Armistice of Saint Jean d'Acre
Encyclopedia
The Armistice of Saint Jean d'Acre (also known as the Convention of Acre) concluded the Syria-Lebanon Campaign
of World War II
. It was an armistice
signed between Allied
forces in the Middle East
under the command of British
General
Henry Maitland Wilson, and Vichy France
forces in Syria
and Lebanon
, under the command of General Henri Dentz
, Commander in Chief of the Army of the Levant
(Armée du Levant
) and as High Commissioner of the Levant
. The Armistice of Saint Jean d'Acre was signed on 14 July 1941.
, Commander-in-Chief
of the Middle East Command
, received a wireless message from Dentz proposing the suspension of hostilities six hours later, at midnight. General Dentz declared himself ready to engage in talks on the basis of a memorandum presented to him that morning by the United States Consul at Beirut on behalf of the British Government. But Dentz made the reservation that he was empowered by the French Government to treat only with the British representatives to the exclusion of those of the Free French
.
The proposals presented by General Dentz were considered at once by the Middle East War Council. The council took into account the opinion of the
American Consul at Beirut that Dentz was entirely insincere and might be playing for time in the hope of a last minute rescue by the Germans. Accordingly, his conditions were rejected by the British and he was called on to send his plenipotentaries to the British outpost on the Beirut—Haifa Road at or before 0900 hours on the 12 July. Failure to do this would lead to the resumption of hostilities at that hour.
On 12 July, the Vichy second in command, Lieutenant-General Joseph-Antoine-Sylvain-Raoul de Verdillac attended the talks. He went all the way from Syria to Acre in the British Mandate of Palestine and was escorted by a convoy of Australian high commanding officers. General de Verdillac represented the Army of the Levant
for the Armistice talks instead of his superior commander, General Dentz. The 21 July 1941 issue of Time Magazine indicates that General Dentz sent General de Verdillac to the talks because de Verdillac was more pro-British and less anti-De Gaulle
than Dentz.
At 2200 hours on 12 July, the Armistice of Saint Jean d'Acre was initialled. The Allied forces were represented by General Wilson, by Air Commodore L. O. Brown, Royal Air Force
, by Captain J. A. V. Morse, Royal Navy
, and by Free French General Georges Catroux
. The Vichy French were represented by General de Verdillac.
The Armistice talks (The first between Great Britain
and France
since Napoleon's days) were held in the officers mess of "Sidney Smith Barracks", on the outskirts of the city of Acre. Despite the generosity of the British terms, representatives of Vichy made a brief show of refusing them, then dumped the whole mess into General Dentz's lap. On July 14 General Henri Fernand Dentz, Vichy's High Commissioner to the Levant States, signed Syria
and Lebanon
away to the conquering British and to the Free French Forces. The date seemed to mock General Denz for it was Bastille Day
, despite that fact, he signed and signed his full name. When General De Verdillac uncapped his pen to add his signature, all the lights in the room suddenly fused out, and so in order to complete the ceremony a dispatch rider's motorbike was brought from outside in to the room to light the place with its head lamp.
Syria-Lebanon campaign
The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It was an armistice
Armistice
An armistice is a situation in a war where the warring parties agree to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, but may be just a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace...
signed between Allied
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
forces in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
under the command of British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Henry Maitland Wilson, and Vichy France
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
forces in Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, under the command of General Henri Dentz
Henri Dentz
Henri Fernand Dentz was an officer in the French Army and, after France surrendered during World War II, he served with the Vichy French Army.-Syria-Lebanon campaign:...
, Commander in Chief of the Army of the Levant
Army of the Levant
The Army of the Levant identifies the armed forces of France and then Vichy France which occupied, and were in part recruited from, a portion of the "Levant" during the interwar period and early World War II.-Origins:...
(Armée du Levant
Army of the Levant
The Army of the Levant identifies the armed forces of France and then Vichy France which occupied, and were in part recruited from, a portion of the "Levant" during the interwar period and early World War II.-Origins:...
) and as High Commissioner of the Levant
High Commissioners of French-mandated Syria and Lebanon
High Commissioners of Syria and Lebanon were the highest ranking authority representing France in the french mandated countries of Syria and Lebanon. They were based in Beirut, Lebanon...
. The Armistice of Saint Jean d'Acre was signed on 14 July 1941.
Description
Having lost control of the Northern Desert and the Euphrates Province and being threatened with the imminent loss of Beirut, General Dentz decided to ask for an armistice. On the evening of the 11 July, British Lieutenant-General Claude AuchinleckClaude Auchinleck
Field Marshal Sir Claude John Eyre Auchinleck, GCB, GCIE, CSI, DSO, OBE , nicknamed "The Auk", was a British army commander during World War II. He was a career soldier who spent much of his military career in India, where he developed a love of the country and a lasting affinity for the soldiers...
, Commander-in-Chief
Commander-in-Chief
A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
of the Middle East Command
Middle East Command
The Middle East Command was a British Army Command established prior to the Second World War in Egypt. Its primary role was to command British land forces and co-ordinate with the relevant naval and air commands to defend British interests in the Middle East and eastern Mediterranean region.The...
, received a wireless message from Dentz proposing the suspension of hostilities six hours later, at midnight. General Dentz declared himself ready to engage in talks on the basis of a memorandum presented to him that morning by the United States Consul at Beirut on behalf of the British Government. But Dentz made the reservation that he was empowered by the French Government to treat only with the British representatives to the exclusion of those of the Free French
Free French Forces
The Free French Forces were French partisans in World War II who decided to continue fighting against the forces of the Axis powers after the surrender of France and subsequent German occupation and, in the case of Vichy France, collaboration with the Germans.-Definition:In many sources, Free...
.
The proposals presented by General Dentz were considered at once by the Middle East War Council. The council took into account the opinion of the
American Consul at Beirut that Dentz was entirely insincere and might be playing for time in the hope of a last minute rescue by the Germans. Accordingly, his conditions were rejected by the British and he was called on to send his plenipotentaries to the British outpost on the Beirut—Haifa Road at or before 0900 hours on the 12 July. Failure to do this would lead to the resumption of hostilities at that hour.
On 12 July, the Vichy second in command, Lieutenant-General Joseph-Antoine-Sylvain-Raoul de Verdillac attended the talks. He went all the way from Syria to Acre in the British Mandate of Palestine and was escorted by a convoy of Australian high commanding officers. General de Verdillac represented the Army of the Levant
Army of the Levant
The Army of the Levant identifies the armed forces of France and then Vichy France which occupied, and were in part recruited from, a portion of the "Levant" during the interwar period and early World War II.-Origins:...
for the Armistice talks instead of his superior commander, General Dentz. The 21 July 1941 issue of Time Magazine indicates that General Dentz sent General de Verdillac to the talks because de Verdillac was more pro-British and less anti-De Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
than Dentz.
At 2200 hours on 12 July, the Armistice of Saint Jean d'Acre was initialled. The Allied forces were represented by General Wilson, by Air Commodore L. O. Brown, Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
, by Captain J. A. V. Morse, Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, and by Free French General Georges Catroux
Georges Catroux
Georges Catroux was a French Army general and diplomat who served in both World War I and World War II, and served as Grand Chancellor of the Légion d'honneur from 1954 to 1969.-Biography:...
. The Vichy French were represented by General de Verdillac.
The Armistice talks (The first between Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
since Napoleon's days) were held in the officers mess of "Sidney Smith Barracks", on the outskirts of the city of Acre. Despite the generosity of the British terms, representatives of Vichy made a brief show of refusing them, then dumped the whole mess into General Dentz's lap. On July 14 General Henri Fernand Dentz, Vichy's High Commissioner to the Levant States, signed Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
away to the conquering British and to the Free French Forces. The date seemed to mock General Denz for it was Bastille Day
Bastille Day
Bastille Day is the name given in English-speaking countries to the French National Day, which is celebrated on 14 July of each year. In France, it is formally called La Fête Nationale and commonly le quatorze juillet...
, despite that fact, he signed and signed his full name. When General De Verdillac uncapped his pen to add his signature, all the lights in the room suddenly fused out, and so in order to complete the ceremony a dispatch rider's motorbike was brought from outside in to the room to light the place with its head lamp.
External links
- "Acre Pact" - Time Magazine Article, 1941