. Some units remained as outpost zone garrison at the Cape of Good Hope and held these positions against a numerically vastly superior enemy. Until November 11, 1918, French and American units attempted in vain to overcome the German positions there. At 11:00 French time on November 11, 1918, the weapons fell silent and the First World War was ended for both sides at the place where the Battle of Verdun had begun on February 21, 1916.
today
The Herbebois area as well as the la Wavrille heights offer various points of interest from the fighting at the time, which can be explored as a day trip or in several stages.
Some of the concrete structures built on la Wavrille are still intact. In the area of the Andreas Gorge, remains of the concrete mounting of the French 16.7 cm naval gun can be found, which was captured on February 24, 1916, by elements of Infanterie-Regiment 64 (64th Infantry Regiment). On the southwestern edge of the gorge, there are some observation bunkers built by German troops in 1917. One can also marvel at the remains of the gravestone for Unteroffizier (NCO) Paul Riedel, who fell as a member of Infanterie-Regiment 64 on February 22, 1916, near the edge of the Herbebois forest. Furthermore, remains of a monument to Koblenz Pioneer Regiment 30 can be found, as well as, at the edge of the forest towards Azannes, the obelisk and other remains of the former memorial of Infanterie-Regiment 24 (24th Infantry Regiment). Further east towards Azannes, the area of the former village of Soumazannes can be explored, as well as remains of German positions and camp areas at the Kap der Guten Hoffnung and in the adjacent valley depressions.
were AI-edited (notice pursuant to Art. 50 Regulation (EU) 2024/1689).