WWI The Great War 1914-1918

11/11/2026

11 NOVEMBER 1918 – THE SIGNING OF THE ARMISTICE

Sometimes history has a way of finding you when you least expect it.

I came across this framed print tucked away in my attic this week. What a lovely discovery especially at this time of year.

The illustration depicts the signing of the Armistice on 11 November 1918, inside Marshal Ferdinand Foch's railway carriage in the Forest of Compiègne, France.

Around the table were representatives of the Allied and German delegations.
On the German side, the delegation was led by Matthias Erzberger, accompanied by Count von Oberndorff, General von Winterfeldt and Captain Vanselow.

Representing the Allies were Marshal Ferdinand Foch and Admiral Sir Rosslyn Wemyss. Also pictured are General Maxime Weygand, Commodore George Hope and Captain J.P.R. Marriott.

The agreement was signed at approximately 5.15 am. It stipulated that hostilities would cease at 11 am that morning.
At eleven o'clock, after more than four years of unimaginable suffering, the guns finally fell silent on the Western Front.

But it is worth remembering that this was an armistice, not a peace treaty. The formal peace settlement would come later, with the Treaty of Versailles in June 1919.

Looking at this illustration, it's difficult not to reflect on the millions of men who had endured the trenches, the mud, the bombardments and the terrible losses. For many, the news of the Armistice would come too late.

A chance discovery in an attic, but a reminder of one of the most significant moments in modern history.

Lest We Forget.

Do any of you have old family prints, photographs or memorabilia relating to the Great War? I'd love to see them.

08/11/2026

ON THIS DAY – 8 NOVEMBER 1917
A REVOLUTION IN RUSSIA. A NEW COMMANDER IN ITALY.

Thursday, 8 November 1917. The Great War was entering one of its most dramatic and consequential periods.

Two events, thousands of miles apart, would have lasting consequences for the future of Europe.

RUSSIA – LENIN PROMISES PEACE
Following the Bolshevik seizure of power in Petrograd the previous day, the Second Congress of Soviets met to establish the new revolutionary government.
On 8 November, Lenin's new government issued its famous Decree on Peace, calling on all belligerent nations to negotiate an immediate peace without annexations or reparations.
A Decree on Land was also adopted, abolishing landed estates and transferring land for the benefit of the peasantry.
The new government, headed by Lenin, was established as the Council of People's Commissars.
Russia was moving towards withdrawal from the war. The consequences would transform the political map of Europe.

ITALY – CADORNA IS REPLACED
Meanwhile, Italy was reeling from the catastrophic defeat at Caporetto.
The Austro-German offensive had shattered the Italian front, forcing a retreat towards the River Piave. Hundreds of thousands of Italian soldiers had been captured, and the country faced the prospect of invasion.
On 8 November, General Luigi Cadorna was replaced as Commander-in-Chief by General Armando Diaz.
Diaz inherited an army in crisis. His immediate challenge was to restore discipline, confidence and morale, and establish a defensive line capable of stopping the enemy.
The Italian Army would eventually make its stand on the Piave.

TWO EVENTS. ONE EXTRAORDINARY DAY.
In Russia, a revolutionary government was promising to take the country out of the war.
In Italy, a defeated army was changing its commander in an attempt to prevent national disaster.
The Great War was changing the political and military landscape of Europe.

(The photos show two nations at a crossroads. In Russia, a revolution promises peace. In Italy, an army struggles to survive. 8 November 1917).

Lest we forget.

07/11/2026

7 NOVEMBER 1918 – THE NIGHT THE ROAD TO PEACE BEGAN

The Location: Haudroy, northern France. Approximately 8.20pm.

After more than four years of slaughter, something momentous was about to happen on a quiet road in northern France.
Germany was on the brink of defeat. Its allies were gone, its armies were in retreat and revolution was spreading at home. The German government was being forced to seek an armistice.
But first, someone had to cross the front line.
Near the hamlet of Haudroy, French soldiers of the 171st Infantry Regiment had been waiting for a German delegation. They had orders to allow its safe passage through their lines.
As darkness settled, headlights appeared in the distance.

CARS IN THE DARKNESS
At 8.10pm, German Mercedes motor cars approached the French positions.
A large white flag flew from the leading vehicle. Standing on its running board was a German bugler, sounding the ceasefire signal.
Inside the cars was a delegation led by Matthias Erzberger, a German politician sent to negotiate an end to the war, accompanied by senior military and diplomatic representatives.
Around 8.20pm, Captain Marius Lhuillier of the French 171st Regiment stopped the convoy and received the German representatives.
The captain climbed onto the running board of the leading car. The German bugler was then replaced by a French soldier, Corporal Pierre Sellier.

THE BUGLE SOUNDS THROUGH THE NIGHT
As the convoy moved towards La Capelle, Sellier sounded the signals that allowed the German cars to pass safely through the French positions.
For four years, bugles had sounded the calls to attack, advance, rally and retreat. Now, a French bugler was sounding the signals that would allow the enemy's representatives to pass peacefully through the lines.
The symbolism was extraordinary.
The convoy reached La Capelle and was taken to the Villa Pasques, where the delegation was received by French officers.
The German representatives had crossed the front. The first stage of their mission was complete.

THE JOURNEY TO MARSHAL FOCH
The journey was not over.
After leaving La Capelle, the delegation travelled to Homblières, where it reached the headquarters of General Debeney shortly after midnight.
They were then taken to Tergnier railway station and boarded a special train bound for the Compiègne Forest.
At approximately 5.30am on 8 November, the train reached the clearing at Rethondes.
At 9am, Matthias Erzberger and his colleagues met Marshal Ferdinand Foch in his railway carriage.
The negotiations had begun.

FOUR MORE DAYS OF WAR
The arrival of the delegation did not mean the fighting had stopped. Foch refused to order a general ceasefire while negotiations continued.
On 9 November, Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated. On 10 November, the German government authorised acceptance of the Allied terms.
In the early hours of 11 November, the Armistice was signed.
At 11am, the guns finally fell silent on the Western Front.
Until that moment, men were still dying.

REMEMBERING HAUDROY
Today, the Pierre d'Haudroy memorial at La Flamengrie commemorates the place where the German delegation crossed the French lines on 7 November 1918.
There is one final, remarkable connection.
The French bugler, Pierre Sellier, who sounded the signals for the German delegation on 7 November, would sound the ceasefire again at Haudroy on 11 November, when the Armistice finally came into effect.

THE SAME ROAD. THE SAME BUGLER. FOUR DAYS APART.
On 7 November, the road to peace began.
On 11 November, the guns fell silent.

(The photos show the monument at Haudroy where the German delegates crossed the lines, Cpl Sellier's bugle which can be seen at the Musée de l'Armée in Paris and an image of the cars belonging to the German delegation)

Lest We Forget.

06/11/2026

ON THIS DAY – 6 NOVEMBER | THE FIRST WORLD WAR (1914–1918)

Five years of war. Five very different chapters in the history of the Great War.

6 NOVEMBER 1914 – THE FIRST BATTLE OF YPRES

The First Battle of Ypres reached its conclusion. British, French and Belgian forces had stopped the German advance towards the Channel ports, but at a terrible cost, particularly to the British regular army.

6 NOVEMBER 1915 – SERBIA IN CRISIS

The Bulgarian army captured Niš as the Central Powers tightened their grip on Serbia. The Serbian army was being forced into retreat, with its desperate withdrawal through Albania still to come.

6 NOVEMBER 1916 – THE SOMME

The Battle of the Somme was entering its final days. Fighting continued around Saillisel and St Pierre Vaast Wood, while British forces prepared for the final major offensive at the Ancre.

6 NOVEMBER 1917 – PASSCHENDAELE FALLS

Canadian troops captured the devastated village of Passchendaele after fierce fighting. The victory came at an enormous human cost. Meanwhile, in Russia, the Bolshevik Revolution was unfolding in Petrograd.

6 NOVEMBER 1918 – GERMANY SEEKS AN END TO THE WAR

With Germany facing military defeat and revolution at home, an armistice delegation was appointed under Matthias Erzberger. It would cross the front lines the following day to begin negotiations with the Allies.

FIVE YEARS IN PERSPECTIVE

1914: The defence of Ypres.
1915: The collapse of Serbian resistance.
1916: The final bloody weeks of the Somme.
1917: Passchendaele and revolution in Russia.
1918: Germany moves towards surrender.

On 6 November 1917, Canadian soldiers captured Passchendaele. Just five days later, the guns would fall silent across the Western Front.

(The photo shows a wounded Canadian soldier being helped through the battlefield by two German POWs during the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917).

Lest We Forget.

04/11/2026

ON THIS DAY – 4 NOVEMBER | THE FIRST WORLD WAR (1914–1918)

Five years. Five very different stages of the Great War. What was happening on 4 November each year?

🇬🇧 4 NOVEMBER 1914 – THE FIRST BATTLE OF YPRES

The fighting in Flanders was raging. British, French and Belgian troops were desperately holding the line against German attempts to break through towards the Channel ports. The original British Expeditionary Force was suffering terrible casualties.

🇷🇸 4 NOVEMBER 1915 – SERBIA IN CRISIS

Serbia was being invaded from three directions. German and Austro-Hungarian forces attacked from the north while Bulgaria advanced from the east. The Serbian army was being forced into a desperate retreat towards Albania.

🇬🇧 4 NOVEMBER 1916 – THE SOMME

The Battle of the Somme was approaching its conclusion. The British were preparing for the final major offensive around the Ancre, while the battlefield remained a devastated landscape of mud, shell holes and shattered villages.

🇨🇦 4 NOVEMBER 1917 – PASSCHENDAELE

The Third Battle of Ypres was nearing its end. Canadian troops were preparing for the final assault on Passchendaele village, which they would capture on 6 November. Meanwhile, Italy was struggling to recover from the catastrophic defeat at Caporetto.

🇮🇹 4 NOVEMBER 1918 – THE END OF AN EMPIRE

A momentous day. The Austro-Hungarian armistice came into effect at 3 pm, ending the fighting between Italy and Austria-Hungary. On the Western Front, however, the fighting continued. The German Revolution was gathering momentum.

THE BIG PICTURE

On this same date across five years:

1914 – Desperate defence.
1915 – Invasion and retreat.
1916 – Industrial-scale slaughter.
1917 – Attrition and exhaustion.
1918 – The collapse of empires.

And on 4 November 1918, the First World War on the Western Front still had seven days to run.

Thousands of men would die before the guns finally fell silent at 11 am on 11 November.

Lest We Forget.

01/07/2026

Rest in peace soldiers

25/04/2026

We will remember the brave troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

111 years ago, on the 25th of April 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers were part of the allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli peninsula. These became known as Anzacs and the pride they took in that name lives on.

The Anzacs landed on Gallipoli and met fierce resistance from the Turkish defenders. Their plan to knock Turkey out of the war quickly became deadlocked and the campaign dragged on for eight months.

At the end of 1915, the allied forces were evacuated. Both sides suffered heavy casualties during the campaign.

In total over 260,000 Australians and New Zealanders were casualties in the Great War.

The meaning of Anzac Day today includes the remembrance of all Australians and New Zealanders killed in military operations.

09/11/2025

Well worth a watch. The Royal British Legion festival of remembrance 2025.

Full coverage from the iconic Royal Albert Hall of the Royal British Legion’s annual Festival of Remembrance, attended by senior members of the royal family....

01/07/2025

This day in 1916, the first day of the Battle of the Somme, was the bloodiest day in the history of the British Army and one of the most infamous days of World War One. British forces suffered 57,470 casualties, including 19,240 fatalities. They gained just three square miles of territory.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

11/11/2024

On this Armistice Day anniversary, I always spare a thought in particular for Private George Edwin Ellison born in York, England on 10 August 1878.

Private Ellison was the last British soldier to be killed in action during the First World War. He died at 09:30 am on 11th November 1918 (90 minutes before the armistice came into effect), shot by a sniper while on a patrol in woodland on the outskirts of Mons, Belgium.

I took this photo in October 2019 while on a visit to pay my respects at his final resting place.

He is buried at St Symphorien military cemetery, Mons, Belgium.

We will remember them.