Siege of Fort Vaux

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The Siege of Fort Vaux was a brutal World War I battle in June 1916 during the Battle of Verdun, where a small French garrison mounted a tenacious underground defense against overwhelming German forces before being forced to surrender.

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Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf battle
military siege
alsoKnownAs Battle of Fort Vaux NERFINISHED
attackingForce German forces
belligerent French Third Republic NERFINISHED
German Empire
causeOfSurrender exhaustion of water supplies
overwhelming German pressure
characterizedBy fighting in underground casemates
heavy artillery bombardment
combatEnvironment underground fort galleries
commander Sylvain Eugène Raynal NERFINISHED
conflict World War I
countryInvolved France
Germany
dateOfSurrender 1916-06-07
defendingForce French garrison of Fort Vaux NERFINISHED
defensiveStructure Fort Vaux NERFINISHED
endDate 1916-06-07
fortificationType Séré de Rivières system fort
front Western Front NERFINISHED
garrisonStrength approximately 600 men
historicalPeriod 1916 on the Western Front
laterStatusOfFort recaptured by French forces in November 1916
location Fort Vaux NERFINISHED
France
Meuse department NERFINISHED
near Verdun
memorializedBy Fort Vaux memorials at Verdun battlefield
notableCommanderDefender Commandant Raynal NERFINISHED
notableFor close-quarters combat in tunnels and galleries
intense underground fighting
severe shortages of water for the defenders
tenacious French defense despite encirclement
use of flamethrowers by German troops
objectiveOf German attempt to capture Verdun forts
partOf Battle of Verdun NERFINISHED
partOfCampaign German Verdun offensive of 1916
precededBy German capture of Fort Douaumont
result German victory
startDate 1916-06-01
strategicOutcome temporary strengthening of German position near Verdun
surrenderedTo German Empire NERFINISHED
tacticalSignificance control of eastern approaches to Verdun
themeIn French narratives of heroic resistance at Verdun
weaponUsedByAttackers flamethrowers
poison gas

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Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Fort Vaux notableEvent Siege of Fort Vaux