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64-566: The Compiègne Wagon was the train carriage in which both the Armistice of 11 November 1918 and Armistice of 22 June 1940 were signed. Before the 1918 signing in the Forest of Compiègne , the wagon was the personal carriage of Ferdinand Foch and was later displayed in French museums. However, after the successful invasion of France , Adolf Hitler had the wagon moved back to the exact site of

128-789: A German withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line and loss of the gains of the German spring offensive . The Allied advance, later known as the Hundred Days Offensive , entered a new stage on 28 September, when a massive United States and French attack opened the Meuse–Argonne offensive , while to the north, the British were poised to assault at the St Quentin Canal , threatening a giant pincer movement . Meanwhile,

192-419: A considerable amount of instability in the new republic. The Armistice was the result of a hurried and desperate process. The German delegation headed by Erzberger crossed the front line in five cars and was escorted for ten hours across the devastated war zone of Northern France, arriving on the morning of 8 November 1918. They were then taken to the secret destination aboard Foch's private train parked in

256-608: A huge tunnel system. There it was destroyed in March 1945 by the SS with fire and/or dynamite, in the face of the advancing U.S. Army. However, some SS veterans and civilian eyewitnesses claim that the wagon had been destroyed by air attack near Ohrdruf while still in Thuringia in April 1944. Even so, it is generally believed the wagon was destroyed in 1945 by the SS. Today people who come to

320-530: A peace treaty. The Treaty of Versailles , which was officially signed on 28 June 1919, took effect on 10 January 1920. Fighting continued up until 11 a.m. CET on 11 November 1918, with 2,738 men dying on the last day of the war. The military situation for the Central Powers had been deteriorating rapidly since the Battle of Amiens at the beginning of August 1918, which precipitated

384-620: A railway siding in the Forest of Compiègne . Foch appeared only twice in the three days of negotiations: on the first day, to ask the German delegation what they wanted, and on the last day, to see to the signatures. The Germans were handed the list of Allied demands and given 72 hours to agree. The German delegation discussed the Allied terms not with Foch, but with other French and Allied officers. The Armistice amounted to substantial German demilitarization (see list below), with few promises made by

448-624: A truce, now also demanding reparation payments. The latest note from Wilson was received in Berlin on 6 November 1918. That same day, the delegation led by Matthias Erzberger departed for France. Aware that the refusal of the Kaiser to abdicate was a sticking-point in negotiations with the Allies as well as an impetus to revolution within Germany, Prince Max on his own authority announced that

512-688: A varnished teak wood: a usual practice in the early 20th century. It was used throughout the First World War in that capacity for Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits , the company best known for operating the Orient Express . In October 1918, after two years of being stored in Clichy in the northern part of Paris, the wagon was commandeered by the French Army and converted into the office and mobile headquarters of Ferdinand Foch ,

576-575: Is achieved." Armistice Day (which coincides with Remembrance Day and Veterans Day , public holidays) is commemorated every year on 11 November to mark the Armistice of 11 November 1918 signed between the Allies of World War I and the German Empire at Compiègne , France , for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I , which took effect at eleven o'clock in

640-564: Is also different from a truce or ceasefire , which refer to a temporary cessation of hostilities for an agreed limited time or within a limited area. A truce may be needed in order to negotiate an armistice. Under international law , an armistice is a legal agreement (often in a document) that ends fighting between the "belligerent parties" of a war or conflict. At the Hague Convention of 1899 , three treaties were agreed and three declarations made. The Convention with respect to

704-462: Is likely to have to deal with them later in regard to the international obligations of the German Empire, it must demand not peace negotiations but surrender." In late October 1918, Ludendorff, in a sudden change of mind, declared the conditions of the Allies unacceptable. He now demanded the resumption of the war which he himself had declared lost only one month earlier. By this time however

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768-651: The Allied blockade were increasingly leading to discontent and disorder. Although morale on the German front line was reasonable, battlefield casualties, starvation rations and Spanish flu had caused a desperate shortage of manpower, and those recruits that were available were war-weary and disaffected. On 29 September 1918, the German Supreme Army Command at Imperial Army Headquarters in Spa of occupied Belgium informed Emperor Wilhelm II and

832-605: The Elbe , including Berlin, where the new Reich government, the socialist-dominated Council of the People's Deputies , had their full support. One of the primary goals of the councils was an immediate end to the war. Also on 9 November, Max von Baden handed the office of chancellor to Friedrich Ebert , a Social Democrat who the same day became co-chair of the Council of the People's Deputies. Two days later, on behalf of

896-553: The Imperial Chancellor , Count Georg von Hertling , that the military situation facing Germany was hopeless. Quartermaster General Erich Ludendorff claimed that he could not guarantee that the front would hold for another two hours. Stating that the collapse of Bulgaria meant that troops destined for the Western Front would have to be diverted there, and this had "fundamentally changed the situation in view of

960-570: The Imperial German Army and put the responsibility for the capitulation and its consequences squarely into the hands of the democratic parties and the parliament . He expressed his view to officers of his staff on 1 October: "They now must lie on the bed that they've made for us." On 3 October 1918, the liberal Prince Maximilian of Baden was appointed Chancellor of Germany , replacing Georg von Hertling in order to negotiate an armistice. After long conversations with

1024-530: The Rhine , Entente occupation of the Rhineland and bridgeheads further east, the preservation of infrastructure, the surrender of aircraft, warships, and military materiel , the release of Allied prisoners of war and interned civilians, eventual reparations , no release of German prisoners and no relaxation of the naval blockade of Germany . The armistice was extended three times while negotiations continued on

1088-547: The Supreme Allied Commander , who began using it from 28 October 1918. The famous French general was promoted to marshal as late as 7 August 1918, two months before getting his own train. On 8 November 1918, Foch and representatives from the Allied Powers met representatives from the German Empire to discuss the terms of armistice in the then-called "Wagon of Compiègne". The agreement was signed in

1152-461: The 1918 Armistice (on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month), and because "nine" is a homophone of the word for "long lasting" in Chinese (to suggest that the peace won would last forever). Armistice The United Nations Security Council often imposes, or tries to impose, ceasefire resolutions on parties in modern conflicts. Armistices are always negotiated between

1216-567: The 1918 signing for the 1940 signing due to its symbolic role. The wagon was later destroyed near the end of World War II, most likely by the SS . The Compiègne Wagon was built in May 1914 in Saint-Denis as dining car No. 2419D. The wooden carriage with a steel frame was one among 22 roughly identical restaurant cars of the 2403–2424 series. A metal frame with tie rods for better rigidity was added with

1280-558: The Allied Supreme Commander, French Marshal Ferdinand Foch , it came into force at 11:00 a.m. Central European Time  (CET) on 11 November 1918 and marked a victory for the Entente and a defeat for Germany, although not formally a surrender. The actual terms, which were largely written by Foch, included the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front , the withdrawal of German forces from west of

1344-556: The Allies and Germany was subsequently settled in 1919, by the Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles that same year. Many artillery units continued to fire on German targets to avoid having to haul away their spare ammunition. The Allies also wished to ensure that, should fighting restart, they would be in the most favourable position. Consequently, there were 10,944 casualties, of whom 2,738 men died, on

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1408-495: The Allies in return. The naval blockade of Germany was not completely lifted until complete peace terms could be agreed upon. There were very few negotiations. The Germans were able to correct a few impossible demands (for example, the decommissioning of more submarines than their fleet possessed), extend the schedule for the withdrawal and register their formal protest at the harshness of Allied terms. But they were in no position to refuse to sign. On Sunday, 10 November 1918,

1472-760: The Armistice, hostilities on the fronts of the American armies were suspended at eleven o'clock this morning." News of the armistice being signed was officially announced towards 9:00 a.m. in Paris. One hour later, Foch, accompanied by a British admiral, presented himself at the Ministry of War , where he was immediately received by Georges Clemenceau , the Prime Minister of France . At 10:50 a.m., Foch issued this general order: "Hostilities will cease on

1536-442: The British forces, urged moderation, stating that "Germany is not broken in the military sense" and that "it is necessary to grant Germany conditions that they can accept". and that surrender of occupied territories and Alsace-Lorraine would be "sufficient to seal the victory". The British also took the position that the German army should be kept mobilised as a counter to the spread of communist agitation. Ferdinand Foch , speaking for

1600-573: The Crawinkel commune have a chance to visit the exact site where in 1945 the famous carriage burned out with a small memorial sign. Today's historical wagon is an exact copy of the original one. In 1950, French manufacturer Wagons-Lits, the company that ran the Orient Express , donated a car from the same series to the museum—2439D is identical to its ravaged twin, from its polished wooden finishes to its studded, leather-bound chairs. The 2439D

1664-568: The French forces, agreed with Haig that the Germans "could undoubtedly take up a new position, and we could not prevent it", but, contrary to Haig, urged stringent terms including an occupation of the Rhineland with Allied bridgeheads over the Rhine, and the surrender of large quantities of military materiel. General Pershing , commander of the American forces, opposed any armistice being granted to

1728-550: The German Army was suffering from poor morale and desertions were on the increase. The Imperial Government stayed on course and Ludendorff was dismissed from his post by the Kaiser and replaced by Lieutenant General Wilhelm Groener . On 3 November 1918, Prince Max, who had been in a coma for 36 hours after an over-dose of sleep-inducing medication taken to help with influenza and only just recovered, discovered that both Turkey and Austria-Hungary had concluded armistices with

1792-558: The Germans were shown newspapers from Paris to inform them that the Kaiser had abdicated. That same day, Ebert instructed Erzberger to sign. The cabinet had earlier received a message from Paul von Hindenburg , head of the German High Command, requesting that the armistice be signed even if the Allied conditions could not be improved on. The Armistice was agreed upon at 5:00 a.m. on 11 November 1918, to come into effect at 11:00 a.m. CET, for which reason

1856-441: The Germans. The combined effect of this feedback was to nullify Wilson's 14 points. The sailors' revolt that took place during the night of 29 to 30 October 1918 in the port of Wilhelmshaven spread across Germany within days and led to the proclamation of a republic on 9 November and to the announcement of the abdication of Wilhelm II . Workers' and soldiers' councils took control in most major cities west of

1920-478: The Kaiser and evaluations of the political and military situations in the Reich, by 5 October 1918 the German government sent a message to Wilson to negotiate terms on the basis of a recent speech of his and the earlier declared "Fourteen Points". In the subsequent two exchanges, Wilson's allusions "failed to convey the idea that the Kaiser's abdication was an essential condition for peace. The leading statesmen of

1984-524: The Kaiser had abdicated and handed over power to Friedrich Ebert of the Social Democratic Party on 9 November. The same day, Philipp Scheidemann , also a Social Democrat, declared Germany a republic . Whilst the Germans sought negotiations along the lines of Wilson's 14 points, the French, British and Italian governments had no desire to accept them and President Wilson's subsequent unilateral promises. For example, they assumed that

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2048-457: The Laws and Customs of War on Land stated, "If [the armistice's] duration is not fixed," the parties may resume fighting (Article 36) as they choose but with proper notifications. That is in comparison to a "fixed duration" armistice in which the parties may renew fighting only at the end of the particular fixed duration. When the belligerent parties say in effect that "this armistice completely ends

2112-469: The Ministry and called upon Clemenceau, who appeared on the balcony. Clemenceau exclaimed "Vive la France!" – the crowd echoed him. At 11:00 a.m., the first peace-gunshot was fired from Fort Mont-Valérien , which told the population of Paris that the armistice was concluded, but the population were already aware of it from official circles and newspapers. Although the information about

2176-552: The Musée's Cour des Invalides from 27 April 1921 to 8 April 1927. At the request of the mayor of Compiègne, and with the support of the American Arthur Henry Fleming , the car was restored at the workshops of Saint-Denis, which took half a year, and returned to Compiègne in late October 1927. It was housed in a specially created museum building as part of the " Glade of the Armistice " historic monument, with

2240-688: The Ottoman Empire was close to exhaustion, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was in chaos, and on the Macedonian front , resistance by the Bulgarian Army had collapsed, leading to the Armistice of Salonica on 29 September. With the collapse of Bulgaria, and Italian victory in the Battle of Vittorio Veneto , the road was open to an invasion of Germany from the south via Austria. In Germany, chronic food shortages caused by

2304-533: The Reich were not yet ready to contemplate such a monstrous possibility." As a precondition for negotiations, Wilson demanded the retreat of Germany from all occupied territories, the cessation of submarine activities and the Kaiser's abdication, writing on 23 October: "If the Government of the United States must deal with the military masters and the monarchical autocrats of Germany now, or if it

2368-522: The United States, Congress opened an investigation to find out why and if blame should be placed on the leaders of the American Expeditionary Forces, including John Pershing . In France, many graves of French soldiers who died on 11 November were backdated to 10 November. The celebration of the Armistice became the centrepiece of memories of the war, along with salutes to the unknown soldier. Nations built monuments to

2432-563: The allies. General von Gallwitz had described this eventuality as being "decisive" to the Chancellor in discussions some weeks before, as it would mean that Austrian territory would become a spring-board for an Allied attack on Germany from the south. Revolution broke out across Germany the following day, together with a mutiny in the German High Seas Fleet. On 5 November, the Allies agreed to take up negotiations for

2496-489: The armistice only reached Germany's African forces, still fighting in Northern Rhodesia (today's Zambia ), about two weeks later. The German and British commanders then had to agree on the protocols for their own armistice ceremony. After the war, there was a deep shame that so many soldiers died on the final day of the war, especially in the hours after the treaty had been signed but had not yet taken effect. In

2560-524: The armistice to the north of Mons at 10:58 a.m. Henry Gunther , an American, is generally recognized as the last soldier killed in action in World War ;I. He was killed 60 seconds before the armistice came into force while charging astonished German troops who were aware the Armistice was nearly upon them. He had been despondent over his recent reduction in rank and was apparently trying to redeem his reputation. The last German to die in

2624-587: The attacks being launched on the Western Front", Ludendorff demanded a request be given to the Entente for an immediate ceasefire. In addition, he recommended the acceptance of the main demands of US president Woodrow Wilson (the Fourteen Points ) including putting the Imperial Government on a democratic footing, hoping for more favorable peace terms. This enabled him to save the face of

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2688-401: The basis of a recent speech of his and the earlier declared " Fourteen Points ", which later became the basis of the German surrender at the Paris Peace Conference , which took place the following year. Also known as the Armistice of Compiègne ( French : Armistice de Compiègne , German : Waffenstillstand von Compiègne ) from the place where it was officially signed at 5:45 a.m. by

2752-482: The car a few meters from the exact site of the signing ceremony. The official opening of the carriage shelter was set on 11 November 1927 to commemorate the ninth anniversary of the Armistice agreement, and the fifth year of the memorial. During World War II, Hitler ordered that the wagon be dragged out of the shelter and moved to exactly the same location for the signing of the second "armistice at Compiègne", on 22 June 1940; this time with Germany victorious. The carriage

2816-593: The carriage on 11 November, and was the final ceasefire which ended fighting in the First World War; the other Central Powers had already reached agreements with the Allied Powers to end hostilities. The car was later returned to Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits and briefly resumed service as a dining car. On 1 October 1919, it was donated to the Army Museum . The wagon was on display in

2880-517: The de-militarization suggested by Wilson would be limited to the Central Powers. There were also contradictions with their post-War plans that did not include a consistent implementation of the ideal of national self-determination . As Czernin points out: The Allied statesmen were faced with a problem: so far they had considered the "fourteen commandments" as a piece of clever and effective American propaganda , designed primarily to undermine

2944-507: The dead and the heroic soldiers, but seldom aggrandizing the generals and admirals. 11 November is commemorated annually in many countries under various names such as Armistice Day , Remembrance Day , Veterans Day , and in Poland , it is Independence Day . During World War II , after German success in the Battle of France , Adolf Hitler arranged that negotiations for an end of hostilities with France would take place at Compiègne in

3008-441: The fighting spirit of the Central Powers, and to bolster the morale of the lesser Allies. Now, suddenly, the whole peace structure was supposed to be built up on that set of "vague principles", most of which seemed to them thoroughly unrealistic, and some of which, if they were to be seriously applied, were simply unacceptable. To address this impasse Wilson suggested that the military chiefs be consulted. Douglas Haig , representing

3072-558: The fighting" without any end date for the armistice, the duration of the armistice is fixed in the sense that no resumption of the fighting is allowed at any time. For example, the Korean Armistice Agreement calls for a "ceasefire and armistice" and has the "objective of establishing an armistice which will ensure a complete cessation of hostilities and of all acts of armed force in Korea until a final peaceful settlement

3136-406: The imminent ceasefire had spread among the forces at the front in the hours before, fighting in many sections of the front continued right until the appointed hour. At 11 a.m., there was some spontaneous fraternization between the two sides but in general, reactions were muted. A British corporal reported: "...the Germans came from their trenches, bowed to us and then went away. That was it. There

3200-517: The last British soldier to die, George Edwin Ellison of the 5th Royal Irish Lancers, was killed that morning at around 9:30 a.m. while scouting on the outskirts of Mons, Belgium. The final Canadian, and Commonwealth, soldier to die, Private George Lawrence Price , was shot and killed by a sniper while part of a force advancing into the Belgian town of Ville-sur-Haine just two minutes before

3264-576: The last day of the war. An example of the determination of the Allies to maintain pressure until the last minute, but also to adhere strictly to the Armistice terms, was Battery 4 of the US Navy's long-range 14-inch railway guns firing its last shot at 10:57:30 a.m. from the Verdun area, timed to land far behind the German front line just before the scheduled Armistice. Augustin Trébuchon

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3328-720: The new government, Matthias Erzberger of the Catholic Centre Party signed the armistice at Compiègne. The German High Command pushed the blame for the surrender away from the Army and onto others, including the socialists who were supporting and running the government in Berlin. In the eyes of the German Right, the blame was carried over to the Weimar Republic when it was established in 1919. This resulted in

3392-429: The occasion is sometimes referred to as "the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month". Signatures were made between 5:12 a.m. and 5:20 a.m., CET. The occupation of the Rhineland took place following the Armistice. The occupying armies consisted of American, Belgian, British and French forces. The Armistice was prolonged three times before peace was finally ratified. During this period it

3456-408: The parties themselves and are thus generally seen as more binding than non-mandatory UN cease-fire resolutions in modern international law . An armistice is a modus vivendi and is not the same as a peace treaty , which may take months or even years to agree on. The 1953 Korean War Armistice Agreement is a major example of an armistice which has not been followed by a peace treaty. An armistice

3520-412: The same rail car as the 1918 conference. The Armistice of 22 June 1940 was portrayed as revenge for Germany's earlier defeat, and the Glade of the Armistice was mostly destroyed. The end of the Second World War in China (end of the Second Sino-Japanese War ) formally took place on 9 September 1945 at 9:00 a.m. (the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month). The date was chosen to echo

3584-455: The war, though his name is not fully known, is believed to be a Lieutenant by the name of Tomas. At a time shortly after 11:00 a.m, perhaps 11:01 a.m, he exited his trench and began to walk across no-mans-land to inform the Americans there that the Armistice had just gone into effect, and that his soldiers would soon be evacuating their trenches. The Americans, who had not yet heard news of the armistice, opened fire, killing him instantly. News of

3648-465: The whole front as from November 11 at 11 o'clock [Central European Time]. The Allied troops will not, until further order, go beyond the line reached on that date and at that hour." Five minutes later, Clemenceau, Foch and the British admiral went to the Élysée Palace . At the first shot fired from the Eiffel Tower , the Ministry of War and the Élysée Palace displayed flags, while bells around Paris rang. Five hundred students gathered in front of

3712-505: Was also developed. Peace was ratified at 4:15 p.m. on 10 January 1920. For the Allies, the personnel involved were all military. The two signatories were: Other members of the delegation included: For Germany, the four signatories were: In addition the German delegation was accompanied by two translators: Among its 34 clauses, the armistice contained the following major points: A. Western Front B. Eastern and African Fronts C. At sea D. General The British public

3776-438: Was among those 37 carriages created by two series in 1913–1914. This car had also been part of Foch's private train during the 1918 signing. The opening ceremony took place on 11 November 1950 and the car was renumbered No. 2419D. It is parked beside the display of the original car's remains: a few fragments of bronze decoration and two access ramps. Armistice of 11 November 1918 The Armistice of 11 November 1918

3840-411: Was moved out of its protective building and returned to the signing place, which was several metres away and had been marked out as part of the monument. Subsequently, the wagon was taken to Berlin and displayed from 5 July, first next to the Brandenburg gates, later on the Museum Island. In 1944 the wagon was sent to Thuringia, in central Germany. Then it moved to Ruhla and later Gotha Crawinkel , near

3904-442: Was nothing with which we could celebrate, except cookies." On the Allied side, euphoria and exultation were rare. There was some cheering and applause, but the dominant feeling was silence and emptiness after 52 exhausting months of war. According to Thomas R. Gowenlock, an intelligence officer with the U.S. First Division , shelling from both sides continued during the rest of the day, ending only at nightfall. The peace between

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3968-410: Was notified of the armistice by a subjoined official communiqué issued from the Press Bureau at 10:20 a.m., when British Prime Minister David Lloyd George announced: "The armistice was signed at five o'clock this morning, and hostilities are to cease on all fronts at 11 a.m. to-day." An official communique was published by the United States at 2:30 pm: "In accordance with the terms of

4032-419: Was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, at sea, and in the air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany . Previous armistices had been agreed with Bulgaria , the Ottoman Empire and Austria-Hungary . It was concluded after the German government sent a message to American president Woodrow Wilson to negotiate terms on

4096-404: Was the last Frenchman to die when he was shot on his way to tell fellow soldiers, who were attempting an assault across the Meuse river, that hot soup would be served after the ceasefire. He was killed at 10:45 a.m. Marcel Toussaint Terfve was the last Belgian soldier to die as he was mortally wounded from German machine gun fire and died from his lung wound at 10:45 a.m. Earlier,

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