On 11 November 1918, an armistice was signed between the Allies and Germany, ending the hostilities on the Western Front. The German leader Kaiser Wilhelm II had abdicated the day before, which opened the way for an armistice to be negotiated. The signing of the armistice took place in a train carriage in a forest in Northern France. Here the German delegation, headed by Matthias Erzberger, agreed to a list of thirty four terms effectively leading to the demilitarisation of Germany. While not technically a surrender, the terms of armistice centred around the termination of military hostilities at 11am of the day of signing, the withdrawal of German troops from occupied territories, and the promise of reparations for war damage. Six months later these terms would form the basis for the Treaty of Versailles, which formalised the peace agreements between the Allies and Germany.

News of the armistice was quickly transmitted around the world, and this telegram was received from the London Post Office by the Governor-General in Wellington at 10.55am. The announcement was officially published on 12 November in New Zealand and celebrations were held in many places around the country, despite the dangers of the influenza pandemic which had arrived in New Zealand a month earlier. This item comes from a record group of secret telegraphic reports on the war situation from 1917-1918, which is part of the records of the Governor-General’s office.

Archives reference: ACHK 16598 G43/2 www.archway.archives.govt.nz/ViewEntity.do?code=16598

More on the Armistice can be found at www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/first-world-war

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