subject: What Is A Armistice [print this page] An armistice is an agreement to stop fighting in a war. It may apply to the whole war, or just to part of it. Sometimes opposing commanders agree to an armistice for a short period of time, to take care of their dead and wounded. After this type of armistice, the fighting begins again. A general armistice stops the fighting in an entire war. This armistice continues until a peace treaty is signed. When people speak of "the Armistice," they usually mean the one that ended the fighting in World War I. The World War I armistice was signed in a railroad car near Compiegne, a town in northern France. Generals of the Allied and German armies met there. They agreed to stop fighting at 11 o'clock in the morning on November 11, 1918. The Germans admitted they had lost the war and agreed to withdraw all their soldiers, and to give up many ships, submarines, trucks, and locomotives. There had been a false rumor of an armistice on November 8. On that date the people in France, England and America rejoiced because they thought the war had ended. Then, of course, they were disappointed, but not for long, because the real armistice was signed on November 11. November 11 was called Armistice Day after 1918, with parades and a minute of silence at 11 A.M. to honor those who died in World War I. After World War II, some Congressmen suggested changing the name to "Veterans Day," to honor the dead of all the wars. World War II was ended by surrenders rather than armistices (see the articles on V-E Day and V-J Day). Today, you may hear more of a "cease-fire" than of an armistice, but they mean about the same thing.
