War chronicle · 11 November · Cologne, Germany
Armistice
The guns fall silent as the Central Powers call for peace.
One by one the Central Powers call for peace. Each negotiates a separate armistice with the Allies.
But this is no simple ceasefire. Britain and France both insist on harsh conditions that effectively require Germany to surrender in all but name. Reluctantly, the Germans agree and the armistice comes into effect at 11am, 11 November. Hostilities on the Western Front have ended.
The New Zealanders are in France when the news comes through. They greet it with some scepticism and disbelief, but this is soon dispelled when they receive orders to join British forces in occupying the German city of Cologne.
The Kiwi troops spend three months in Cologne before heading to England to wait to be shipped back home. Millions of American, Canadian, and Australian soldiers are also waiting, and demand for transport ships is at an all-time high. Much to everyone’s frustration, it takes until mid-1920 before the last New Zealand soldiers finally come home.
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