Armistice Day, 11th November 1918-2018.

Huge crowd at Parliament House for the Declaration of the Signing of the Armistice 

Adelaide, 1918
Photo credit: Australian War Memorial

By Nov 1918 the Allied armies had driven the German invaders back, having inflicted heavy defeats on them over the preceding months. Finally the Germans accepted Allied terms, signing an armistice in Commander Marshal Ferdinand Foch’s railway carriage, stationed in the Compiègne forest north of Paris.

When the formal Armistice came into effect on 11th Nov 1918, the guns of the Western Front fell silent for the first time in over four years of brutal warfare.

It was early morning in Britain when peace was declared, but grad­ually the news was spreading, on the western front and the home front. Soldiers were cheering after sunrise. Ports celebrated early because that was where people were given the news by the sirens of naval vessels. In London crowds formed in Downing St, as newspapers and newsboys spread the word. The prime minister David Lloyd George appeared outside #10 and received the cheers of many thousands of citizens. In many towns, bells & music announced the news. In churches every­where, the emphasis was on triumph, not remembrance of the dead.

When it got dark across Britain, fireworks and bonfires were lit, and street lights came on for the first time in years. It was a magical evening. Quiet didn’t arrive until midnight.

From then on, Armistice Day was marked on 11th hour of 11th day of 11th month each year. This first modern world conflict had brought about the mobilisation of 70+ million people and left 9-13 million dead, perhaps one-third of them with no known grave. The Allied nations chose this day and time for the commemoration of their war dead.

On the first anniversary of the armistice in 1919, 2 minutes' silence was used as part of the main commemorative ceremony at the new Cenotaph in London. The silence was proposed by Aust­ralian journalist Edward Honey, who was working in Fleet St. At the same time, a South African statesman made a similar proposal to the British Cabinet which endorsed it. King George V personally requested all British Empire peoples to sus­pend normal activities for two minutes on the hour of the armistice. After all, this was the moment that ended the worldwide carnage of the four preceding years and marked the victory of Right and Freedom. The two minutes' silence became the central feature of Armistice Day commemorations.

In the four years of WW1, 330,000+ Australians had served overseas and 60,000+ of them had died. The social effects of these losses cast a misery over families, communities and the nation in the 1919-39 era. 

Note Castlereagh St Sydney looking down to George St where a large crowd which had gathered in Martin Place to cel­ebrate Armistice Day’s first anniversary in 1919. The clock on the GPO building says 12 o'clock and a replica sailing ship float has been set up in the centre.

First anniversary of Armistice Day in Sydney, 1919

Photo credit: Australian War Memorial

On the second anniversary of the armistice in 1920 the commem­or­ation was given added significance when it became a funeral, with the return of the remains of an unknown soldier from the Western Front. Unknown soldiers were interred with full military honours in Westminster Abbey in London and at the Arc de Triumph in Paris. The entombment in London attracted 1,000,000+ people within a week to pay their respects at the unknown soldier's tomb. Most other allied nations adopted the tradition of entombing unknown soldiers over the following decade.

Charles Bean, Australia's official WWI historian, planned a museum memorial to Australian soldiers. The Australian War Records Sect­ion was established in May 1917, the records being exhibited first in Melbourne and later in the new Federal capital, Canberra. Two of the entrants in an architecture competition, Emil Sodersten and John Crust, were encouraged to present a joint design for the new Australian War Memorial in Canberra. The War Memorial building was officially opened following a Rem­em­br­ance Day cerem­ony on 11th Nov 1941 by Governor-General Lord Gowrie. Newer add­itions allowed the remembrance of Australia's particip­at­ion in all subsequent wars. 

After WW2 ended, the Australian & British governments changed the name from Armistice Day to Remembrance Day, to comm­emorate all war dead. All school students in the post-war era were assembled before 11 AM, to lower the flag to half mast and to honour the 2 minutes of silence. I remember it very well!

In Australia on the 75th anniversary of the armistice in 1993 Remembrance Day ceremonies again became the focus of national att­ent­ion. The remains of an unknown Australian soldier, exhumed from a WW1 military cemetery in France, were ceremonially entombed in the Memorial's Hall of Memory. Remembrance Day ceremonies were cond­uct­ed simultaneously in towns and cities all over the country. The day was formally re-established as a significant national day.

Remembrance Day 2018

Australian War Memorial, Canberra

On every Remembrance Day, the Australian War Memorial in Canberra hosts the nation’s key commemoration. The ceremony, which includes a formal wreath laying, is attended by many high-level dignitaries, diplomats, school students and members of the general public. Australia’s Federation Guard and the Band of the Royal Military College Duntroon form part of the parade.

What about ANZAC Day each year? 25th April marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during WW1. Anzac Day carried proof of untested national qualities, with some imperial endorsement for the Australian and New Zealand fighting men. For most it was a day to proudly remember service and sacrifice. Thus Anzac Day combined mourning AND nation-building in a way that Remembrance Day did not; positivity amid the solemnity. Grief and national pride were combined in equal measure, meaning that Anzac Day was understood in different ways. For some it was a day to proudly remember service and sacrifice. For my grandfather and father, it was a day to remember the tragedy of war.

red poppies on the Roll of Honour

Australian War Memorial, Canberra