This Day in History: Armistice Day
On this day in 1918, exhausted soldiers in Europe receive welcome news: An armistice would end hostilities in World War I. The agreement had been reached at about 5:00 in the morning, and the armistice would take effect at 11:00 a.m.
Unfortunately, thousands of people would be killed or injured during those final six hours.
The armistice had been weeks in the making. Germany’s army had been floundering, and its leaders could see the writing on the wall. They reached out to President Woodrow Wilson in early October, hoping to negotiate a peace based on his “Fourteen Points.”
Those Points had been proposed months earlier, emphasizing national independence and peace rather than punishment of defeated nations.
Perhaps you can see why Germany started with Wilson.
Nevertheless, the United States could not act alone. Instead, the Allied governments would need to agree on how to move forward. These negotiations ultimately sent a German delegation traveling to the Western Front under a flag of truce, finally reaching French Marshal Ferdinand Foch on November 8.
Once there, the Germans would hear the terms the Allied governments were ready to offer.
That German delegation at first tried to save face, of course, pretending it was merely there to receive an offer—but Foch wasn’t going to let them off that easy.
“What is the purpose of your visit?” Foch asked. “We have come to receive the proposals from the Allied Powers to reach an armistice,” one German attempted. But Foch would not be swayed. “I have no proposals to make,” he shrugged. “I’m here to answer if you request an armistice. Are you requesting an armistice?”
The Germans were forced to meekly admit: “We request the armistice.” Satisfied, Foch delivered the Allied terms, which were soon dispatched back to German headquarters. The drama was just beginning, though. The very next day, the German government collapsed.
Would the new government cooperate? Would it let the delegation accept Allied terms?
Finally, on November 10, the delegation received a telegram: They were to try for better terms but were to sign, one way or another. Germany had its back up against a wall. The other three Central Powers—Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire, and Austria-Hungary—had already signed their own armistices.
Thus, the German delegation met with Foch again—this time at 2:15 in the morning. It was November 11, and an agreement was finally reached around 5:00 a.m.
By the terms of that agreement, the fighting would end six hours later, at 11:00.
News traveled fast. “Hostilities will cease upon the whole front from the eleventh November,” Foch informed General John Pershing, “eleven o’clock French o’clock.”
Too many lives were lost that morning, despite the approaching armistice. More than 10,000 soldiers became casualties—nearly 3,000 of these did not survive.
The last American soldier to lose his life is believed to be Pvt. Henry N. Gunther.
“The Armistice was set for 11 a.m. on November 11 of 1918,” National Archives historian Mitchell Yockelson explained, citing a war diary. “As the clock ticked forward at 10:58 a.m., Private Gunther had stood up and was charging towards the German lines when he was shot by a German machine-gun. Two minutes before the Armistice, Henry Gunther was killed.”
No one knows why Gunther did what he did. Was he just angry? Did he not realize it was almost 11:00? Was he trying to redeem himself after a recent demotion? There’s no way to know.
Either way, a long, bloody war had finally come to an end. Armistice Day would be celebrated on November 11 for years afterwards, although it was eventually replaced with Veterans Day.
How did that happen? Naturally, that is a story for another day.
A note for those who are interested: Some of you might know I am running an experiment in history reels. If you are so inclined, check out my YouTube channel and/or subscribe to those HERE. Don’t miss the reel I created about the Doughnut Girls, posted over the weekend.
Primary Sources:
« 1918, armistice(s) », episode 12 (French Army Museum)
Brian F. Neumann & Shane D. Makowicki, Occupation and Demobilization (1918-1923) (The U.S. Army Campaigns of World War I Commemorative Series; Center of Military History; U.S. Army; 2019)
Conditions of the Armistice with Germany (November 11, 1918)
Handwritten note from Supreme Allied Commander Marshall Ferdinand Foch to the Allied Commander in Chief, to cease fighting (Digitized HERE)
Michael Davis, Records Shed Light on Last American Killed in World War I (National Archives)
November 11, 1918: Memory and War: The 100th anniversary of the end of the war to end all wars (National WWII Museum; Nov. 9, 2018)
The 1918 Armistice Clauses (Armistice Museum: Compiègne, France)
The Fourteen Points: Woodrow Wilson and the U.S. Rejection of the Treaty of Versailles (National WWII Museum)
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