End of WW1

Russian philosopher Piotr Struve commented in the middle of the Russian Civil War (1917-1923) that,

Just as the start and duration of the First World War were messy and complex, so was its end. The end of the First World War cannot be easily dated. Furthermore, the legacies of the harsh terms of the peace treaty, known as the Treaty of Versailles, set the scene for future violence in Europe. Let's explore how and why WWI ended and the impact of the armistice and peace treaty formally concluding the war.

Date of the End of WW1

You'd think it would be easy to define the date that ended WWI. On 11 November 1918, Germany signed the armistice treaty, acknowledging military defeat and agreeing to an immediate ceasefire against the Allies. Britain continues to commemorate this date in its Remembrance Day each year.

Fig. 1 This photo was taken just after the armistice was signed on 11 November 1918.

However, history is rarely so black-and-white. Although troops began to withdraw from the Western Front on 11 November 1918, fighting continued in many areas of the Western Front after the ceasefire announcement. Moreover, the formal state of war continued between Germany and the Allies until the Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919. Indeed, the Senate of the United States of America only formally ended its involvement in WWI when the Knox-Porter Resolution was signed on 2 July 1921.

Historian Robert Gerwarth points out that history is usually told from the point of view of the victors. From the Allies' perspective, WWI ended in 1918 or 1919, when their armies returned home, and they no longer faced the prospect of violence. However, from the perspective of the defeated powers, the violence continued to spill over into the early 1920s:

For this reason, it could be argued that WWI didn't properly finish until 1923, when many of these civil wars and violent uprisings ended.

End of WW1 Facts

At the start of 1918, it looked as if Germany might win WWI. Russia had left the war the year before due to the Russian Revolution, and American forces had yet to join the allies on the Western Front. Germany launched a spring offensive in March 1918, and initially, they achieved considerable gains in territory.

However, the German forces overstretched themselves and suffered heavy casualties. By July, the offensive had stalled. Anti-war marches at home in Germany and low industrial output did not help morale.

On 8 August 1918, the allies began their counter-attack, known as the Hundred Days Offensive. German troops remembered the first day of this attack as the 'Black Day of the German Army'. On 13 August 1918, the high commanders of the German military met and agreed that they could not win WWI militarily. It was now a waiting game to see how badly they would be defeated.

Fig. 2 German prisoners being taken after an Allied victory during the Hundred Days Offensive in August 1918.

In September, the allies broke through the Hindenburg Line, Germany's defensive position they had held since the winter of 1916. Bulgaria signed an armistice with the Allies on 29 September 1918, meaning that Germany lost their main supply of oil and food. This led General Ludendorff, who had directed Germany's military strategy throughout WWI, to suffer a mental breakdown.

The culmination of Germany's defeat began at the end of October when the German navy mutinied against their commanding officers. The navy sailors refused to set sail for one last huge naval battle they saw as nothing less than a doomed suicide mission. The sailors' revolt spread and turned into a revolution in Germany. By 9 November, a new government had come into power in Germany and declared itself a republic. Kaiser Wilhelm II was forced to abdicate and fled to exile in the Netherlands. Meanwhile, on 30 October 1918, the Ottoman Empire signed the Armistice of Mudros with the allies. A few days later, on 3 November 1918, Austro-Hungary followed suit with an armistice of their own.

Germany's new government immediately negotiated an armistice with the Allied powers. The final ceasefire armistice was signed by Germany in a railway carriage in northern France at 5am on 11 November 1918.

Causes of the end of WW1

The following table analyses some of the key reasons why WWI ended the way it did f 1918.

End of WW1 Armistice

The armistice was signed by a German delegation headed by Matthias Erzberger, a member of Germany's new government. He had called for peace in 1917 and had opposed the war since then. The German delegation signed the armistice in a private railway carriage owned by French Allied Commander Ferdinand Foch in the forest of Compiegne. The terms of the armistice agreed that a ceasefire would come into effect on the eleventh hour of that day.

But what were the terms of the armistice that Matthias Erzberger agreed to?

• The Germans would evacuate all occupied territory in France and Belgium.
• The Germans should surrender military weapons such as planes, submarines, and machine guns.
• The Allies would occupy the Rhineland until a peace treaty was concluded.
• The Allied naval blockade of Germany would continue until a peace treaty was concluded.

The terms were harsh, but Germany was in no place to negotiate. Sadly, more than 2,000 men died fighting on the Western Front in the six hours after the armistice was signed and the ceasefire came into effect.

End of WW1 Treaty of Versailles

The Treaty of Versailles was the peace document signed by Germany and the Allies at the end of WWI. The document was signed in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles on 28 June 1919.

Fig. 3 Delegations signing the Treaty of Versailles in the Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles on 28 June 1919.

Lead up to the Treaty of Versailles

The treaty was drafted in spring 1919 during the Paris Peace Conference. This conference was held between the 'Big Four':

1. Woodrow Wilson (President of the USA)
2. David Lloyd George (Prime Minister of the UK)
3. Georges Clemenceau (Prime Minister of France)
4. Vittorio Orlando (Prime Minister of Italy)

None of the defeated powers were present at the conference.

Georges Clemenceau was worried that Germany might attempt a second invasion of France. He demanded that severe penalties be put on Germany to limit Germany's recovery after the war.

When the defeated powers were presented with the draft terms of the treaty, they were shocked and protested at the harshness of the terms. However, there was little they could do to change them.

The Terms of the Treaty of Versailles

The terms of the Treaty of Versailles were extremely severe.

• The population and territory of Germany were reduced by 10%.
  • France received its former territories of Alsace and Lorraine.
  • The League of Nations assumed governance of the Saarland.
  • Belgium received three small territories.
  • Denmark received North Schleswig.
  • Poland received West Prussia and Upper Silesia.
  • Danzig was declared a free city.
• The Allied powers took over all of Germany's overseas colonies.
• The 'War Guilt Clause' (Article 231) declared Germany the sole aggressor in starting WWI. Therefore, it determined that Germany was responsible for paying reparations to the Allied powers to compensate them for their damage in the war.
• Reparations reached approximately $33 billion, with extra penalties if Germany failed to keep up with their payments.
• The German army was restricted to 100,000 men.
• The manufacture of tanks, submarines, military aeroplanes, and warships was forbidden.
• All of Germany west of the Rhine river was to be a demilitarised zone.

Many Germans felt particular resentment towards the War Guilt Clause and the extremely high cost of the reparations. This helped usher Hitler to power since he exploited Germany's feeling of having been humiliated unjustly at the end of WWI.

End of WW1 Summary

Although Germany seemed on the verge of winning the war in spring 1918, their fortunes had reversed by autumn, and it became clear that the Allies would win the war.

In October 1918, the German revolution began. Kaiser Wilhelm was forced to abdicate, and a new government took over in Germany. This new government was committed to ending the war.

The ceasefire, which formally ended the fighting in WWI, occurred at 11am on 11 November 1918. It was signed in a railway carriage in northern France. However, the official state of war continued until the Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919.

The Treaty of Versailles laid out the terms of peace with the defeated powers. Germany was declared the sole aggressor of the First World War and, as such, was made responsible for paying reparations to compensate the allies for the damage they suffered during the conflict. Although Germany protested that the terms were far too harsh, they had no choice but to sign the treaty anyway.