<P> The Battle of Verdun was the longest of the war, lasting from February 21, 1916 until December 18 of the same year . The battle started after a plan by German General Erich von Falkenhayn to capture Verdun was executed, but after a few weeks, the battle had become a series of local actions . For the French, the battle signified the strength and fortitude of the French Armed Forces . Many military historians consider Verdun the "most demanding" and the "greatest" battle in history . </P> <P> The German attack on Verdun began with one million troops, led by Crown Prince Wilhelm, facing only about 200,000 French soldiers . The following day, the French were forced to withdraw to the second line of trenches, and on February 24, they were pushed back to the third line, only 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Verdun . The newly appointed commander of the Verdun sector, General Philippe Pétain, stated that there would be no more withdrawals, and had every French soldier that was available fighting in the Verdun sector, eventually involving 259 out of 330 infantry regiments . A single road had remained open for trucks, enabling a continual flow of supplies to the defenders . </P> <P> The German attacking forces were not able to enter the city of Verdun itself and by December 1916 had been forced back beyond the original French trench lines of February . The sector became again a relatively inactive one as the allied focus shifted to the Somme and the Germans adopted a defensive stance . While generally regarded as a tactical victory for the French, the battle had caused massive losses on both sides . French casualties had been higher but the original German objective: of taking Verdun while destroying the defending army through a battle of attrition in a restricted area, had not succeeded . </P> <P> In October 1916, troops under Robert Nivelle's command captured Douaumont and other Verdun forts, making him a national hero . Nivelle formulated a plan using his "creeping barrage" tactics that would supposedly end the war in 48 hours with only 10,000 casualties . War Minister Hubert Lyautey, General Philippe Pétain and Sir Douglas Haig were all opposed to the plan, although Aristide Briand supported the "Nivelle Offensive". Lyautey resigned after being shouted down in the Chamber of Deputies for refusing to discuss military aviation secrets . For the offensive in April 1917, one million French soldiers were deployed on a front between Royle and Reims . </P>

Who has the biggest army in world war 1