Veterans Day: Remembering the Armistice

A U.S. Navy Railway Gun

What is today celebrated as a day to remember all the veterans that have served the United States, originally signified the end of the international conflict in the early 20th century. The armistice celebrated November 11th marks the signing of the final armistice of World War I between Germany and the Allied powers. Three days prior to the signing the delegates from Germany were secretly brought across the war zone to a secure location on board  a carriage of Marshall Ferdinand Foch's private train parked in the forest of Compeigne. When the delegates arrived they were given a list of demands and 72 hours to agree. There was no room to actually negotiate during the period, and very little was promised in return by the Allies. Only a few impossible terms were they able to correct, such as the demand that they decommission more submarines than were in their fleet. After three days reviewing the harsh demands, with pressure from Germany for the armistice, the delegation signed at 5:00 AM, November 11th, 1918, ending the fighting. The last shot of the war was fired by the U.S. Navy railway battery number four near Verdun at 10:57:30 AM, timed so it would land far into the German-held territory right before the 11:00 AM cease-fire. Interestingly, no fighting had ever occurred on German soil in the West the entire length of the war. Now the actual terms of peace were not formalized until 6 months later after the Paris Peace Conference at the signing of the Versailles Treaty, which was signed  on the 28th of June, exactly 5 years after the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand (See previous post.) Rejecting President Wilson's 14 points, which the German's were reportedly expecting, the other Allies opted for harsher punishments for Germany, blaming them solely for the war. Many have criticized the Versailles treaty as not being designed to ensure a lasting peace, but is actually one of the reasons for the Second World War.

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie

One hundred years ago, the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne lit the fuse that caused the world to descend into the "Great War." There wasn't much great about the conflict that cost the lives of over 15 million people. While the growing armament and resentment of the pre-war era is heavily discussed, not many talk about the actual murder of the man and wife whose deaths were used almost as an excuse for the war. The Archduke was heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, a fairly large state that controlled what is now Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and more. In late June of 1914, Franz was on a diplomatic trip to meet with the governor of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Now, there was a lot of ethnic tension in these areas at the time. Nationalism was strong and many of these minorities felt that the Austrians were their unrightful rulers. In this particular area, many of the Serbians in the area felt much closer ties to their Serbian, and even Russian, neighbors than their Austrian governors. One of these Serbians was Gravilo Princip. He was a member of the Black Hand, an organization that basically wanted to unify all Serbians under a single state. They had already been part of assassination attempts before, even attempting to kill the emperor in 1911. On the 28th of June, Princip, along with other Black Hand members, attempted to kill the Archduke and his wife on their way into Sarajevo. One member threw a grenade at their car while they entered the city, but missed, and hit one of the cars behind them, hurting many of the bystanders. The man who threw the grenade ate a cyanide pill and jumped into the river Milijacka in an attempt to avoid capture. However, the cyanide pill was expired and simply made him sick, and the river was only a few inches deep and didn't kill him, and he was soon captured. The other assassins did not have another chance to attack as the car carrying Franz and his wife sped by. After having dinner with the governor and other officials, the Archduke and Sophie decided to visit those wounded in the explosion at the hospital. Unfortunately everyone forgot to tell the driver, who assumed they were still on schedule. Eventually one of the passengers figured out they were going the wrong way and told the driver to turn around. Now Princip, having avoided capture, went to a bar which had a large window that looked out onto the street. He glanced up from his beer and saw the Archduke's car turning around. Seizing the opportunity, he walked outside crossed to the car, and shot both Franz and Sophie. He attempted to take cyanide, but it too was expired; and when that didn't work he tried to shoot himself, but the cyanide made him vomit, allowing the police to subdue him. The Archduke's last words were reported to be "Sophie dear! Don't die! Stay alive for our children!" Unfortunately, Sophie and Franz both died shortly thereafter, as they were being rushed to help. After the assassination, much rumor occurred about the incident. Austria-Hungary and Serbia were already at odds, and the murder by the Serbian nationalists did anything but help. A month after the incident, an ultimatum was delivered to the Serbians. Franz and Sophie, the young parents were arguably the first causalities of this, the Great War.

The First Commercial Steam-Powered Railroad

The Salamanca

The Middleton Railway boasts an interesting history. The one mile long railway has been running longer than the United States has existed. Founded in 1758, it has been run by volunteers since 1960 as a heritage site. Located in West Yorkshire, England, the railway was originally made to transport coal to Leeds and was called a Wagon-Way. It was called such because it originally carried wagons pulled by horses on the wooden tracks. The Railway's claim to fame came in 1812, when it changed out the wagon system for a new steam-engine locomotive. The manager of the railway, John Blenkinsop, felt that they would need new rails for the engine to overcome the steep hills. So Blenkinsop designed and patented a railway which had one rail that was toothed like a gear. He then asked Matthew Murray, a successful innovator, to design a locomotive with a pinion, a toothed wheel, to mesh with the track. Murray built the Salamanca, the first steam locomotive to use two cylinders. Murray and Blenkinsop's inventions made this the first successful cog railway in the world! The Salamanca became the first successfully operated commercial steam locomotive in the world in 1812, and with it brought many other first-time world records to Middleton. Unfortunately some of these were terrible and unwanted records, such as the first person to be killed by locomotive in 1813. Another series of misfortune came again in 1818 and 1834 when boiler explosions occurred, killing the first ever regular locomotive driver, James Hewitt. Steam was abandoned after this in favor of horse-drawn wagons, until 1866 when new engines were introduced. The railway continued operating for many years, connecting to other rails and switching hands, until volunteers took over the small section in order to make a living history railway. The fascinating history of the Middleton Railway gives us a brief glimpse into the makings of the incredible machines that have and continue to transport and connect the world.