The Compiegne truce, which put an end to the First World War, was signed on November 11, 1918 in a railway carriage. This event established an unstable peace for the next twenty years.
Germany's hopeless martial law
On September 25, 1918 (a little more than two weeks before the signing of the Kopien Armistice), German senior military leaders informed Kaiser Wilhelm II and Chancellor fot Gertling that the position of the Second Reich was hopeless. One of the generals, Erich Ludendorff, even suggested that the front was unlikely to last even the next twenty-four hours. He advised his superiors to ask the Entente for an immediate ceasefire, to accept Wilson’s Fourteen Points, and to democratize the government. Erich Ludendorff suggested that such actions would make it possible to obtain more favorable conditions for Germany for peace, save the face of the empire, and subsequently shift the responsibility for losing to the parliament and democratic parties.
Chancellor change and start of peace talks
On October 3, Georg von Gertling was succeeded by Maximilian of Baden, the last Chancellor of the German Empire, who would later announce the abdication of William the Second. He was instructed not only to agree on a truce, but also to preserve the monarchy.
Negotiations on the terms of the Compiegne Armistice began on the fifth of October 1918. Wilson insisted on the mandatory abdication of the Kaiser as a prerequisite, but the statesmen of the Second Reich were then completely not ready to consider such an option. Wilson also pointed out the need for the liberation of all occupied territories and an end to the submarine war. Since the conditions did not suit the German government, negotiations stopped for a while.
German Navy Revolt and Revolution
The ruling elite of the Second Reich, even despite the extremely difficult situation, still hoped to bargain for an acceptable ceasefire. To strengthen its position in the negotiations on the Kopmyenskoy truce, the government conceived a real adventure. On October 24, Admiral Scheer gave the command, according to which the German fleet was to give a decisive battle to the British forces, backed by American forces. From the point of view of the war, such a move was completely hopeless, since the Entente enjoyed a frank advantage.
Among the sailors of the Second Reich at that time anti-war sentiments were already very widespread. Some crews refused to obey the order. The sailors, who remained subordinate to the commanders, arrested the rioters and returned the ships to the base. But in the city itself, there were much more like-minded people arrested than on ships. In the next few days, demonstrations and rallies began in the city, which quickly grew into armed clashes with government forces. Soon, the revolution that began in Kiel swept all over Germany.
Decisive thirty-six hours
Due to the illness, Maximilian Badensky fell into oblivion for a decisive thirty-six hours from the first to the third of November. When he came to, the most important allies of the Second Reich - Austria-Hungary and Turkey - had already left the war, and riots broke out all over Germany. Maximilian understood that the Kaiser could not save the throne, and urged him to abdicate in order to prevent bloodshed. William the second was adamant, but already began to hesitate. Without waiting for the final decision of the Kaiser, Maximilian Badensky announced the abdication of William the second and his resignation. This happened on November 9, 1918 - three days before the signing of the Compiegne Armistice. A republic was proclaimed in Germany.
Armistice in a Marshall Wagon
With the abdication of William II from the throne, the main obstacle to the signing of a peace treaty was eliminated, but now the parties were forced to speed up the process, as there were fears that events in Germany would develop according to the “Russian” scenario (red flags were already flying on the ships of the German fleet on November 5 )
On November 8, the German delegation arrived in Compiegne Forest in French Picardy - it was there that the headquarters of Commander Marshal Ferdinand Foch was located. The Compiegne truce, the reasons for the signing of which in a hurry are already clear, was concluded on November eleven at five o'clock ten in the morning in the Compiegne carriage. From Germany, the truce was signed by Major General Detlof von Wintefeldt. The Entente was represented by Ferdinand Von himself, and English admiral Rosslyn Wimiss was also present.
The Compiegne truce of 1918 entered into force at eleven o'clock in the morning of that day. The end of hostilities was declared 101 in one gulp.
Terms of the peace agreement
According to the signed document, hostilities ceased within six hours, that is, at eleven o'clock on the eleventh day of November 11, 1918. In addition, the conditions of the Compiegne Armistice determined that Germany was obliged:
- In a fifteen-day period, to evacuate all of its troops from Belgium, France, Alsace and Lothargin, Luxembourg.
- Within a seventeen-day period, to evacuate troops on the banks of the Rhine with the occupation of these territories by the Allies and the United States.
- Evacuate all troops on the eastern front to positions as of August 1, 1914.
- Renounce treaties with Romania and the Soviet Union (Bucharest Peace Treaty and Brest Peace, respectively).
- Transfer the entire submarine fleet and ground vessels to the victorious countries.
- Hand over five thousand military guns, twenty five thousand mortars, more than one and a half thousand aircraft, five thousand locomotives, one hundred and fifty thousand wagons, and so on, in good condition.
Final consolidation of peace
The Compiegne truce was finally enshrined in the Treaty of Versailles, the conditions of which were extremely difficult for Germany. Germany did not have the right to form an army of more than one hundred thousand people and have modern weapons, and also paid reparations to the victorious countries. The last reparation payment was on October 3, 2010. Marshal Ferdinand Foch, having read the text of the treaty, noted that this is not peace, but a truce for twenty years. He was mistaken for only two months.