Monthly Archives: October 2018

31 October 1918 – Austria surrenders unconditionally

British Army Form "C" Messages and Signals. Filled "Official Austria surrenders unconditionally." From QADO

 

 

Transcription

To GARA

Official Austria surrenders

unconditionally

From QADO


Commentary

One of the documents that Peirs chose to keep was this curt announcement that Austria-Hungary had surrendered unconditionally. This was not exactly true on October 31, 1918; instead the Dual Monarchy began negotiations with the Italian government for a ceasefire. The political situation in the former empire was disastrous. The nation had broken apart and the army had ceased to function as a military organization. The writing was not on the wall – there was no wall left to write upon for the once great empire. For more context into the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918 see Graydon Tunstall’s excellent article on the the end of the war for the Central Powers.