Marshal of France Ferdinand Foch, the Allied supreme commander.
First Sea Lord Admiral Rosslyn Wemyss, the British representative.
Matthias Erzberger, a German civilian politician.
Count Alfred von Oberndorff from the German Foreign Ministry.
High Seas Fleet Surrender 25 – Signing the Armistice
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On 6th November 1918, a German Government delegation travelled to France, to a meeting arranged at the private train of Marshal Foch in a railway siding in the forest of Compiegne, near Paris.
(You can read more about the events leading up to and following the Armistice HERE.
On the 7th November, as they passed through the Western Front, a temporary cease-fire was arranged on both sides.
The German cease-fire radio message was picked up by Reuters and published in local newspapers resulting in widespread celebrations before a retraction was issued. The False Armistice.
The news reached the USN ships attached to the Grand Fleet as reported in this extract from North Sea Days, the history of USS Texas with the Grand Fleet
The delegation arrived at Compiegne on November 8th 1918.
left to right – Vanselow, von Oberndorff, von Winterfeldt, Marriott, Ertzberger, Hope, Wemyss, Foch, Weygand.
On 10th November, the Kaiser abdicated
Marshal of France Ferdinand Foch, the Allied supreme commander.
The Allied delegates
The Armistice Terms
Admiral Wemyss insisted that the naval terms of the Armistice included the surrender of the latest ships of the High Seas Fleet and all U-boats.
A 6 am telephone call
Although the Armistice was signed at 5.00 am, there was concern over the mutinous state of the German Navy.
At 6.00 am this telephone call was placed by Captain Marriott from Compiegnes to the Admiralty in London.
Message begins
The Armistice with Germany was signed at 5am French time. There have been slight military modifications. A declaration has been signed by us and handed to the German Delegates to the effect that in the event of ships not being handed over owing to the mutinous state of the Fleet, the Allies reserve the right to occupy Heligoland and an advanced base to enable them to enforce the terms of the Armistice. The German delegation have on their part signed a declaration that they will recommend the Chancellor to accept this. Hostilities cease today at 11 am French time. Please inform all centres. Duration of Armistice 36 days
Message ends
Received from Capt. Marryat R.N. 6 am 11th inst and transmitted to War Office by Gen Grant 6 am
The full Armistice documents
The original armistice document was written in French. There is a copy HERE
It was then translated into English. HERE is a copy of the full document.
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