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87-703: The English Electric Company Limited ( EE ) was a British industrial manufacturer formed after the armistice ending the fighting of World War I by amalgamating five businesses which, during the war, made munitions, armaments and aeroplanes. It initially specialised in industrial electric motors and transformers , locomotives and traction equipment , diesel motors and steam turbines . Its products were later expanded to include consumer electronics , nuclear reactors, guided missiles , military aircraft and mainframe computers . Two English Electric aircraft designs became landmarks in British aeronautical engineering;

174-625: A dispatch rider . With Lionel Curtis , Hichens was under Sam Hughes in Henry Settle 's column. Lord Cromer in 1900 gave him an administrative position in British Egypt . Shortly, Hichens was brought back to South Africa, co-opted into Milner's Kindergarten . He was treasurer of Johannesburg in 1901–2, and of the Transvaal from 1902 to 1907. He went on a royal commission to India headed by Charles Hobhouse in 1907, and on

261-507: A 1924 dividend on ordinary shares. The balance sheet at the end of 1936 showed liquidity was in a strong position and the chairman told shareholders that the rate of production in the factories for the last three months of the year was double the rate of production in the first three months. During 1938, the first dividend was paid on ordinary shares since 1924. In the summer of 1938, a large display advertisement confidently declared: ENGLISH ELECTRIC PLANT AND EQUIPMENT in operation throughout

348-459: A board of enquiry to Southern Rhodesia in 1909. He also contributed to the founding of the Round Table movement . In 1910 Hichens became chairman of the engineering firm Cammell Laird, despite a lack of business experience. It is assumed that the influence of William Palmer, 2nd Earl of Selborne , a mentor, was involved in the appointment. During World War I he was heavily involved with

435-498: A bombing raid during The Blitz on 14 October 1940 aged 66, as a bomb hit Church House, Westminster , and was buried at North Aston church. Hichens was considered a progressive employer, with views on working hours , minimum wage and job security comparable to those of Lord Leverhulme and Seebohm Rowntree . He gave two Rowntree Lectures during the 1920s. In the wartime context of the Ministry of Munitions he had suggested

522-445: A comprehensive arrangement" with Westinghouse Electric International Company of New York and Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company of East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania US, whereby there would be an exchange of technical information between the two organisations on steam turbines and electrical apparatus. It was made clear that this technical and manufacturing link did not carry with it any control from America. In recognition of

609-419: 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

696-637: A controlling interest. Hichens stayed as chairman until 1930, when restructuring had occurred and Holberry Mensforth had been brought in, who recruited George Nelson . In 1928 the English Steel Corporation was formed, in which Cammell Laird and Vickers pooled their steel interests. The amalgamation involved Hichens in the closure of steel plants at Grimsthorpe and Penistone . In 1929, Hichens settled at North Aston Hall in Oxfordshire, which he bought in 1929. Hichens died in

783-486: A democratic footing, hoping for more favorable peace terms. This enabled him to save the face of 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,

870-672: 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

957-479: A revolutionary design of ignition tester for petrol engines. This was invented by Napiers and supplied as Type UED for military use during World War 2. After the war, it was marketed commercially as type ZWA. In 1946, English Electric took over the Marconi Company , a foray into the domestic consumer electronic market. English Electric tried to take over one of the other major British electrical companies,

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1044-767: A term. The Summer School was an inter-denominational conference for those attending adult schools . He was an activist for the Industrial Christian Fellowship (ICF), formed in 1920 when the Christian Social Union (UK) (CSU) merged with the Navvy Mission Society . David Carnegie , whom Hichens had encountered on the Shell Committee and Imperial Munitions Board, was a CSU supporter and Liberal Party candidate who adopted his line on industrial relations in

1131-624: 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

1218-724: A type of joint industrial council , about which George Ranken Askwith had reservations. He gave a paper in 1919 to the Society for Arts on "The Wage Problem in Industry", which caused Askwith to express astonishment. In 1919 Hichens spoke at the United Summer School in Swanwick, Derbyshire , and published the talk as The New Spirit in Industrial Relations , an early use of " industrial relations " as

1305-652: 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 the Rhine , Entente occupation of the Rhineland and bridgeheads further east, the preservation of infrastructure, the surrender of aircraft, warships, and military materiel ,

1392-443: A wide variety of other naval and aviation material. In April 1945, English Electric employed 25,000 persons in its four main works. Subsequently the chairman revealed that the peak employment number during wartime had been 45,000 when including Napier's people. C. P. Snow was appointed director of scientific personnel in 1944. Later he was physicist-director, a position he held until 1964. In September 1945, details were released of

1479-674: The 1st Staffordshire Regiment of Foot in 1858; he was later a physician in St Ives, Cornwall . His mother was a daughter of William Bacchus of Edgbaston . Hichens was educated at Winchester College , and studied at New College, Oxford , in France and in Germany. He was briefly a teacher at Sherborne School . He joined the City Imperial Volunteers during the Black Week of the early Second Boer War , and served as

1566-595: 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 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,

1653-679: The Canberra and the Lightning . In 1960, English Electric Aircraft (40%) merged with Vickers (40%) and Bristol (20%) to form British Aircraft Corporation . In 1968 English Electric's operations were merged with GEC 's, the combined business employing more than 250,000 people. Aiming to turn their employees and other assets to peaceful productive purposes, the owners of a series of businesses decided to merge them forming The English Electric Company Limited in December 1918. English Electric

1740-605: 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

1827-637: The German Supreme Army Command at Imperial Army Headquarters in Spa of occupied Belgium informed Emperor Wilhelm II and 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

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1914-880: 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, 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

2001-603: The Ministry of Munitions , in partnership with Robert Brand setting up the Imperial Munitions Board . They went to Canada in autumn 1915, and resolved the administrative supply difficulties, to the satisfaction of Robert Borden and Sam Hughes, by appointing Joseph Flavelle to head the new board, replacing the existing Shell Committee. Hichens chaired from 1916 the Central Council of Associations of Controlled Firms for armament suppliers. After

2088-825: The Modernisation Plan in the 1950s and 1960s. Most of these classes of locomotive gave long service to British Rail and its successor train operating companies, some still being active well into the 21st century. Both Dick, Kerr & Co. and the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Company built aircraft in the First World War, including flying boats designed by the Seaplane Experimental Station at Felixstowe , 62 Short Type 184 and 6 Short Bombers designed by Short Brothers . Aircraft manufacture under

2175-656: The Vampire jet , the fastest British aircraft with a top speed of 548 mph. The aircraft was built by English Electric at its Preston works, the Frank Halford designed Goblin jet engine, the world's most powerful, by de Havilland in London. From 1912 to 1924, United Electric and English Electric (with assistance from Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock ) supplied second- and third-series tramcars for Hong Kong Tramways . These cars were eventually retired from 1924 to 1930 as

2262-507: The miners strike caused heavy losses. In 1929 part of the Coventry Ordnance Works was sold and the pattern shop at Preston, neither of which was required. By the end of 1929, it was clear the only solution to English Electric's financial difficulties was a financial restructure. The restructure acknowledged the loss of much of the shareholders' capital and brought in new capital to re-equip with new plant and machinery. In

2349-479: 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). Lionel Hichens He was the second, posthumously-born son of John Ley Hichens, army surgeon, and his wife, Catherine Bacchus (1843–1924), and was known as Nel Hichens . His father became surgeon to

2436-677: The 1930s, equipment was supplied for the electrification of the Southern Railway system, reinforcing EE's position in the traction market, and it continued to provide traction motors to them for many years. In 1936, production of diesel locomotives began in the former tramworks in Preston. Between the late 1930s and the 1950s, English Electric supplied electric multiple unit trains for the electrified network in and around Wellington , New Zealand. In 1951 English Electric supplied 3 & 5 car articulated Diesel Electric multiple units to

2523-556: 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

2610-495: 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,

2697-705: 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

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2784-442: 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

2871-822: The Egyptian State Railways Egyptian-thumpers . Between 1951 and 1959, English Electric supplied the National Coal Board with five 51-ton, 400 hp electric shunting locomotives for use on the former Harton Coal Company System at South Shields (which had been electrified by Siemens in 1908) to supplement the existing fleet of ten ageing Siemens and AEG locomotives. English Electric took over Vulcan Foundry and Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns , both with substantial railway engineering pedigrees, in 1955. English Electric produced nearly 1000 diesel and electric locomotives, of nine different classes, for British Rail as part of

2958-880: The English Electric name began in Bradford in 1922 with the Wren but lasted only until 1926 after the last Kingston flying boat was built. With War in Europe looming, English Electric was instructed by the Air Ministry to construct a "shadow factory" at Samlesbury Aerodrome in Lancashire to build Handley Page Hampden bombers. Starting with Flight Shed Number 1, the first Hampden built by English Electric made its maiden flight on 22 February 1940 and, by 1942, 770 Hampdens had been delivered – more than half of all

3045-621: 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

3132-770: The General Electric Company (GEC), in 1960 and, in 1963, English Electric and J. Lyons and Co. formed a jointly owned company – English Electric LEO Company – to manufacture the LEO computer developed by Lyons. English Electric took over Lyons' half-stake in 1964 and merged it with Marconi's computer interests to form English Electric Leo Marconi (English Electric LM). The latter was merged with Elliott Automation and International Computers and Tabulators (ICT) to form International Computers Limited (ICL) in 1967. In 1968 GEC, recently merged with Associated Electrical Industries (AEI), merged with English Electric;

3219-558: 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

3306-441: 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

3393-607: The Government of the United States must deal with the military masters and the monarchical autocrats of Germany now, or if it 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

3480-619: The Hampdens produced. In 1940, a second factory was built on the site and the runway was extended to allow for construction of the Handley Page Halifax four-engined heavy bomber to begin. By 1945, five main hangars and three runways had been built at the site, which was also home to No. 9 Group RAF . By the end of the war, over 2,000 Halifaxes had been built and flown from Samlesbury. In 1942, English Electric took over D. Napier & Son , an aero-engine manufacturer. Along with

3567-524: 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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3654-469: 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

3741-522: 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

3828-664: The Western Front would have to be diverted there, and this had "fundamentally changed the situation in view of 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

3915-542: 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 the basis of a recent speech of his and the earlier declared " Fourteen Points ", which later became

4002-456: The aircraft business during and shortly after the previous war the problems had so changed they were now completely new to the company. He also noted as he ended his address that the demand for domestic appliances including cookers, breakfast cookers, washing machines and water heaters was growing progressively. The Preston works without subcontracting made more than 3,000 Hampden and Halifax aircraft. In December 1942, English Electric bought

4089-429: 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

4176-421: 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

4263-460: 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

4350-477: 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 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

4437-427: The board and would take up the position of managing director early in October. Mensforth had been taken away from his position as general manager of American Westinghouse Trafford Park Manchester, where George Nelson had been his apprentice, in 1919 by the Minister of Transport. The minister had given Mensforth the responsibility of easing the transition of the nation's munitions businesses back into peacetime industry. It

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4524-453: 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

4611-455: 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

4698-488: The end of the war, English Electric started production under licence of the second British jet fighter, the de Havilland Vampire , with 1,300 plus built at Samlesbury . Their own design work took off after the Second World War under W. E. W. Petter , formerly of Westland Aircraft . Although English Electric produced only two aircraft designs before their activities became part of BAC, the design team put forward suggestions for many Air Ministry projects. The aircraft division

4785-413: The engineering shops at Preston closed leaving the following distribution: Manufacture of domestic apparatus got underway at both Stafford and Bradford during 1931. They were followed in 1934 by a range of household meters of various kinds. In the same report to shareholders, the chairman pointed out that every day 330 more homes adopted electricity for heating cooking and lighting and between 1929 and 1935

4872-425: The event, an American syndicate fronted by Lazard Brothers and Co. bankers came up with the new capital, but left control in the hands of the previous shareholders. In June 1930, four fresh directors were appointed, filling four new vacancies. Ten days later, there was a formal announcement of an American arrangement. "English Electric, with works at Preston, Stafford, Rugby, Bradford and Coventry, had entered into

4959-463: The exchange arrangement, Westinghouse had offered to provide further capital, which would be less than 10% of the total, including that new capital organised earlier by Lazard Brothers. Seven weeks later the chairman, Lionel Hichens , who had temporarily replaced John Pybus in 1927, retired at the end of July 1930 and was replaced by Sir Holberry Mensforth as a director and as chairman. It was then announced that George H. Nelson had been appointed to

5046-441: 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

5133-469: The former being the dominant partner, the English Electric name was then lost. Complete electrification schemes Steam turbines Water turbines Oil engines Generators Switchgear, transformers, rectifiers Electric motors Electric and Diesel-electric traction equipment Armistice of 11 November 1918 The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, at sea, and in

5220-576: The fourth Generation cars were being introduced. In 1923, English Electric supplied the EO electric locomotives for the New Zealand Railways for use between Arthurs Pass and Otira, in the Southern Alps . Between 1924 and 1926, they delivered nine box-cab electric (B+B) locomotives to the Harbour Commissioners of Montreal (later the National Harbours Board); later they were transferred to Canadian National Railways , where four of them ran until 1995. In 1927, English Electric delivered 20 electric motor cars for Warsaw's Warszawska Kolej Dojazdowa . During

5307-406: 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

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5394-407: 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

5481-411: 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

5568-445: 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 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

5655-438: 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 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

5742-427: The necessary capital funds. In 1922, a drastic reorganisation of the works was carried through and that managed to halve overheads. The Coventry Ordnance Works was practically closed down. Cables, lamps and wireless equipment were then in buoyant demand, but that would have been a new field for the company to enter. English Electric's business was in heavy electrical and mechanical plant. Both the 1926 general strike and

5829-418: 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

5916-429: 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

6003-656: The ordinary shares of D. Napier & Son Limited . Mr H G Nelson, son of English Electric chairman George H Nelson, was appointed managing director. Napier's Sabre engines were used in Typhoon and Tempest aircraft and Lion engines in Motor Torpedo Boats The Stafford works made thousands of Covenanter , Centaur and Cromwell tanks as well as precision instruments for aircraft, electric propulsion and electrical equipment. The Rugby works made Diesel engines for ships, submarines and locomotives, steam turbines for ships and turbo-alternator sets for power stations. Bradford made electric generators for ships' auxiliaries and

6090-544: The production of electricity in Britain had increased by 70 per cent. 1933 proved to be the first of four years of real achievement. At the beginning of July 1933, Mensforth stepped down and George Nelson took up the post of chairman. Nelson remained managing director. Mensforth kept a seat on the board from which he later retired at the end of 1936. English Electric's recovery was noted by commentators as remarkable. During 1936, past preference dividends had been brought up to date: they were English Electric's first dividend since

6177-472: 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 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

6264-656: The resumption of the war which he himself had declared lost only one month earlier. By this time however 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

6351-658: 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

6438-488: The shadow factory, this helped to re-establish the company's aeronautical engineering division. Post-war, English Electric invested heavily in this sector, moving design and experimental facilities to the former RAF Warton near Preston in 1947. This investment led to major successes with the Lightning and Canberra , the latter serving in a multitude of roles from 1951 until mid-2006 with the Royal Air Force . At

6525-504: 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 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

6612-480: The war, Hichens continued as chairman at Cammell Laird, and served on a number of public bodies. He was brought in as chairman at English Electric in 1927, which under the management of John Pybus had seen serious mistakes made: Pybus suffered a breakdown that year. Cammell Laird had common ground with English Electric, which had taken over Coventry Ordnance Works from it in 1918, and a financial stake through loans made. At this time John Brown & Company held

6699-512: 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

6786-474: The whole field of electrical machinery from the smallest fan motor to the largest turbo-generator. In November 1919, English Electric bought the Stafford works of Siemens Brothers Dynamo Works Ltd . In 1931 Stafford became English Electric's centre. However, there was no post-war boom in electrical generation. Though English Electric products were indeed in heavy demand, potential buyers were unable to raise

6873-525: 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

6960-754: The world. With its historical achievements and the wealth of experience of its several Associated Companies the English Electric Company continues to maintain its reputation as Manufacturers and Suppliers of electrical and allied products for Home and Overseas markets: The first steps to strengthen the Royal Air Force had been taken in May 1935 and English Electric was brought into the scheme for making airframes working in conjunction with Handley Page . The chairman reported to shareholders that though both Dick, Kerr and Phoenix were involved in

7047-567: Was Mensforth who had arranged the technical exchange agreement and extra capital with Westinghouse. They began to reorganise. The main base of the company's operation was moved from London to Stafford including the sales departments, general and factory accounts and the principal executives previously in London. The managing director was to divide his time between the various works but would be mainly in Stafford or in London On 30 December 1930

7134-505: 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

7221-465: Was formed into the subsidiary English Electric Aviation Ltd. in 1958, becoming a founding constituent of the new British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) in 1960; English Electric having a 40% stake in the latter company. The guided weapons division was added to BAC in 1963. The Industrial Electronics Division was established at Stafford. One of the products produced at this branch was the Igniscope ,

7308-604: Was formed to acquire ownership of: The owners of the component companies took up the shares in English Electric. John Pybus was appointed managing director in March 1921 and chairman in April 1926. Initially J H Mansell of Coventry Ordnance Works, John Pybus of Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing and W Rutherford of Dick, Kerr were joint managing directors. The five previously independent major operations under their control had these principal capabilities: Together these businesses covered

7395-442: 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

7482-471: 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

7569-455: 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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