--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Germans had more men killed and…" description: "\"“The Germans had more men killed and wounded at Verdun, 325,000, than all the 230,000 men deployed in the field at Stalingrad twenty-six years later.”\"..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/joseph-e-persico-10290_stalingrad_the-germans-had-more-men-killed-and-woun_2451297.jpg" --- # The Germans had more men killed and wounded at Verdun… ![“The Germans had more men killed and wounded at Verdun, 325,000, than all the 230,000 men deployed in the field at Stalingrad twenty-six years later.” quote by Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/joseph-e-persico-10290_stalingrad_the-germans-had-more-men-killed-and-woun_2451297.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/joseph-e-persico-10290_stalingrad_the-germans-had-more-men-killed-and-woun_2451297.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ef/joseph-e-persico-10290_stalingrad_the-germans-had-more-men-killed-and-woun_2451297.jpg) > ““The Germans had more men killed and wounded at Verdun, 325,000, than all the 230,000 men deployed in the field at Stalingrad twenty-six years later.”” [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Verdun caused more casualties than Stalingrad despite being earlier. **In simple terms:** Verdun was deadlier. Key Takeaway Remember scale matters. Themes war history human cost Mood reflective somber Type historical analytical When to use this quote - military education - memorial speeches - policy analysis Key Concepts military strategy historical comparison Questions to Reflect On - Why compare casualties across wars? - What does this reveal about warfare evolution? A Different Perspective Numbers alone ignore context. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Stalingrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stalingrad/) ## Related quotes > [If we added up the killed and wounded from the Democrat wars in this country, it would be about 1.6 million Americans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dole/if-we-added-up-the-killed-and-wounded-from-the-democrat-wars-in-this/) [Bob Dole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dole/) > [In the battle of Kunu-ri, more than 5,000 American soldiers were killed, wounded or taken as prisoners of war. 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He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/take-like-say-obama-he-s-called-liberal-and-he-s-praised-for-his/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The heavy casualties, the constant retreat, the shortage of food and munitions, the difficulty of receiving reinforcements... all this had a very bad effect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vasily-chuikov/the-heavy-casualties-the-constant-retreat-the-shortage-of-food-and/) Vasily Chuikov > [By seizing the formerly little-known Height 102.0 - the Mamayev Hill - the Red Army fought its way to the fascists' den - Berlin.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-vasilevsky/by-seizing-the-formerly-little-known-height-102-0-the-mamayev-hill/) [Aleksandr Vasilevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-vasilevsky/) > [ The more closely \[the German army\] converged on \[Stalingrad\], the narrower became their scope for tactical manoeuvre as a lever in loosening resistance. By… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-h-liddell-hart/the-more-closely-the-german-army-converged-on-stalingrad-the-narrower/) [B. H. Liddell Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-h-liddell-hart/) > [The industrial way of life leads to the industrial way of death. From Shiloh to Dachau, from Antietam to Stalingrad, from Hiroshima to Vietnam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/the-industrial-way-of-life-leads-to-the-industrial-way-of-death-from/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Army requests immediate permission to surrender in order to save lives of remaining troops.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-paulus/army-requests-immediate-permission-to-surrender-in-order-to-save/) Friedrich Paulus > [“The street is no longer measured by meters but by corpses ... Stalingrad is no longer a town. By day it is an enormous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-hastings/the-street-is-no-longer-measured-by-meters-but-by-corpses-stalingrad/) [Max Hastings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-hastings/) > [The reason that 'Stalingrad' took off was because it emphasized the influence of history on the individual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-beevor/the-reason-that-stalingrad-took-off-was-because-it-emphasized-the/) [Antony Beevor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-beevor/) ## More by Joseph E. Persico > [“Sergeant Powell would never understand what compelled Henry Gunther to rise up and charge the enemy. Gunther had never been seduced by dreams of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/sergeant-powell-would-never-understand-what-compelled-henry-gunther/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Henry Cabot Lodge. Wilson rejected even reasonable compromises, and Lodge refused to budge. Hence, the United States failed to enter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/senate-foreign-relations-committee-henry-cabot-lodge-wilson-rejected/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“On December 18, he asked each side to set forth its terms for ending the war. The Allies demanded conditions certain to be unacceptable:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/on-december-18-he-asked-each-side-to-set-forth-its-terms-for-ending/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“The first-day casualties on the Somme totaled 57,470.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/the-first-day-casualties-on-the-somme-totaled-57-470/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“The last deaths of the Great War on the western front occurred at midnight on the twelfth in Hamont, a Belgian town near the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/the-last-deaths-of-the-great-war-on-the-western-front-occurred-at/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“German resistance continued to present a hodgepodge of fanaticism amid disorder. A British patrol entering a deserted village east of Valenciennes in the northern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/german-resistance-continued-to-present-a-hodgepodge-of-fanaticism/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“The imperative of war is to kill, and thus all wars are exercises in sanctioned murder.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/the-imperative-of-war-is-to-kill-and-thus-all-wars-are-exercises-in/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“The initial conclusion of the subcommittee was that “needless slaughter” took place on November 11, 1918. However, this finding was beaten back by vocal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/the-initial-conclusion-of-the-subcommittee-was-that-needless/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“Moltke began to tamper with Schlieffen’s plan. Instead of investing 90 percent of the German Army in the French campaign, as required, he began…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/moltke-began-to-tamper-with-schlieffen-s-plan-instead-of-investing-90/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“Compounding the horror, German officials committed an act of staggering insensitivity: they struck a commemorative medal with a depiction of the sinking ship on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/compounding-the-horror-german-officials-committed-an-act-of/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“constant companions throughout the project: Stanley Weintraub’s A Stillness Heard Round the World, A. J. P. Taylor’s The First World War, John Keegan’s The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/constant-companions-throughout-the-project-stanley-weintraub-s-a/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“Mustard gas was stubborn, clinging to the ground as long as three days. Heavier than air, it settled into craters and trenches where men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/mustard-gas-was-stubborn-clinging-to-the-ground-as-long-as-three-days/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“Barely across the Ourcq, Donovan’s battalion began taking fire from three sides. One bullet grazed Wild Bill’s thigh; another tore off the heel of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/barely-across-the-ourcq-donovan-s-battalion-began-taking-fire-from/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“A great many of the Army officers were very fine in the way that they took care of their men. But there were certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/a-great-many-of-the-army-officers-were-very-fine-in-the-way-that-they/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) > [“MacArthur strode before his men, armed only with a riding crop, a cigarette holder clamped jauntily between his teeth, without the slightest suggestion in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-e-persico/macarthur-strode-before-his-men-armed-only-with-a-riding-crop-a/) [Joseph E. Persico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) [Explore all 66 Joseph E. Persico quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-e-persico/) ## More Stalingrad quotes > [No liberal newspaper ever talked about the invasion of Vietnam; they talked about the defense of Vietnam. And then they were saying, "well, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/no-liberal-newspaper-ever-talked-about-the-invasion-of-vietnam-they/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“The street is no longer measured by meters but by corpses ... Stalingrad is no longer a town. 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By… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-h-liddell-hart/the-more-closely-the-german-army-converged-on-stalingrad-the-narrower/) [B. H. Liddell Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-h-liddell-hart/) > [By seizing the formerly little-known Height 102.0 - the Mamayev Hill - the Red Army fought its way to the fascists' den - Berlin.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-vasilevsky/by-seizing-the-formerly-little-known-height-102-0-the-mamayev-hill/) [Aleksandr Vasilevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-vasilevsky/) > [The heavy casualties, the constant retreat, the shortage of food and munitions, the difficulty of receiving reinforcements... all this had a very bad effect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vasily-chuikov/the-heavy-casualties-the-constant-retreat-the-shortage-of-food-and/) Vasily Chuikov > [Take like, say, Obama, he's called "liberal" and he's praised for his "principled objection to the Iraq war". What was his "principled objection"? He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/take-like-say-obama-he-s-called-liberal-and-he-s-praised-for-his/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Although the United States lost a quarter of a million men and women, civilians and soldiers, in World War II, that's considerably less than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-judt/although-the-united-states-lost-a-quarter-of-a-million-men-and-women/) [Tony Judt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-judt/) > [“We were evacuated to Stalingrad. And when Stalingrad was besieged, we volunteered to go to the front. All together. The whole family: mother and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/we-were-evacuated-to-stalingrad-and-when-stalingrad-was-besieged-we/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [“Had he won the battle of Stalingrad, he would have been sitting there, too; for any war against our Soviet Union must be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-t-vollmann/had-he-won-the-battle-of-stalingrad-he-would-have-been-sitting-there/) [William T. Vollmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-t-vollmann/) > [“From the Battle of Clontarf to Stalingrad: history brought to life”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/from-the-battle-of-clontarf-to-stalingrad-history-brought-to-life/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The reason that 'Stalingrad' took off was because it emphasized the influence of history on the individual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-beevor/the-reason-that-stalingrad-took-off-was-because-it-emphasized-the/) [Antony Beevor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-beevor/) > [Some refer to it as a cultural Chernobyl. I think of it as a cultural Stalingrad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jgballard/some-refer-to-it-as-a-cultural-chernobyl-i-think-of-it-as-a-cultural/) JGBallard > [“A good deal of time spent researching this book might well have been wasted and valuable opportunities missed if it had not been for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-beevor/a-good-deal-of-time-spent-researching-this-book-might-well-have-been/) [Antony Beevor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-beevor/) [Browse all 26 Stalingrad quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stalingrad/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The Germans had more men killed and wounded at Verdun, 325,000, than all the 230,000 men deployed in the field at Stalingrad twenty-six years later.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joseph E. 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