Armistice Day in France Home Calendar Holidays France Armistice Day Armistice Day in France Armistice Day (Armistice de la Première Guerre mondiale) in France remembers those who died or were injured in World War I and other wars. It is generally a solemn occasion. An unidentified solider was buried in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe (pictured above) in 1920. An unidentified solider was buried in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe (pictured above) in 1920. ©iStockphoto.com/FRANCO DI MEO What Do People Do? Special church services are held to remember those who died in World War I and subsequent wars. Military parades to war memorials and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Paris are also organized. Public figures, including France's president, lay wreaths and flowers at war memorials. Many people wear black or dark clothes. Armistice Day generally has a solemn mood. Public Life Armistice Day is a public holiday in France so post offices, banks, stores and many businesses are closed. Restaurants and cafes outside tourist areas may also be closed.

However, bakeries and some stores in Paris, as well as at airports and railway stations and along major highways, are open. Public transport service schedules vary depending on where one lives and intends to travel. Roads may be closed for parades. This is particularly likely in the center of towns, cities and near war memorials. Background Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated by a Bosnian-Serb nationalist on June 28, 1914. This sparked the activation of a series of alliances. Major European powers were at war within weeks. Many European countries had global empires so the hostilities spread throughout the world and became known as World War I. More than 15 million people died as a result of the World War I hostilities. Marshal Ferdinand Foch (Allies) and Matthias Erzberger (Germany) met in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest, near the town of Compiègne in the Picardy region of France, in November 1918. The representatives signed an armistice treaty in the early hours of November 11, 1918, to end the World War I hostilities on the Western Front.

World War I officially ended at 11 minutes past the 11th hour on November 11, 1918, because of the treaty. A law was approved on October 24, 1922, to make November 11 a public holiday in France. Symbols The French national flag, or tricolor, plays an important role in Armistice Day observances. It is one-and-a-half times as wide as it is tall and consists of three equal vertical bands colored blue, white and red. It is often displayed at half mast or on flag poles held diagonally by military service men and women. The body of an unidentified solider from the citadel of Verdun was buried in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe in Paris on November 11, 1920. This soldier serves as a symbol of all those who died in World War I. An eternal flame was lit on this tomb three years later and still burns today. 1000+ images about WWI: Armistice on Pinterest | The welcome, Soldiers and World War I Forward The armistice between the allies and Germany put an end to the fighting in the First World War.

The signing of the Armistice occurred at 5 a.m. on November 11, 1918 in a wagon located in an alley in the forest of Compiègne (Rethondes, France) between the German politician Matthias Erzberger and the Commander in Chief of the Allied forces, the French Ferdinand Foch, but did not enter into force until 11 am. See More Second Armistice at Compiègne | Military Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia Second Armistice at Compiègne Share Ad blocker interference detected! Wikia is a free-to-use site that makes money from advertising. We have a modified experience for viewers using ad blockers Wikia is not accessible if you’ve made further modifications. Remove the custom ad blocker rule(s) and the page will load as expected. Script error Script error | type = move | image = | imageright = | class = | style = | textstyle = | text = It has been suggested that Demarcation line (France) be merged into this article. ( Discuss ) Proposed since November 2012.

| small = | smallimage = | smallimageright = | smalltext = | subst = | date = | name = }} Left to right: Joachim von Ribbentrop , Walther von Brauchitsch , Hermann Göring , Rudolf Hess , and Adolf Hitler in front of the Armistice wagon. Wilhelm Keitel (left) in front of the Armistice wagon. General Charles Huntziger signs the armistice on behalf of France. The Second Armistice at Compiègne was signed at 18:50 on 22 June 1940 near Compiègne, France, between Nazi Germany and the French Third Republic. Following the decisive German victory in the Battle of France (10 May–21 June 1940), it established a German occupation zone in Northern France that encompassed all English Channel and Atlantic Ocean ports and left the remainder "free" to be governed by the French. Adolf Hitler deliberately chose Compiègne Forest as the site to sign the armistice due to its symbolic role as the site of the 1918 Armistice with Germany that signaled the end of World War I with Germany's surrender.

Contents Main article: Battle of France The best modernised French armies had been sent north and lost in the resulting encirclement; the French had lost their best heavy weaponry and their best armored formations. Between May and June, French forces were in general retreat and Germany threatened to occupy Paris. The French government was forced to relocate to Bordeaux on 10 June to avoid capture and declared Paris to be an open city the same day. By 22 June, the German Armed Forces ( Wehrmacht ) had losses of 27,000 dead, more than 111,000 wounded and 18,000 missing, against French losses of 92,000 dead and more than 200,000 wounded. The British Expeditionary Force had lost more than 68,000 men. Choice of Compiègne Edit When Adolf Hitler received word from the French government that they wished to negotiate an armistice , Hitler selected Compiègne Forest near Compiègne as the site for the negotiations.

As Compiègne was the site of the 1918 Armistice ending the Great War with a humiliating defeat for Germany, Hitler saw using this location as a supreme moment of revenge for Germany over France. Hitler decided to sign the armistice in the same rail carriage (dt. 'Wagen von Compiegne') where the Germans had signed the 1918 armistice. [1] However, in the last sentence of the preamble, the drafters inserted "However, Germany does not have the intention to use the armistice conditions and armistice negotiations as a form of humiliation against such a valiant opponent" referring to the French forces. Furthermore, in Article 3, Clause 2, the drafters stated that their intention was not to heavily occupy North-West France after cessation of hostilities with Britain . In the very same railway carriage in which the 1918 Armistice was signed (removed from a museum building and placed on the precise spot where it was located in 1918), Hitler sat in the same chair in which Marshal Ferdinand Foch had sat when he faced the representatives of the defeated German Empire.

After listening to the reading of the preamble, Hitler – in a calculated gesture of disdain to the French delegates – left the carriage, as Foch had done in 1918, leaving the negotiations to his Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (High Command of the Armed Forces) Chief, General Wilhelm Keitel . Terms Edit The German offensive in June sealed the defeat of the French. Adolf Hitler had a number of reasons for agreeing to an armistice. He wanted to ensure that France did not continue to fight from North Africa, and he wanted to ensure that the French Navy was taken out of the war. In addition, leaving a French government in place would relieve Germany of the considerable burden of administering French territory, particularly as he turned his attentions toward Britain. Finally, as Germany lacked a navy sufficient to occupy France's overseas territories, Hitler's only practical recourse to deny the British use of them was to maintain France's status as a supposedly independent and neutral nation. According to William Shirer 's book Rise and Fall of the Third Reich , French General Charles Huntziger complained that the armistice terms imposed on France were harsher than those imposed on Germany in 1918.

They provided for German occupation of three-fifths of France north and west of a line through Geneva, Tours and the Spanish border so as to give the German Navy ( Kriegsmarine ) access to all French Channel and Atlantic ports. All persons who had been granted political asylum had to be surrendered and all occupation costs had to be borne by France, to the tune of 400 million French francs a day. A minimal French Army would be permitted. As one of Hitler's few concessions, the French Navy was to be disarmed but not surrendered, for Hitler realized that pushing France too far could result in France fighting on from French North Africa. An unoccupied region, the Zone Libre , was left relatively free to be governed by a rump French administration based in Vichy, which also administered the occupied zones albeit under severe restrictions. This was envisaged to last until a final peace treaty would be negotiated. However, a final peace treaty was never negotiated, and the unoccupied zone was occupied by Germany and its Italian ally in Operation Anton following the invasion of French North Africa by the Allies in November 1942.

The French delegation – led by General Charles Huntziger – tried to soften the harsher terms of the armistice, but Keitel replied that they would have to accept or reject the armistice as it was. Given the military situation that France was in, Huntziger had "no choice" but to accede to the armistice terms. None of the French delegation, believing the war would last just a few more weeks now that the United Kingdom and its Commonwealth were fighting alone, objected to a clause that said all French prisoners of war (POW) were to remain prisoners until the end of all hostilities with the British. Nearly one million Frenchmen were thus forced to spend the next five years in prisoner of war camps (about a third of the initial 1.5 million prisoners taken were released or paroled by the Germans before the war ended). [2] The cease-fire went into effect on 25 June 1940, 00:35.

Article 19 of the Franco-German armistice required the French state to turn over to German authorities any German national on French territory, who would then frequently face deportation to a concentration camp (the "[Surrender on Demand] [1] " clause). Destruction of the Armistice site in Compiègne Hitler (hand on hip) looking at the statue of Foch before signing the armistice at Compiègne, France (22 June 1940) German soldier guards the 1918 monument, depicting a German eagle impaled by a sword. A reproduction of the wagon where the Armistice of 22 June 1940 was signed between Germany and France, and where the Armistice of 11 November 1918 was signed between Germany and the Allies, at the museum Clairière de l'Armistice ( Rethondes ). The Armistice site was demolished by the Germans on Hitler's orders three days later [2] .

The carriage itself was taken to Berlin as a trophy of war, along with pieces of a large stone tablet which bore the inscription (in French): HERE ON THE ELEVENTH OF NOVEMBER 1918 SUCCUMBED THE CRIMINAL PRIDE OF THE GERMAN REICH. VANQUISHED BY THE FREE PEOPLES WHICH IT TRIED TO ENSLAVE. The Alsace-Lorraine Monument (depicting a German eagle impaled by a sword) was destroyed and all evidence of the site was obliterated, with the notable exception of the statue of Marshal Foch : Hitler intentionally ordered it to be left intact so that it would be honoring only a wasteland. The railway carriage itself was taken to Crawinkel in Thuringia in 1945, where it was destroyed by SS troops and the remains buried. Restoration of the armistice site Edit After the war, German POW labor was used to restore the armistice site to its former state. The stone tablet's pieces were recovered and reassembled, and a replica of the railway carriage placed at the restored site. The Alsace-Lorraine monument was rebuilt from scratch.

After the reunification of Germany in 1990, those who witnessed the event dug up relics and came forth with earlier relics. This was written up in the Südthüringer Zeitung (South Thuringia Newspaper) on 11 May 1991 in an article entitled "Hitler's Salon Wagon Found in the village of Crawinkel". Various components were returned to the French General Gamache in Compiègne in 1992. On 5 May 1994 a small oak commemorating the "hope for peace" was dug up from the destruction site in Crawinkel and transplanted to Compiègne. On 7 May 2005 the historic site in Crawinkel was dedicated. [from Dankmar Leffler and Klaus-Peter Schambach book] The History Place - World War I Timeline - 1918 - A Fateful Ending 1918 : A Fateful Ending January 1918 - President Woodrow Wilson outlines an elaborate peace plan to the U.S. Congress containing Fourteen Points as the basis of its establishment.

March 3, 1918 - At Brest-Litovsk, Soviet Russia signs a treaty with Germany formally ending its participation in the war. Harsh terms imposed by the Germans force the Russians to yield a quarter of their prewar territory and over half of Russia's industries. German Spring Offensives March 21, 1918 - Germany's all-out gamble for victory begins upon the launch of the first of a series of successive spring offensives on the Western Front. The Saint Michael Offensive, named after Germany's patron saint, begins after a five-hour 6,000-gun artillery bombardment as 65 divisions from the German 2nd, 17th and 18th Armies attack the British 3rd and 5th Armies along a 60-mile front in the Somme. At first it seems destined to succeed as the thinly stretched British 5th Army is quickly overrun and wrecked. Using effective storm troop tactics, the Germans recapture all of the ground they lost in 1916 during the Battle of the Somme and press forward.

However, during the two week offensive, the British 3rd Army manages to hold itself together and prevents the Germans from taking Arras and Amiens, key objectives of the offensive. March 26, 1918 - At a strategic conference in Doullens, France, the British and French agree to appoint an Allied Supreme Commander on the Western Front, in place of the separate commanders they had been using, to better coordinate their efforts. Ferdinand Foch, Petain's highly regarded chief of staff, accepts the position. April 1, 1918 - Britain's Royal Air Force (RAF) is founded upon the merging of the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service. By now, the British aviation industry has become the world leader. April 9-29, 1918 - The second offensive in Germany's victory gamble, the Georgette Offensive, begins as 46 divisions from the German 6th Army attack the British 2nd Army around Ypres. The Germans push the British back three miles to the outskirts of Ypres, even taking back the hard-won Passchendaele Ridge.

However, the arrival of British, French and Australian reinforcements from the south breaks the German momentum and the offensive halts. Georgette, similar to Michael, is only a partial success. General Ludendorff's goal of first separating the British and French armies via Michael and then destroying the British via Michael and Georgette is not achieved. Additionally, the Germans suffer 330,000 casualties in the two offensives and lack sufficient reserve troops. April 21, 1918 - Germany's Red Baron (Manfred von Richthofen) is shot down and killed by the British. The German Ace was credited with shooting down 80 Allied aircraft. He is buried with military honors by the British. May 27-June 3, 1918 - The Blücher-Yorck Offensive, Germany's third in a row, begins with the goal of bogging down the Allies in central France, thus preventing further reinforcements from reaching British positions in the north. Forty-one divisions of the German 1st and 7th Armies successfully attack the inadequate defenses of the French 6th Army along a 25-mile front east of the Aisne River.

After a highly effective artillery barrage, German storm troops roll over the decimated 6th Army. This startling success emboldens General Ludendorff to change his overall strategy. He decides to make a run for Paris, hoping to draw the Allies into a final climactic battle that will decide the war. Within two days, the Germans cross the Aisne River and rapidly advance westward, coming within 50 miles of Paris. But the troops have been pushed to the limit for too long and soon succumb to exhaustion, unable to maintain the breakneck pace. The advance sputters to a halt as Allied reinforcements, including Americans, pour in to the region. First American Action May 28-29, 1918 - Troops of the U.S. 1st Infantry Division capture the village of Cantigny from the Germans and hold it. The American Expeditionary Force (AEF) is commanded by General John Pershing who is determined to maintain all-American fighting units, rather than parcel out American troops to the British and French armies. By now, 650,000 American soldiers have arrived in France, with the number growing by 10,000 per day.

June 6, 1918 - The Battle of Belleau Wood involving the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division begins. During the three-week fight against the Germans, Americans experience their first significant battlefield casualties with 5,000 killed. June 9, 1918 - The Germans launch their fourth offensive, once more with an eye toward Paris. In the hastily arranged Gneisenau Offensive the German 18th Army attacks in a southwest direction toward Paris. However, the Germans are stopped as French and American troops successfully counter-attack and the new offensive withers after just four days. June 15, 1918 - Austrian troops begin an offensive along the Piave River in Italy, at the urging of the Germans. Although suffering from a lack of food, horses and supplies, they cross the river and establish a 12-mile front, but then realize they can not hold it against the now-revitalized Italian Army and withdraw after suffering 150,000 casualties. Following this, Austrian soldiers in Italy begin deserting. Mid 1918 - Soldiers from all sides begin to succumb to a deadly strain of influenza.

Troop losses from the flu epidemic soon exceed combat casualties, especially weakening the hard-pressed German Army. The worldwide epidemic lasts for about a year, killing an estimated 20 million persons, then vanishes as strangely as it had appeared. July 15-17, 1918 - The last German offensive of the war, the Marne-Reims Offensive, begins with a two-pronged attack around Reims, France, by 52 divisions. The Allies have been anticipating this battle and lie in wait. The German attack to the east of Reims is crushed that day by the French. To the west of Reims, the advance is blocked by the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division, followed by a successful French and American counter-attack. July 17, 1918 - Russian Bolsheviks murder former Czar Nicholas and his entire family. By now, an all-out civil war has erupted in Russia that features indiscriminate killings of civilians and captured fighters. Amid the chaos, disease and starvation envelop Russia. The fighting between Bolsheviks and their opponents will last three years, ending with a Bolshevik victory amid a Russian death toll estimated at 15 million persons.

Allied Counter-Offensives July 18, 1918 - A combined French and American attack along the Marne marks the first in a series of coordinated Allied counter-offensives on the Western Front. Three French armies accompanied by five American divisions cross the Marne River. In the face of this assault, the German 7th and 9th Armies begin a withdrawal from the Marne. August 8, 1918 - Germans in the Somme experience the "Black Day of the German Army" as later described by General Ludendorff. This occurs as the British 4th Army using 456 tanks attacks German positions east of Amiens. Six German divisions quickly fall apart and 13,000 prisoners are taken during the rapid 7-mile advance. The attack is only slowed when the Germans rush in nine divisions, their last reserves on the Western Front. August 20, 1918 - The French 10th Army takes 8,000 prisoners at Noyon and captures the Aisne Heights.

August 21, 1918 - The British 3rd Army begins an attack along a 10-mile front south of Arras, while the adjacent 4th Army resumes it attack in the Somme, as the Germans continue to fall back. September 12, 1918 - The first stand-alone attack by Americans occurs as the U.S. 1st Army attacks the southernmost portion of the Western Front in France at St. Mihiel. The offensive is supported by an unprecedented 1,476 Allied aircraft used as part of a coordinated air-ground attack. Within 36 hours, the Americans take 15,000 prisoners and capture over 400 pieces of artillery as the Germans withdraw. September 15, 1918 - The Allies push the Bulgarians out of Serbia as French, Serbian and Italian troops make rapid gains, advancing nearly 20 miles northward from Greece in three days. Bulgarian troops attempting to redeploy westward through the narrow Kosturino Pass are relentlessly bombarded by airplanes and overall troop morale collapses.

Meanwhile, political turmoil strikes at home as anti-war riots erupt in Bulgaria's cities along with Russian-style revolutionary fervor that results in the proclamation of local soviets. September 19, 1918 - In the Middle East, the Allies launch a cavalry attack to push the Turks out of Palestine. Australian and Indian cavalry divisions smash through the Turkish defenses around Megiddo on the first day and gallop northward, as British infantry follow, while the RAF and Arab fighters disrupt communication and supply lines. As the Turkish armies collapse, they withdraw northward toward Damascus with the Allies in pursuit. September 26, 1918 - The U.S. 1st Army and French 4th Army begin a joint offensive to clear out the strongly defended corridor between the Meuse River and the Argonne Forest. Here, the Germans do not fall back and the battle soon resembles action from earlier years in the war. Amid a steady rain, the troops advance yard-by-yard over the muddy, crater-filled terrain with 75,000 American casualties suffered over six weeks of fighting.

Hindenburg Line Broken September 27, 1918 - The British 1st and 3rd Armies, aided by Australians and the U.S. 2nd Corps, break through a 20-mile portion of the Hindenburg Line between Cambrai and St. Quentin. September 28, 1918 - Belgian and British troops push back the Germans in the Fourth Battle of Ypres. Unlike the previous drawn-out battles, this one lasts just two days as the Belgians take Dixmude and the British secure Messines. September 28, 1918 - Confronted by the unstoppable strength of the Allies and faced with the prospect of an outright military defeat on the Western Front, General Ludendorff suffers a nervous collapse at his headquarters, losing all hope for victory. He then informs his superior, Paul von Hindenburg, the war must be ended. The next day, Ludendorff, accompanied by Hindenburg, meet with the Kaiser and urge him to end the war. The Kaiser's army is becoming weaker by the day amid irreversible troop losses, declining discipline and battle-readiness due to exhaustion, illness, food shortages, desertions and drunkenness.

The Kaiser takes heed from Hindenburg and Ludendorff, and agrees with the need for an armistice. September 29, 1918 - Bulgaria signs an armistice with the Allies, becoming the first of the Central Powers to quit the war. October 1, 1918 - In the Middle East, Damascus is captured by Australian troops and Arab fighters. October 2, 1918 - A military representative sent by Ludendorff to Berlin informs the legislature the war is lost and that armistice discussions should begin immediately. The German politicians are shocked by the news, having largely been kept in the dark by the General Staff and the Kaiser till now. Germans Request Armistice October 4, 1918 - President Woodrow Wilson receives a request from the German government, sent via the Swiss, asking for armistice discussions on the basis of his Fourteen Points. The Germans have bypassed the French and British in the hope of negotiating with Wilson who they perceive as more lenient. They are disappointed, however, when Wilson responds with a list of demands as a prelude to discussions including German withdrawal from all occupied territories and a total halt of U-Boat attacks.

October 5, 1918 - The Allies break through the last remnants of the Hindenburg Line. October 6, 1918 - A provisional government proclaims the state of Yugoslavia, signaling the beginning of the breakup of the old Hapsburg (Austro-Hungarian) Empire in central Europe which had existed for six centuries. October 7, 1918 - Poland, formerly part of the Russian Empire, proclaims itself as an independent state. October 8, 1918 - The British 3rd and 4th Armies take 8,000 German prisoners while advancing toward Cambrai and LeCateau. October 13, 1918 - The Germans engage in a general retreat along a 60-mile portion of the Western Front in France stretching from St. Quentin southward to the Argonne Forest, as French and American armies steadily advance. October 14, 1918 - Germans abandon positions along the Belgian coast and northernmost France as the British and Belgians steadily advance. October 17, 1918 - King Albert of Belgium enters the city of Ostend on the Belgian coast.

October 23, 1918 - Under pressure from the French and British, President Wilson informs the German government that armistice negotiations can not ensue with the current military or Imperial war leaders still in place. An outraged General Ludendorff then disavows the negotiations as 'unconditional surrender' and is forced to resign by the Kaiser. In the face of such turmoil, the armistice negotiations are conducted principally by civilian members of Germany's government. This will become the basis of a postwar "stab in the back" claim by German militarists asserting their troops at the Front were sold out by the politicians back home. October 24, 1918 - In southern Europe, the Allies cross the Piave River to push the Austrians out of Italy as seven Italian armies, incorporating British, French and American divisions, attack the four remaining Austro-Hungarian armies from the Trentino westward to the Gulf of Venice. In its final battle of the war, the Austro-Hungarian Army sees 30,000 soldiers killed and over 400,000 taken prisoner. October 29, 1918 - The Czechs declare their independence from Austria.

Two days later, Slovakia declares independence from Hungary. Czechoslovakia is subsequently formed. October 30, 1918 - Turkey signs an armistice with the Allies, becoming the second of the Central Powers to quit the war. November 1, 1918 - Belgrade is liberated by French and Serbian troops. November 1, 1918 - After pausing to regroup and resupply, Allied armies resume their eastward march as the U.S. 1st Army and newly formed U.S. 2nd Army attack remaining German positions along the Meuse River near southern Belgium, while the Belgians and British move toward Ghent and Mons in Belgium. November 3, 1918 - Mutiny strikes the German Navy at the ports of Kiel and Wilhelmshaven as sailors refuse orders to put to sea to engage in a final colossal battle with the British Navy. Along with this, revolutionary fervor and Bolshevist-style uprisings erupt in German cities including Munich, Stuttgart and Berlin. The extent of the unrest stuns German leaders, and even the Allies, who fear Germany might now succumb to a violent Bolshevist revolution in the manner of Russia.

This brings a stark urgency to the armistice negotiations. November 3, 1918 - The only remaining ally of Germany, Austria-Hungary, signs an armistice with Italy, leaving Germany alone in the war. November 5, 1918 - The Germans are informed by President Wilson that armistice discussions can begin on the basis of his Fourteen Points as they requested, but that an armistice must be secured through France's Marshal Foch, the Allied Supreme Commander. November 8, 1918 - At Compiègne, France, six representatives of the German government, with Matthias Erzberger as spokesman, are brusquely presented with armistice terms by Marshal Ferdinand Foch. The terms include German evacuation of all occupied territory, an Allied occupation of Germany west of the Rhine River, surrender of weaponry including all subs and battleships, and indefinite continuation of the naval blockade. November 9, 1918 - The Kaiser's Imperial government collapses in ruin as a German republic is proclaimed with Friedrich Ebert heading the new provisional government.

Kaiser Wilhelm then seeks refuge in Holland amid concerns for his safety after his generals warn him they may not be able to adequately protect him from the volatile situation in Germany. Armistice Ends Fighting November 11, 1918 - At 5:10 am, in a railway car at Compiègne, France, the Germans sign the Armistice which is effective at 11 am--the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. Fighting continues all along the Western Front until precisely 11 o'clock, with 2,000 casualties experienced that day by all sides. Artillery barrages also erupt as 11 am draws near as soldiers yearn to claim they fired the very last shot in the war. November 12, 1918 - A final action occurs as Germans in Africa under the command of the elusive General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck encounter British troops in Northern Rhodesia, where news of the Armistice had not reached the Germans.

January 6, 1919 - An attempt to overthrow Germany's provisional government occurs in Berlin as several buildings are seized by members of the communist Spartacus League led by Karl Liebknecht. The revolution is violently thwarted by bands of Freikorps composed of ex-soldiers led by former German Army officers and Liebknecht is killed. January 18, 1919 - The Paris Peace Conference opens with delegates from 32 nations invited. President Woodrow Wilson attends, marking the first-ever visit to Europe by a sitting president. January 19, 1919 - The first-ever nationwide election in Germany results in pro-democracy political parties getting 75 percent of the vote. February 6, 1919 - The newly elected German Assembly meets in Weimar and begins work on a new democratic constitution. April 28, 1919 - The League of Nations is founded, championed by President Wilson as a means of peaceably resolving future conflicts. Germany is excluded for the time being. Despite Wilson's intentions, the United States never joins as an isolationist-minded U.S. Senate subsequently rejects membership to avoid further European entanglements.

June 21, 1919 - The Germans sink 74 of their own warships in anticipation of being forced to yield them to the Allies. Treaty of Versailles June 28, 1919 - At the Palace of Versailles in France, a German delegation signs the Treaty formally ending the war. Its 230 pages contain terms that have little in common with Wilson's Fourteen Points as the Germans had hoped. Germans back home react with mass demonstrations against the perceived harshness, especially clauses that assess sole blame for the war on Germany. July 31, 1919 - The Weimar Republic is born in Germany from a new constitution which provides for a liberal democracy. The government consists of two houses of Parliament (Reichstag) and a president elected by the people. The president can dissolve the Reichstag and rule by decree in the event of an emergency. September 1919 - Corporal Adolf Hitler is ordered by the German Army to investigate a small political group in Munich called the German Workers' Party. Hitler soon joins the group and begins to build it up, later changing its name to the National Socialist German Workers' (Nazi) Party.

The anti-democratic group vehemently opposes the Treaty of Versailles and claims the German Army was not defeated on the battlefield but was betrayed by a "stab in the back" wrought by disloyal politicians on the home front. March 1920 - Freikorps groups attempt but fail to overthrow Germany's democratic government during the Kapp Putsch. April 1921 - The Reparations Commission announces Germany must pay the Allies $28 billion over 42 years, via annual payments of cash and goods such as coal and timber. April 1922 - Germany and Soviet Russia conclude the Treaty of Rapallo allowing for economic collaboration. Secret clauses in the treaty provide for German military activities prohibited by the Treaty of Versailles, including weapons manufacturing, to be done in Soviet Russia. January 1923 - After Germany falls behind on its war reparation payments, French and Belgian troops occupy the Ruhr industrial region inside Germany. Workers there react by walking off the job. In a defiant show of support, the German government sends money to the out-of-work protestors.

However, this soon leads to ruinous inflation and devaluation of the German deutsche mark--eventually four billion to the dollar--as the government prints an unlimited amount of money to satisfy its needs. November 9, 1923 - Three thousand Nazis led by Adolf Hitler, and aided by former General Erich Ludendorff, attempt but fail to overthrow Germany's democratic government by staging an armed Putsch in Munich. Hitler is then sentenced to prison where he composes Mein Kampf a book outlining his racial, political and military philosophies, including the need for Germany to forcibly expand its borders eastward into Russia. The Nazis remain a fringe group until the worldwide economic collapse of 1929 causes political turmoil in Germany that generates popular support for Hitler, resulting in the election of Nazis to the government. [ The History Place Main Page | American Revolution | Abraham Lincoln | U.S. Civil War | Child Labor in America 1908-1912 | John F.

Kennedy Photo History | Vietnam War | The Rise of Adolf Hitler | Triumph of Hitler | Defeat of Hitler | Hitler Youth | Timeline of World War II in Europe | Holocaust Timeline | Irish Potato Famine | Photo of the Week | This Month in History | History Videos | Hollywood's Best History Movies | Send Feedback ] Copyright © 2009 The History Place All Rights Reserved Terms of use: Private home/school non-commercial, non-Internet re-usage only is allowed of any text, graphics, photos, audio clips, other electronic files or materials from The History Place. BBC NEWS | Europe | Was Armistice flawed? Printable version Was Armistice flawed? The armistice deal signed on 11 November 1918 brought yearned-for relief to Western Europe. But the same pact has been blamed for the return to conflict in Europe only 20 years later. Does the deal deserve the criticism, asks Professor Gerard De Groot of the University of St Andrews. The Armistice ended four years of fierce fighting On 27 September 1918, the British Army, reinforced by French, Belgian and Canadian units, attacked the German line in Flanders, Belgium.

Progress was not immediately impressive, but that operation did achieve the symbolically important result of piercing the Hindenburg Line, which was supposed to be impregnable. For Erich Ludendorff, the German commander, the jig was up. On 1 October, he told his general staff that "final defeat was probably inescapably at hand". The task now was to avoid ignominious defeat. The Germans therefore notified US President Woodrow Wilson on 6 October that they were willing to discuss an armistice. They approached Mr Wilson because they hoped to get a good deal from a leader who seemed humane. That immediately aroused the suspicions of British Prime Minister David Lloyd George and French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau, both of whom were determined to make Germany pay for the suffering the war had caused. 'Harsh peace' Keen to get a jump on President Wilson, Mr Clemenceau asked the Supreme Allied Commander Ferdinand Foch to draw up armistice terms. You wish to do justice to the Germans. Do not believe they will ever forgive us; they will merely seek the opportunity for revenge Georges Clemenceau French prime minister Mr Foch concocted a set of demands designed to render it impossible for the Germans to resume hostilities.

All captured territory, including German speaking areas of Alsace and Lorraine, would be immediately surrendered. Within four weeks, the Germans would be required to evacuate the right bank of the Rhine to a depth of 10km (six miles), a demand cleverly calculated to leave German units in a disorganised state. In addition, a vast collection of military hardware (including 5,000 artillery pieces, 25,000 machine guns and 1,700 aircraft) were to be surrendered, plus 5,000 locomotives, 150,000 railway cars and 5,000 lorries. At sea, Germany would be reduced to a second-rate naval power, surrendering all her submarines and the bulk of her surface fleet. By the end of October, the British and French had managed to drag the Americans toward their version of reality. The three powers settled upon terms roughly similar to Mr Foch's. In a series of notes, Mr Wilson warned the Germans to expect a harsh peace. They were to consider themselves militarily defeated, and safeguards would be implemented to ensure that hostilities could not be resumed.

They should also expect to pay reparations for the costs of the war. President Wilson further insisted that he would deal only with the elected representatives of the German people, not with the Kaiser. 'No hope' For Mr Ludendorff, this amounted to unconditional surrender and was therefore unacceptable. The Armistice was signed in a railway carriage outside Compiegne Forest In consequence, he demanded that the German government back away from the armistice. His sidekick, General Paul von Hindenburg, likewise attested: "Wilson's answer can only amount to a challenge to continue to resist to the utmost of our capabilities". But that rallying cry was shouted into a vacuum. The German state was in terminal meltdown. Once the possibility of an armistice was raised, there was no further hope of rousing the people to continue the fight. On 8 November, therefore, a German delegation - headed by Matthias Erzberger - met Mr Foch in a railway carriage outside Compiegne. The terms sent Mr Erzberger into a state of near paralysis. He nevertheless accepted, and it was agreed that the armistice would take effect at 1100 on 11 November. Not punished enough?

The armistice terms, and the Versailles settlement that confirmed them, have been blamed for causing World War II. It is difficult to imagine an armistice that would have satisfied the Entente powers and left the Germans feeling fairly treated Because we know that WWII occurred, it is easy to judge in retrospect that the armistice must have been too harsh. This harshness had dual effect: it encouraged a desire for revenge within Germany and a feeling of contrition within Britain. Thus, when the time came that Germany felt able to reassert herself, the British were disinclined to protest because, for many, its anger seemed warranted. Another school holds that Germany was not punished enough. According to this thesis, the war ended too soon - Germany's offer of an armistice should have been refused and its army should have been pushed back across the Rhine in order to give the German people graphic proof of their own defeat. Those who adhere to this thesis often also argue that the treaty established the principle of war guilt, which encouraged German resentment, but did not sufficiently destroy the German ability to act upon that resentment. Bearing in mind the way Adolf Hitler manipulated the propaganda value of the "unjust" peace, the argument seems to have some merit.

US 'isolationism' But punishment, be it of nations or children, is a blunt tool. Could Germany's aggressive power realistically have been destroyed in 1919? And, if that option was indeed possible, would the allies have been prepared to make the sacrifices necessary to realise it? More than 40 million people - soldiers and civilians - died in World War I Which country would have been prepared to forfeit the lives of its citizens in order to make victory more emphatic and peace more severe? A "fairer" peace seems likewise inconceivable. "You wish to do justice to the Germans," Mr Clemenceau once remarked to Mr Wilson. "Do not believe they will ever forgive us; they will merely seek the opportunity for revenge." Mr Clemenceau was probably right. It is difficult to imagine an armistice that would have satisfied the Entente powers and left the Germans feeling fairly treated. A more liberal treaty might have brought into being a more peaceful, secure Europe, but the populist mood across Europe was not liberal. Equanimity is easy in hindsight, but difficult at a time when the graves of millions were still being dug. The flaws in the armistice did not alone cause WWII.

Germany was able to act upon its resentment because the country that emerged most powerful from the Great War decided subsequently to absent herself from European affairs. Power implies responsibility, yet the US, in the inter-war period, sought an isolationist haven. It is by no means clear that greater American involvement in European affairs would have prevented WWII. But it is certain that America's decision to turn her back on Europe created a power vacuum that Hitler was able to exploit. Bookmark with: World War One - End of the War | HistoryOnTheNet World War One World War One - End of the War Last Updated: 08/05/2014 - 09:09 Although America did not declare war on Germany until 1917, she had been involved in the war from the beginning supplying the allies with weapons and supplies. On May 2nd 1915 the British passenger liner Lusitania was sunk by a torpedo from a German submarine . 1195 passengers, including 128 Americans, lost their lives. Americans were outraged and put pressure on the government to enter the war. Woodrow Wilson (left) campaigned for a peaceful end to the war.

He appealed to both sides to try to settle the war by diplomatic means but was unsuccessful. In February 1917, the Germans announced an unrestricted submarine warfare campaign. They planned to sink any ship that approached Britain whether it was a military ship, supply ship or passenger ship. On April 3rd 1917, Wilson made a speech declaring that America would enter the war and restore peace to Europe. The United States declared war on Germany on April 6th 1917. American troops joined the French and British in the summer of 1918. They were fresh and not war-weary and were invaluable in defeating the Germans. The allied victory in November 1918 was not solely due to American involvement. Rapid advancements in weapon technology meant that by 1918 tanks and planes were common place. The German commander Erich Ludendorff (right) was a brilliant military commander and had won decisive victories over Russia in 1917 that led to the Russian withdrawal from the war. In 1918 he announced that if Germany was to win the war then the allies had to be defeated on the Western Front before the arrival of American troops.

Although his offensive was initially successful the allies held ground and eventually pushed the Germans back. By 1918 there were strikes and demonstrations in Berlin and other cities protesting about the effects of the war on the population. The British naval blockade of German ports meant that thousands of people were starving. Socialists were waiting for the chance to seize Germany as they had in Russia. In October 1918 Ludendorff resigned and the German navy mutinied. The end was near. Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated on November 9th 1918. On 11th November the leaders of both sides held a meeting in Ferdinand Foch's railway carriage headquarters at Compiegne. The Armistice was signed at 6am and came into force five hours later Text description: video map of World War I (This video shows a map of Western Europe in 1914 before World War 1) In 1914 central Europe had divided into a system of alliances. Germany aligned with Austria-Hungary and France with Russia. Britain had no formal commitment to France or Russia, but had developed 'understandings' since 1904.

It was presumed that in a European war, Britain would fight on the left-hand side of the French." (the map changes to show Belgium and Eastern France on the border with Germany) Fearing a war on two fronts, the Germans adopted the Schlieffen plan- to sweep through neutral Belgium and on to France, encircling Paris. The aim was to knock France out of the war quickly before Russia could mobilise its forces." (The map changes to show the actual 250 mile German advance into France that stopped 19 miles from Paris) The Germans advanced south west through Belgium, where the British made contact with them at Mons on 23 August. The British briefly halted the Germans, but such was the overwhelming number of the enemy that they were forced to retreat. Half the British force stopped and fought at Le Cateau on 26 August to give the rest the chance to get away.

The 200 mile retreat continued south for two weeks and ended on the river Marne." (The map changes to show the battle front move north away from Paris) "German retreat to the Aisne Over-stretched and exhausted the German forces were counter attacked by the French with British support, who drove them back over the Marne and Aisne. Here both sides dug in- a foretaste of trench warfare. (The map changes to show the battles of September and October) Both sides tried to outflank each other to the north in what became known as the 'race to the sea'." (The map now shows the complete battle front going from central France near the German border west for 200 miles and curving north until it hits the northern coast of Western Belgium. The city of Ypres is flashing) The Belgian city of Ypres was the final barrier between the Germans and the Channel ports. The Allies determined to hold it at all costs. The Germans launched their first attack on Ypres in an attempt to break through but were finally beaten off by the very last reserves of the old regular British Army, crucially assisted by elements of the Indian Army.

The German attack died away and Ypres was saved- for the time being. Both sides then settled down for the first winter of the war." (The map zooms in to show the northern part of the front with another city flashing) By early 1915 both sides had begun to adjust to trench warfare. In March the British made an initially successful attack at Neuve Chapelle, but failure to follow up and a rapid response prevented further progress and heavy casualties were incurred. (The map zooms in further to the area around Ypres) With massive fire power, the Germans sought to capture the Ypres salient. During the assault they used chlorine gas for the first time, something the Allies were totally unprepared for. The fighting continued from 22 April to 27 May with no great advantage to either side. There were 95,000 casualties, 63% British and 37% German. (The map reverts back to the previous larger map with Loos just south of Neuve Chapelle flashing) The British attacked Aubers Ridge on 9 May, as an accompaniment to a French offensive in Artois. The offense was ill thought-out, with no clear objectives.

On 25 September 1915 the Allies launched a joint offensive. THe French attacked in Champagne, east of Riems, and Artois, whilst the British fought at Loos, where they used gas for the first time. After limited success, the offensive ground to a halt." (The map now shows Verdun in the southeast corner of the front flashing) In 1916 the German solution to the stalemate was to 'bleed France white' with a huge offensive at Verdun. Verdun was surrounded by a series of large forts. The town became a symbol of the resistence of the French nation." (The map zooms into the area of Verdun) On 21 February the heaviest German artillery bombardment of the war so far, shattered the French defences. On 23 June 1916, the Germans nearly broke through, but pressure on the French was relieved by the start of the French-British offensive on the Somme on 1 July. In the Autumn a French counter-offensive at Verdun forced the Germans to retreat virtually to their starting point.

In one of the longest and bloodiest battles of the war, the French incurred nearly 400,000 casualties, the germans almost 350,000." (The map reverts back to the previous larger map with the town of Albert on the Somme river flashing) "The Battle of the Somme In an attempt to relieve the French at Verdun, the British and French launched an offensive on the Somme. This was the 'Big Push', the offensive for which the eager volunteers of 1914 had long anticipated, and widely hoped to end the war. 120,000 men were to attack over an 18 mile front, preceded by a 7 day bombardment." (The map zooms into the area around Albert) "The Battle of the Somme The bombardment was unsuccessful. In many places the Germans survived in deep trenches. On the first day, 1 July 1916, nearly 20,000 Britons were killed and almost 40,000 injured or captured. By November the offensive had ground to a halt.

The Allies had captured ground at the cost of 420,000 British and 195,000 French casualties. But the battle had convinced the Germans that they did not want to face another battle like that at the Somme." (The map reverts back to the previous larger map. The central part of the battle line moves to the East and straightens out) The Germans pulled back to the freshly built 'Hindenburg Line' in March 1917. Believed to be an inpregnable defensive position it had barbed wire 100 yards or more deep, connected by concrete pill boxes. The withdrawl shortened the German front by nearly 50 miles. The evacuated area was devastated: roads destroyed, trees felled, towns demolished and water poisoned." (The same map shows the town of Arras on the northern edge of the Hindenburg Line flashing) On 9 April 1917, the British attacked successfully at Arras and the Canadian Corps gained a strategic success by taking Vimy Ridge. The Arras casualty rate was 4,070 men per day- the highest of the war.

On 16 April the new French Commander, General Robert Nivelle, launched an offensive in Champagne. The attack was a disaster. Mutinies broke out in the French army. Nivelle was dismissed and replaced by General Phillipe Petain." (The same map shows the town of Ypres in the north flashing) "Third Battle of Ypres Passchendaele On 7 June 1917, before the third battle of Ypres, the British launched a successful attack on Messines ridge, using 19 mines to literally blow the Germans off the ridge. The third battle of Ypres was launched by the British on 31 July. An attempt to capture the channel ports used by the Germans for their most dangerous naval weapon- submarines." (The map once again zooms into the area around Ypres) "Third Battle of Ypres Passchendaele Terrible weather and stubborn German resistance saw the offensive grind to a halt. 325,000 British soldiers were lost and the troops had advanced barely five miles. The battle of attrition almost broke the resolve of both armies.

For many, this was the lowest point of the war." On 20 November 1917, in the first mass tank attack, the British launched a surprise offensive towards Cambrai. Using 476 tanks, 32 of which were designed for cutting wire, the British broke through German lines and advanced five miles. Initially it was a huge success, but there were unsufficient reserves to consolidate the gains. On 30 November the Germans counter-attacked and regained much of the ground they had lost." (The map changes to show the central part of the battle front moving about 50 miles to the west) Following the Revolution, Russia signed a peace treaty with Germany, transferring one million men from the Eastern to the Western Front. With greater numbers of American troops arriving in France, the Germans, in a last bid to win the war, launched a massive offensive on 21 March 1918. It fizzled out, as did later attempts to effect a breakthrough.

It was only a matter of time, after July, before the Allies counter-attacked." (The map changes to show the entire battle front moving about 125 miles to the east) August 8th was the 'Black Day of the German Army'-the beginning of the end. With unceasing attacks, the allies drove the Germans back. In early October the British broke through the 'Hindenburg Line'. Increasing numbers of German soldiers surrendered and Germany began to talk of peace. (The map shows the new front with the central town of Mons flashing) By the end of October Germany admitted defeat and began looking for advantageous peace terms. By November, they had no choice but to accept the Allies' harsh surrender conditions. On 11 November 1918 the armistice document was signed in a railway carriage at Compiegne, and the guns fell silent at 11am. (The map zooms into the town of Mons) At Mons there is a memorial to the last shot fired during World War One. It is almost opposite the memorial to commemorate the first shot, fired four years before in 1914.

Learn and talk about Armistice of 22 June 1940, 1940 in France, 1940 in Germany, 1940 in military history, Armistices Left to right: Joachim von Ribbentrop , Wilhelm Keitel , Hermann Göring , Rudolf Hess , Hitler, and Walther von Brauchitsch in front of the Armistice carriage, 21 June 1940 The day before the Armistice is signed, Hitler chats with high-ranking Nazis and officers near the Compiègne Wagon . General Charles Huntziger signs the armistice on behalf of France. CBS war correspondent William L. Shirer in Compiegne, reporting on the negotiations or the signing of the armistice. The building in the background enshrines the railcar in which Marshal Foch accepted the German request for an armistice ending World War I on November 11, 1918. Hitler had the railcar removed from the building two days before the signing of the June 22, 1940 armistice.

The Armistice of 22 June 1940 was signed at 18:36 [1] near Compiègne , France , by officials of Nazi Germany and the French Third Republic . It did not come into effect until after midnight on 25 June. Signatories for Germany included senior military officers like Wilhelm Keitel , [1] the commander-in-chief of the Wehrmacht (the German armed forces), while those on the French side were more junior, such as General Charles Huntziger . Following the decisive German victory in the Battle of France (10 May–21 June 1940), this armistice established a German occupation zone in Northern and Western France that encompassed all English Channel and Atlantic Ocean ports and left the remainder "free" to be governed by the French. Adolf Hitler deliberately chose Compiègne Forest as the site to sign the armistice due to its symbolic role as the site of the 1918 Armistice with Germany that signaled the end of World War I with Germany's surrender.

Contents Main article: Battle of France The best, most modernised French armies had been sent north and lost in the resulting encirclement; the French had lost their best heavy weaponry and their best armored formations. Between May and June, French forces were in general retreat and Germany threatened to occupy Paris . The French government was forced to relocate to Bordeaux on 10 June to avoid capture and declared Paris to be an open city the same day. By 22 June, the German Armed Forces ( Wehrmacht ) had losses of 27,000 dead, more than 111,000 wounded and 18,000 missing. French losses were 92,000 dead and more than 200,000 wounded. The British Expeditionary Force apparently lost about 10,000 men: the often seen casualty figure of over 68,000 British men seems to include those killed, those wounded as well as those captured. Choice of Compiègne[ edit ] When Adolf Hitler received word from the French government that they wished to negotiate an armistice , Hitler selected Compiègne Forest as the site for the negotiations.

As Compiègne was the site of the 1918 Armistice ending the Great War with Germany's conflict cessation, Hitler saw using this location as a supreme moment of revenge for Germany over France. Hitler decided that the signing should take place in the same rail carriage, Compiègne Wagon , where the Germans had signed the 1918 armistice. However, in the last sentence of the preamble, the drafters inserted "However, Germany does not have the intention to use the armistice conditions and armistice negotiations as a form of humiliation against such a valiant opponent" referring to the French forces. Furthermore, in Article 3, Clause 2, the drafters stated that their intention was not to heavily occupy North-West France after cessation of hostilities with Britain . In the very same railway carriage in which the 1918 Armistice was signed (removed from a museum building and placed on the precise spot where it was located in 1918), on 21 June 1940, Hitler sat in the same chair in which Marshal Ferdinand Foch had sat when he faced the representatives of the defeated German Empire.

After listening to the reading of the preamble, Hitler – in a calculated gesture of disdain to the French delegates – left the carriage, as Foch had done in 1918, leaving the negotiations to his Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (High Command of the Armed Forces) Chief, General Wilhelm Keitel . Then negotiations lasted one day, until the evening of 22 June 1940 : General Huntzinger had to discuss the terms by phone with the French government representatives which had fled to Bordeaux, mainly with the newly nominated Defence minister, General Maxime Weygand . Terms[ edit ] Fall Rot in June exploited and sealed the stunning German success of Fall Gelb in May. Adolf Hitler had a number of reasons for agreeing to an armistice. He wanted to ensure that France did not continue to fight from North Africa, and he wanted to ensure that the French Navy was taken out of the war. In addition, leaving a French government in place would relieve Germany of the considerable burden of administering French territory, particularly as he turned his attentions towards Britain.

Finally, as Germany lacked a navy sufficient to occupy France's overseas territories, Hitler's only practical recourse to deny the British use of them, was to maintain a formally independent and neutral French rump state. According to William Shirer 's book Rise and Fall of the Third Reich , French General Charles Huntziger complained that the armistice terms imposed on France were harsher than those imposed on Germany in 1918. They provided for German occupation of three-fifths of France north and west of a line through Geneva, Tours and the Spanish border so as to give Nazi Germany 's Kriegsmarine access to all French Channel and Atlantic ports. All persons who had been granted political asylum had to be surrendered and all occupation costs had to be borne by France, to the tune of 400 million French francs a day. A minimal French Army would be permitted. As one of Hitler's few concessions, the French Navy was to be disarmed but not surrendered, for Hitler realized that pushing France too far could result in France fighting on from the French colonial empire .

An unoccupied region in the south, the Zone libre , was left relatively free to be governed by a rump French administration based in Vichy , which also administered the occupied zones, albeit under severe restrictions. This was envisaged to last until a final peace treaty would be negotiated. At the time, both French and Germans thought the occupation would be a provisional state of affairs and last only until Britain came to terms, which was believed to be imminent.[ citation needed ] For instance, none of the French delegation objected to the stipulation that French soldiers would remain prisoners of war until the cessation of all hostilities. Nearly one million Frenchmen were thus forced to spend the next five years in prisoner of war camps (about a third of the initial 1.5 million prisoners taken were released or exchanged as part of the Service du Travail Obligatoire forced labour programme by the Germans, before the war ended). [2] However, a final peace treaty was never negotiated, and the unoccupied zone was occupied by Germany and its Italian ally in Operation Anton following the invasion of French North Africa by the Allies in November 1942.

Article 19 of the Franco-German armistice required the French state to turn over to German authorities any German national on French territory, who would then frequently face deportation to a concentration camp (the "Surrender on Demand" clause). [3] The French delegation – led by General Charles Huntziger – tried to soften the harsher terms of the armistice, but Keitel replied that they would have to accept or reject the armistice as it was. Given the military situation that France was in, Huntziger had "no choice" but to accede to the armistice terms. The cease-fire went into effect at 00:35 on 25 June 1940, more than two days later, only after another armistice was signed between France and Italy, the main German ally in Europe. The armistice did have some relative advantages for the French, compared to worse possible outcomes, such as keeping the colonial empire and the fleet, and, by avoiding full occupation and disarmament, the remaining French rump state in the unoccupied zone could enforce a certain 'de facto' independence and neutrality vis-à-vis the Axis.

Destruction of the armistice site in Compiègne[ edit ] Main article: Glade of the Armistice Shortly before its destruction, the 1918 "Alsace-Lorraine monument", depicting a German eagle impaled by a sword, now covered with the Third Reich flag, and guarded by a German soldier. A reproduction of the wagon where the Armistice of 22 June 1940 was signed between Germany and France, and where the Armistice of 11 November 1918 was signed between Germany and the Allies, at the museum Clairière de l'Armistice ( Rethondes ). The Armistice site was demolished by the Germans on Hitler's orders three days later. [4] The carriage itself was taken to Berlin as a trophy of war, along with pieces of a large stone tablet which bore the inscription (in French): HERE ON THE ELEVENTH OF NOVEMBER 1918 SUCCUMBED THE CRIMINAL PRIDE OF THE GERMAN REICH. VANQUISHED BY THE FREE PEOPLES WHICH IT TRIED TO ENSLAVE.

The Alsace-Lorraine Monument (depicting a German Eagle impaled by a sword) was also destroyed and all evidence of the site was obliterated, with the notable exception of the statue of Marshal Foch : Hitler intentionally ordered it to be left intact, so that it would be honoring only a wasteland. The railway carriage itself was later exhibited in Berlin, and then taken to Crawinkel in Thuringia in 1945, where it was destroyed by SS troops and the remains buried. The site and memorials were restored by German POW labour, after the war. ^ Durand, La Captivité, p. 21 ^

Question: In a railway carriage near which city in Northern France did the allies and the Germans sign the Armistice which ended WWI?
Answer: COMPIEGNE