A French trench before an attack, 2nd Battle of Champagne, France, 25 September 1915. The French launched an offensive in Champagne on 25 September 1915. The attack was initially successful, penetrating 3 kilometres through the German lines. The Germans counter-attacked however, and by the time the offensive was called off in early November the French were back in their original positions with 145,000 casualties. The battle also took artillery away from Verdun, encouraging the Germans to launch their attack there early the following year. (Colorised black and white print).