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wats6831 OP t1_iwo3bv7 wrote

Reply to comment by DefiantCondor in TIL: WW1 Armistice Day was Nov 11th, fighting was to cease at 11:00 AM. An American solider charged a German machine gun nest with 16 mins left, and died at 10:59 AM. The last soldier to die in WWI. by wats6831

No I learned it from a documentary series on WW1.

Seems incredibly stupid that they just kept on fighting and all commanders were told to continue operations up until the very end even for territory that Germany had said it would give back to France in the agreement.

I don't understand any of it.

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theguineapigssong t1_iwo630r wrote

At the time, they weren't sure the peace would hold so they kept fighting to gain the most advantage in case fighting resumed.

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wats6831 OP t1_iwo8dei wrote

Not true.

They were told to hold the line, not advance and not retreat.

Germany had already agreed to give back the land it had gained (to France).

There was literally no point to continue, the peace agreement had already been signed by all parties.

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w00tabaga t1_iwod19o wrote

Ehh, from what I’ve read he is actually correct. Some commanders didn’t believe the war would actually be over, some fought that morning to ensure they couldn’t be trapped by the enemy in case they tried attacking them, and some wanted some glory before the war was over. These cases were isolated, but it indeed did happen on small scales.

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HawkeyeJosh t1_iwo6wwi wrote

At that point it seemed more like they were just staying in position just to be on the safe side (literally and figuratively) until the clock struck the magic hour.

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