1. The battle ultimately destroyed nine French towns.
The long and constant bombardment around the city of Verdun left in complete shambles the nearby towns of Beaumont, Bezonvaux, Cumières, Douaumont, Fleury, Haumont, Louvemont, Ornes, and Vaux. The amount of bodies and live shells in the ground also ensured that these villages were never rebuilt. They still appear on French maps and are even administered by volunteer mayors. Those wishing to be mayor must submit in writing their interest and why they wish to be the mayor. Some of the mayors continue on for generations in the same family. Besides a few pillars, all that remains today are just signs that show where main roads and buildings were once located.
Some people have moved back to the outskirts of the towns and areas where construction is still allowed. But most of the locations of the old towns are filled with memorials and carefully constructed paths that allow visitors to walk just outside the red zone in order to remember the towns that once were and the lives that were lost during the devastating Battle of Verdun. One substantial memorial exists at Douaumont and is called the Douaumont Ossuary.
Inside the Douaumont Ossary rests the bones of more than 130,000 French and German soldiers whose bodies were unable to be identified after the war. Plaques line the walls inside and tell the names of those lost at Verdun both during World War I and previous battles at the location. In front of the massive building is a cemetery where more than 16,000 crosses mark the graves of those who were able to be identified.