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Who commanded the German forces in the Battle of Verdun?

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French soldiers in uniform rest and eat on a grassy field behind the front lines during the Battle of Verdun in World War I, with gear and rifles stacked nearby. — Battle of Verdun French soldiers resting away from the front line at the Battle of Verdun, 1916.

The German forces in the Battle of Verdun were under the strategic direction of General Erich von Falkenhayn, who served as the chief of the imperial German General Staff.12

Falkenhayn conceived the offensive as a strategy of attrition, aiming to "bleed France to death" by attacking a location the French would be compelled to defend at any cost. While Falkenhayn held overall strategic responsibility, local command of the operation was entrusted to Crown Prince William, the eldest son of German Emperor William II.2