n.
(Nov. 11, 1918) Agreement between Germany and the Allies ending World War I .
Allied representatives met with a German delegation in a railway carriage at Rethondes, France, to discuss terms. The agreement was signed on Nov. 11, 1918, and the war ended at 11:00 AM that day ("the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month"). The principal term was that Germany would evacuate Belgium, France, and Alsace-Lorraine. Negotiations formalizing the armistice were conducted at the Paris Peace Conference . Later a "stab in the back" legend developed in Germany, asserting that the German military situation had not been hopeless and that traitorous politicians had done the Allies' bidding by signing the Armistice.