VERDUN, France (AP) — Hundreds of volunteers from 18 countries gathered in the northeastern French town of Verdun as part of a string of events to mark the centenary of the end of World War I.

Re-enactors dressed in soldiers' uniforms brought to life a big military encampment in the town and were holding a military parade on Saturday.

Visitors could visualize soldiers' daily life during the war through the reconstruction of field kitchens, First Aid posts and command posts.

The 10-month battle at Verdun — the longest in World War I, which ran from 1914-1918 — killed 163,000 French and 143,000 German soldiers and wounded hundreds of thousands of others.

Dozens of heads of state and government, including U.S. President Donald Trump, are expected in Paris to commemorate the Armistice that ended the war on Nov. 11.