Just after 5 o’clock on the morning of 11 November 1918, British, French, and German officials gathered in a railway carriage in the Compiègne Forest, north of Paris, to sign an agreement that would end hostilities between the Allies and their last remaining opponent, Germany. The Armistice stipulated that fighting would cease on land, at sea, and in the air, effectively bringing World War I to an end.
However, the ceasefire was not set to take effect until six hours later, at 11 a.m., to ensure that word could reach troops on the front lines. Yet in those final hours, thousands of soldiers were killed and many more wounded.
The bloodshed was not caused by miscommunication. News of the armistice flashed across the world within minutes of its signing. Instead, it was the decision of aggressive Allied commanders who ordered their troops to continue fighting until the official hour, even going so far as to retake towns the Germans had already agreed to surrender. This reckless insistence on last-minute offensives cost thousands of avoidable casualties. Among them was 23-year-old Henry Gunther.
Signing of the Armistice of 11 November 1918. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
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