Nivelle Offensive - Aftermath

Aftermath

The offensive achieved very little in the way of territorial gain, nowhere near the 48-hour breakthrough envisaged. The French admitted to having suffered 96,000 casualties, but the true figure may have been twice as great; nearly 120,000 were suffered in the first five days. Most of the new French Schneider tanks were destroyed by artillery fire. The Germans admitted a loss of 163,000, but this almost certainly includes the 20,780 German prisoners claimed by the French. Meanwhile, British and Russian forces, in their attempts to link up with the French, had also lost heavily, with 160,000 British and 5,183 Russian casualties. In the aftermath of the 9 May 1917 end of the offensive, Nivelle was replaced as Commander-in-Chief of the French Army by Philippe Pétain on 15 May 1917. Nivelle was sent to Algeria.

The French had predicted only 10,000 casualties, and as a result, French medical support collapsed. The massive losses sparked widespread mutiny in the French army, including one famous incident where, as the offensive was winding down, the French 2nd Division arrived on the battlefield, drunk and without weapons.