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89-509: Dennis Specialist Vehicles was an English manufacturer of commercial vehicles based in Guildford , building buses , fire engines , lorries (trucks) and municipal vehicles such as dustcarts . All vehicles were made to order to the customer's requirements and more strongly built than mass production equivalents. For most of the 20th century the Dennis company was Guildford's main employer. Following

178-971: A "commercial motor vehicle" as any motorized road vehicle, that by its type of construction and equipment is designed for, and capable of transporting, whether for payment or not: Commercial trucks are classified according to the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR). Commercial vehicles are divided into eight classes based upon the gross vehicle weight (GVW). The United States Department of Transportation classifies commercial trucks with eight classes: Commercial vehicles are sometimes sought after for historic preservation as classic cars . News about preservation can be found in magazines such as Hemmings Motor News and Heritage Commercials . Commercial vehicle accidents and injuries are often more complex than regular car accidents, often involving additional concerns, background checks on operator driving records, and corporate maintenance records. Armistice of 11 November 1918 The Armistice of 11 November 1918

267-508: A 6-cylinder Cummins engine mounted forward of the axle. Previous models had used Gardner engines. The fire engineering division was closed and requirements contracted out to Carmichael in Worcester. At this time Dennis claimed 65 per cent of the fire engine market. John Dennis of the founders' family, previously coach and truck sales manager, left and set up John Dennis Coachbuilders to build complete fire engine bodies. The remaining business

356-755: A German withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line and loss of the gains of the German spring offensive . The Allied advance, later known as the Hundred Days Offensive , entered a new stage on 28 September, when a massive United States and French attack opened the Meuse–Argonne offensive , while to the north, the British were poised to assault at the St Quentin Canal , threatening a giant pincer movement . Meanwhile,

445-462: A commercial vehicle. Variations may exist from state-to-state on which "commercial vehicles" are prohibited on certain routes and lanes and between homeowner associations, which may employ broader definitions than their municipalities with regard to their own parking restrictions. Broadly defined, a vehicle may be considered a commercial vehicle if it: A vehicle can be used for a business, if not exclusively, and remain privately licensed, depending on

534-419: A considerable amount of instability in the new republic. The Armistice was the result of a hurried and desperate process. The German delegation headed by Erzberger crossed the front line in five cars and was escorted for ten hours across the devastated war zone of Northern France, arriving on the morning of 8 November 1918. They were then taken to the secret destination aboard Foch's private train parked in

623-532: A decade of financial difficulties original shareholders sold out in 1972 and Dennis's ownership has since passed through quite a number of hands. The Woodbridge site was sold and a new small factory built in Slyfield remains in use by lineal business descendant, bus-maker Alexander Dennis . No Dennis haulage trucks have been built since 1985. The last Dennis fire engine left the Guildford factory in 2007. The Dennis brand

712-529: A double-deck Lance and single-deck Lancet. The Dennis Ace, a smaller twenty-seater bus was brought into production in 1933 using the chassis of Dennis's small lorry. The Arrow Minor followed in 1935 and a new Falcon chassis in 1938. John and Raymond Dennis built 223 houses for their workers, 102 of them on a 20 acres estate in Woodbridge Hill for their Coventry motor workers who brought production of White & Poppe engines to Guildford in 1933. The area took on

801-788: A former Minister of Aviation, joined the board as did a new CEO and a new finance director. The workforce of 1,300 was cut by 150, mostly white-collar workers. A banker was added to the directorate. At King's suggestion Dennis Motor Holdings , was formed on 15 January 1970 as a holding company with all part-time directors. In June the chairman announced much greater losses in the subsequent half year but he remained optimistic. They listed their products as: commercial vehicles, fire engines, refuse collection vehicles and aircraft tractors. In 1971/72, Dennis sold 101 houses in Slyfield 's Woking Road and in Midleton Road, Dennisville . In March 1972 Hestair made

890-478: A horizontally mounted diesel engine and Paxit all-enclosed mechanical rear-loading refuse-collection vehicles. Rolls-Royce diesel engines replaced Dennis petrol engines in the fire engines during 1951. New show vehicles in 1952 included a 5½ litre Centaur chassis with platform body, a Pax chassis with tipping gear and a lightweight body and the Stork chassis. The AV1, a new diesel ambulance chassis, returned ambulances to

979-665: A new 125,000 square foot Dennis Eagle plant on the Heathcote Industrial Estate in Warwick opened, taking over the building of Dennis municipal vehicle chassis and the matching Eagle bodies. Construction of chassis for buses and coaches as well as fire appliances remained at Guildford but that factory lost 600 jobs. Building of fire appliance bodies was moved to Carmichael Fire in Worcester and all cabs to Duple at Blackpool . The re-organisation cost around £4 million covered by

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1068-519: A peace treaty. The Treaty of Versailles , which was officially signed on 28 June 1919, took effect on 10 January 1920. Fighting continued up until 11 a.m. CET on 11 November 1918, with 2,738 men dying on the last day of the war. The military situation for the Central Powers had been deteriorating rapidly since the Battle of Amiens at the beginning of August 1918, which precipitated

1157-660: A railway siding in the Forest of Compiègne . Foch appeared only twice in the three days of negotiations: on the first day, to ask the German delegation what they wanted, and on the last day, to see to the signatures. The Germans were handed the list of Allied demands and given 72 hours to agree. The German delegation discussed the Allied terms not with Foch, but with other French and Allied officers. The Armistice amounted to substantial German demilitarization (see list below), with few promises made by

1246-427: A significant block of shareholders dissatisfied with the performance of their business asked that Dennis Brothers cease production and liquidate its assets. The disputes ended when the rebels were unable to find a buyer for the Dennis business at an acceptable price. Major changes were made to management and to the directorate. The following year turnover grew again and profits seemed to have made improvement. New capital

1335-569: A successful takeover bid for Dennis Motor Holdings. It took effect in May 1972. With Dennis came 35 acres of sprawling red brick factory on the Guildford by-pass. Hestair announced it intended to sell surplus land. Hestair was a new industrial investment vehicle managed by David Hargreaves. It had purchased street sweeper bodybuilder Yorkshire Vehicles and dustcart bodybuilder Eagle Engineering in 1971. Hestair's other interests were agricultural engineering, toys and employment bureaux. Dennis Motor Holdings

1424-607: A truce, now also demanding reparation payments. The latest note from Wilson was received in Berlin on 6 November 1918. That same day, the delegation led by Matthias Erzberger departed for France. Aware that the refusal of the Kaiser to abdicate was a sticking-point in negotiations with the Allies as well as an impetus to revolution within Germany, Prince Max on his own authority announced that

1513-455: Is likely to have to deal with them later in regard to the international obligations of the German Empire, it must demand not peace negotiations but surrender." In late October 1918, Ludendorff, in a sudden change of mind, declared the conditions of the Allies unacceptable. He now demanded the resumption of the war which he himself had declared lost only one month earlier. By this time however

1602-565: Is still used on Alexander Dennis buses, Dennis Eagle dustcarts and Dennis mowers. Dennis Brothers was founded in 1895 by brothers John Cawsey Dennis (1871–1939) and (Herbert) Raymond Dennis (1878–1939) who made Speed King bicycles. They built the bicycles, initially from bought-in parts, and sold them from their shop, The Universal Athletic Stores, in High Street, Guildford . They made their first motor vehicle in 1898, and in 1899, their first car, The Dennis Light Doctor's Car . Though shown at

1691-633: The Allied blockade were increasingly leading to discontent and disorder. Although morale on the German front line was reasonable, battlefield casualties, starvation rations and Spanish flu had caused a desperate shortage of manpower, and those recruits that were available were war-weary and disaffected. On 29 September 1918, the German Supreme Army Command at Imperial Army Headquarters in Spa of occupied Belgium informed Emperor Wilhelm II and

1780-592: The Elbe , including Berlin, where the new Reich government, the socialist-dominated Council of the People's Deputies , had their full support. One of the primary goals of the councils was an immediate end to the war. Also on 9 November, Max von Baden handed the office of chancellor to Friedrich Ebert , a Social Democrat who the same day became co-chair of the Council of the People's Deputies. Two days later, on behalf of

1869-537: The Imperial Chancellor , Count Georg von Hertling , that the military situation facing Germany was hopeless. Quartermaster General Erich Ludendorff claimed that he could not guarantee that the front would hold for another two hours. Stating that the collapse of Bulgaria meant that troops destined for the Western Front would have to be diverted there, and this had "fundamentally changed the situation in view of

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1958-561: The Imperial German Army and put the responsibility for the capitulation and its consequences squarely into the hands of the democratic parties and the parliament . He expressed his view to officers of his staff on 1 October: "They now must lie on the bed that they've made for us." On 3 October 1918, the liberal Prince Maximilian of Baden was appointed Chancellor of Germany , replacing Georg von Hertling in order to negotiate an armistice. After long conversations with

2047-521: The Rhine , Entente occupation of the Rhineland and bridgeheads further east, the preservation of infrastructure, the surrender of aircraft, warships, and military materiel , the release of Allied prisoners of war and interned civilians, eventual reparations , no release of German prisoners and no relaxation of the naval blockade of Germany . The armistice was extended three times while negotiations continued on

2136-624: The Rodboro Buildings . This was the first purpose-built motor vehicle factory in Britain. Their range of cars was quickly extended to 12 hp, 14 hp, 16 and 20 hp chassis fitted with tourer, town car and limousine bodies. From the Dennis Brothers stand at the 1903 Crystal Palace Motor Show the brothers sold almost £30,000 worth of cars and took many more orders. Larger models followed their first light cars. A 35 hp model in 1906

2225-639: The 300 series and 425 Integral followed parts and service to Plaxton later. Plaxton took the Duple sites in London, Blackpool and Glasgow to enlarge their spares and repairs network. Dennis and Duple had developed the Dart , a midibus bought by London Transport as a one-man operated bus to replace their AEC Routemasters . At the end of 1989 Dart bodywork production moved from the closed Duple to Carlyle Works in Birmingham. The Dart

2314-598: The Allied Supreme Commander, French Marshal Ferdinand Foch , it came into force at 11:00 a.m. Central European Time  (CET) on 11 November 1918 and marked a victory for the Entente and a defeat for Germany, although not formally a surrender. The actual terms, which were largely written by Foch, included the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front , the withdrawal of German forces from west of

2403-542: The Allies and Germany was subsequently settled in 1919, by the Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles that same year. Many artillery units continued to fire on German targets to avoid having to haul away their spare ammunition. The Allies also wished to ensure that, should fighting restart, they would be in the most favourable position. Consequently, there were 10,944 casualties, of whom 2,738 men died, on

2492-495: The Allies in return. The naval blockade of Germany was not completely lifted until complete peace terms could be agreed upon. There were very few negotiations. The Germans were able to correct a few impossible demands (for example, the decommissioning of more submarines than their fleet possessed), extend the schedule for the withdrawal and register their formal protest at the harshness of Allied terms. But they were in no position to refuse to sign. On Sunday, 10 November 1918,

2581-734: The Armistice, hostilities on the fronts of the American armies were suspended at eleven o'clock this morning." News of the armistice being signed was officially announced towards 9:00 a.m. in Paris. One hour later, Foch, accompanied by a British admiral, presented himself at the Ministry of War , where he was immediately received by Georges Clemenceau , the Prime Minister of France . At 10:50 a.m., Foch issued this general order: "Hostilities will cease on

2670-442: The British forces, urged moderation, stating that "Germany is not broken in the military sense" and that "it is necessary to grant Germany conditions that they can accept". and that surrender of occupied territories and Alsace-Lorraine would be "sufficient to seal the victory". The British also took the position that the German army should be kept mobilised as a counter to the spread of communist agitation. Ferdinand Foch , speaking for

2759-415: The Dennis product line-up during 1954. The next year an updated heavy fire engine chassis received Rolls-Royce fully automatic gearboxes. They were not yet in production but Dennis revealed their plans for new Loline model doubledeck buses at the end of 1956. Built with Dennis components they used a patented Bristol Lodekka chassis. The Dennis version was for the independent section of the market Bristol

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2848-603: The French forces, agreed with Haig that the Germans "could undoubtedly take up a new position, and we could not prevent it", but, contrary to Haig, urged stringent terms including an occupation of the Rhineland with Allied bridgeheads over the Rhine, and the surrender of large quantities of military materiel. General Pershing , commander of the American forces, opposed any armistice being granted to

2937-544: The German Army was suffering from poor morale and desertions were on the increase. The Imperial Government stayed on course and Ludendorff was dismissed from his post by the Kaiser and replaced by Lieutenant General Wilhelm Groener . On 3 November 1918, Prince Max, who had been in a coma for 36 hours after an over-dose of sleep-inducing medication taken to help with influenza and only just recovered, discovered that both Turkey and Austria-Hungary had concluded armistices with

3026-549: The Germans were shown newspapers from Paris to inform them that the Kaiser had abdicated. That same day, Ebert instructed Erzberger to sign. The cabinet had earlier received a message from Paul von Hindenburg , head of the German High Command, requesting that the armistice be signed even if the Allied conditions could not be improved on. The Armistice was agreed upon at 5:00 a.m. on 11 November 1918, to come into effect at 11:00 a.m. CET, for which reason

3115-441: The Germans. The combined effect of this feedback was to nullify Wilson's 14 points. The sailors' revolt that took place during the night of 29 to 30 October 1918 in the port of Wilhelmshaven spread across Germany within days and led to the proclamation of a republic on 9 November and to the announcement of the abdication of Wilhelm II . Workers' and soldiers' councils took control in most major cities west of

3204-455: The Iraqis with him were hanged. He was not released until February 1988. Phoenix was added as a brand name to all Dennis Eagle refuse collectors during 1978. The Delta 1600 series trucks were launched, middleweight 16 tonne vehicles for tipper and haulage applications. In February 1983, Hestair Dennis purchased Duple Coachbuilders . Between the two Hestair could produce complete vehicles with

3293-474: The Kaiser and evaluations of the political and military situations in the Reich, by 5 October 1918 the German government sent a message to Wilson to negotiate terms on the basis of a recent speech of his and the earlier declared "Fourteen Points". In the subsequent two exchanges, Wilson's allusions "failed to convey the idea that the Kaiser's abdication was an essential condition for peace. The leading statesmen of

3382-514: The Kaiser had abdicated and handed over power to Friedrich Ebert of the Social Democratic Party on 9 November. The same day, Philipp Scheidemann , also a Social Democrat, declared Germany a republic . Whilst the Germans sought negotiations along the lines of Wilson's 14 points, the French, British and Italian governments had no desire to accept them and President Wilson's subsequent unilateral promises. For example, they assumed that

3471-464: The Ministry and called upon Clemenceau, who appeared on the balcony. Clemenceau exclaimed "Vive la France!" – the crowd echoed him. At 11:00 a.m., the first peace-gunshot was fired from Fort Mont-Valérien , which told the population of Paris that the armistice was concluded, but the population were already aware of it from official circles and newspapers. Although the information about

3560-533: The National Cycle Show this car was never put into production. After incorporating Dennis Brothers Limited, in which they were given generous financial support by local cyclists and potential motorists, the brothers began car production around 1901. John Dennis built a 30,000 square foot three storey plus basement building in Onslow Street in the centre of Guildford with a lift between floors later known as

3649-709: The Ottoman Empire was close to exhaustion, the Austro-Hungarian Empire was in chaos, and on the Macedonian front , resistance by the Bulgarian Army had collapsed, leading to the Armistice of Salonica on 29 September. With the collapse of Bulgaria, and Italian victory in the Battle of Vittorio Veneto , the road was open to an invasion of Germany from the south via Austria. In Germany, chronic food shortages caused by

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3738-520: The Reich were not yet ready to contemplate such a monstrous possibility." As a precondition for negotiations, Wilson demanded the retreat of Germany from all occupied territories, the cessation of submarine activities and the Kaiser's abdication, writing on 23 October: "If the Government of the United States must deal with the military masters and the monarchical autocrats of Germany now, or if it

3827-510: The United States, Congress opened an investigation to find out why and if blame should be placed on the leaders of the American Expeditionary Forces, including John Pershing . In France, many graves of French soldiers who died on 11 November were backdated to 10 November. The celebration of the Armistice became the centrepiece of memories of the war, along with salutes to the unknown soldier. Nations built monuments to

3916-575: The Vehicle Division, led the management buyout and was appointed chairman and CEO. The stated intention was to relist the Dennis group back on the London Stock Exchange . Hestair Specialist Vehicles Limited was renamed Specialist Vehicles Limited on 7 March 1989. Duple Coachbuilders was closed down in July 1989 with 350 jobs lost. The parts and service business went to Plaxton , production of

4005-547: The allies. General von Gallwitz had described this eventuality as being "decisive" to the Chancellor in discussions some weeks before, as it would mean that Austrian territory would become a spring-board for an Allied attack on Germany from the south. Revolution broke out across Germany the following day, together with a mutiny in the German High Seas Fleet. On 5 November, the Allies agreed to take up negotiations for

4094-532: The amount of time used for business. In the United States, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration defines a "commercial motor vehicle" as any self-propelled or towed vehicle used on a public highway in interstate commerce to transport passengers or property when the vehicle: The federal definition, though followed closely, is meant to accommodate and remain flexible to each state's definitions. The European Union defines

4183-481: The armistice only reached Germany's African forces, still fighting in Northern Rhodesia (today's Zambia ), about two weeks later. The German and British commanders then had to agree on the protocols for their own armistice ceremony. After the war, there was a deep shame that so many soldiers died on the final day of the war, especially in the hours after the treaty had been signed but had not yet taken effect. In

4272-517: The armistice to the north of Mons at 10:58 a.m. Henry Gunther , an American, is generally recognized as the last soldier killed in action in World War ;I. He was killed 60 seconds before the armistice came into force while charging astonished German troops who were aware the Armistice was nearly upon them. He had been despondent over his recent reduction in rank and was apparently trying to redeem his reputation. The last German to die in

4361-566: The attacks being launched on the Western Front", Ludendorff demanded a request be given to the Entente for an immediate ceasefire. In addition, he recommended the acceptance of the main demands of US president Woodrow Wilson (the Fourteen Points ) including putting the Imperial Government on a democratic footing, hoping for more favorable peace terms. This enabled him to save the face of

4450-401: The basis of a recent speech of his and the earlier declared " Fourteen Points ", which later became the basis of the German surrender at the Paris Peace Conference , which took place the following year. Also known as the Armistice of Compiègne ( French : Armistice de Compiègne , German : Waffenstillstand von Compiègne ) from the place where it was officially signed at 5:45 a.m. by

4539-429: The business may be gauged from the regular expansions on their new site at Woodbridge Hill on the outskirts of Guildford — in 1907, 1910, 1912 and 1913. In 1913 Dennis Brothers moved their main operations to a new much larger building of almost four acres on the twelve-acre site at Woodbridge leaving their purpose-built Onslow Street premises solely for repairs. In March 1913 the investing public learnt that Dennis Brothers

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4628-456: The buyer to release the vehicle to the War Office in time of war. Materials had been ordered but no subvention lorries completed when the situation changed. After August 1914's outbreak of hostilities production was reduced to the subvention type 3-ton military lorries, now supplied directly to the War Office, and the Dennis turbine fire engine. The Ministry of Munitions took complete control of

4717-532: The clock and the number of workers doubled to 4,000. British Road Services , Britain's state-owned road haulage operator, didn't buy any trucks from Dennis. New products were developed but were not attractive to BRS. The suppliers to BRS were prospering, Leyland , AEC and Foden's technical advances and greater truck experience let them build even better buses to compete with Dennis buses. Only Dennis's light Pax trucks sold well and they went to businesses still permitted to run their own short-distance transport. Yet

4806-411: The company's buses and fire engines remained in demand. The 1940s and 1950s still managed to be Dennis's best years. The 1950s saw the introduction of diesel engines and automatic transmissions and bus engines were moved below floors to increase carrying capacity. After the war bus production began again. 1950 introductions were a passenger chassis named Dominant with a semi-automatic transmission and

4895-510: The de-militarization suggested by Wilson would be limited to the Central Powers. There were also contradictions with their post-War plans that did not include a consistent implementation of the ideal of national self-determination . As Czernin points out: The Allied statesmen were faced with a problem: so far they had considered the "fourteen commandments" as a piece of clever and effective American propaganda , designed primarily to undermine

4984-503: The dead and the heroic soldiers, but seldom aggrandizing the generals and admirals. 11 November is commemorated annually in many countries under various names such as Armistice Day , Remembrance Day , Veterans Day , and in Poland , it is Independence Day . During World War II , after German success in the Battle of France , Adolf Hitler arranged that negotiations for an end of hostilities with France would take place at Compiègne in

5073-441: The fighting spirit of the Central Powers, and to bolster the morale of the lesser Allies. Now, suddenly, the whole peace structure was supposed to be built up on that set of "vague principles", most of which seemed to them thoroughly unrealistic, and some of which, if they were to be seriously applied, were simply unacceptable. To address this impasse Wilson suggested that the military chiefs be consulted. Douglas Haig , representing

5162-450: The fluctuations of demand experienced by the overall economy. Buyers tend to replace them at fixed periods so there is an element of longer term planning. While it is a relatively small market it is stable. Motor mowers were added in 1922. White and Poppe in Coventry had always supplied engines for Dennis Brothers motor vehicles. A takeover had been under consideration before the war but it

5251-406: The imminent ceasefire had spread among the forces at the front in the hours before, fighting in many sections of the front continued right until the appointed hour. At 11 a.m., there was some spontaneous fraternization between the two sides but in general, reactions were muted. A British corporal reported: "...the Germans came from their trenches, bowed to us and then went away. That was it. There

5340-488: The industrial tractor manufacturer Mercury Truck & Tractor Company , also Mercury Airfield Equipment that manufactured airport tugs and later baggage trailers and ground units, and Mercury Snow Control. Potential passenger customers preferred their new vehicles front-entrance and rear-engined and Dennis had no bus in production to meet those requirements. Dennis chose to end bus manufacture in 1965 and concentrate on lorries which also faced declining demand. In late 1965

5429-507: The last British soldier to die, George Edwin Ellison of the 5th Royal Irish Lancers, was killed that morning at around 9:30 a.m. while scouting on the outskirts of Mons, Belgium. The final Canadian, and Commonwealth, soldier to die, Private George Lawrence Price , was shot and killed by a sniper while part of a force advancing into the Belgian town of Ville-sur-Haine just two minutes before

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5518-562: The last day of the war. An example of the determination of the Allies to maintain pressure until the last minute, but also to adhere strictly to the Armistice terms, was Battery 4 of the US Navy's long-range 14-inch railway guns firing its last shot at 10:57:30 a.m. from the Verdun area, timed to land far behind the German front line just before the scheduled Armistice. Augustin Trébuchon

5607-652: The name Dennisville. Both brothers died in 1939 and they are commemorated in the names of Dennisville's St John's Road and Raymond Crescent. During the Second World War the Ministry of Supply restricted Dennis to lorries and allocated bus production to Daimler and Guy . Over that period Dennis built some 3,000 6/8 ton capacity Max and 1,500 Pax 3-ton lorries, assembled 700 Churchill tanks , 17,000 engines for landing craft, 7,000 fire pumps, 750,000 bombs and 3,000 infantry carriers . Meanwhile, 'municipal vehicles' were built for military bases. The plant operated around

5696-531: The new Duple-developed integrated body-chassis units. Duple owned Duple Metsec in Tipton , suppliers of bus body kits for assembly overseas. Hestair Duple 425 was displayed in October 1984 and in production a year later powered by Cummins engines. On 10 December 1985 Hestair Dennis Limited was renamed Dennis Specialist Vehicles Limited and again on 3 February 1986 to Hestair Specialist Vehicles Limited . In late 1985

5785-477: The new brand name for marketing the municipal vehicles built by Dennis Motors, Eagle Engineering and Yorkshire Vehicles. Non-specialist truck production for general haulage resumed in 1974 after a break of two years. New rear-engined single-decker and double-decker buses were announced in August 1977 after a bus-building break of eleven years. At the time of the announcement the workforce was 875 and Dennis Motors remained Guildford's largest employer. The first new bus

5874-418: The new government, Matthias Erzberger of the Catholic Centre Party signed the armistice at Compiègne. The German High Command pushed the blame for the surrender away from the Army and onto others, including the socialists who were supporting and running the government in Berlin. In the eyes of the German Right, the blame was carried over to the Weimar Republic when it was established in 1919. This resulted in

5963-429: The occasion is sometimes referred to as "the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month". Signatures were made between 5:12 a.m. and 5:20 a.m., CET. The occupation of the Rhineland took place following the Armistice. The occupying armies consisted of American, Belgian, British and French forces. The Armistice was prolonged three times before peace was finally ratified. During this period it

6052-413: The sale of part of the original Dennis site. The Guildford workforce dropped from 700 to 400. Still one of Europe's largest builders of fire appliance chassis Dennis Specialist Vehicles was running at a loss. In the 1980s bus engines stayed beneath the floor but were moved as far back as possible to release luggage space. At the October 1986 Commercial Motor Show Dennis introduced its Javelin design using

6141-412: The same rail car as the 1918 conference. The Armistice of 22 June 1940 was portrayed as revenge for Germany's earlier defeat, and the Glade of the Armistice was mostly destroyed. The end of the Second World War in China (end of the Second Sino-Japanese War ) formally took place on 9 September 1945 at 9:00 a.m. (the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month). The date was chosen to echo

6230-455: The war, though his name is not fully known, is believed to be a Lieutenant by the name of Tomas. At a time shortly after 11:00 a.m, perhaps 11:01 a.m, he exited his trench and began to walk across no-mans-land to inform the Americans there that the Armistice had just gone into effect, and that his soldiers would soon be evacuating their trenches. The Americans, who had not yet heard news of the armistice, opened fire, killing him instantly. News of

6319-427: The whole business in 1915. New buildings were added to contain the manufacture of munitions. Following 1918's armistice there was a glut of war surplus vehicles and a consequent collapse in demand for new trucks. To try to compensate the Dennis product range was expanded into municipal vehicles — dustcarts (refuse collection), street cleaning vehicles, sewage tankers and pumps etc. Municipal vehicles do not suffer from

6408-519: The whole front as from November 11 at 11 o'clock [Central European Time]. The Allied troops will not, until further order, go beyond the line reached on that date and at that hour." Five minutes later, Clemenceau, Foch and the British admiral went to the Élysée Palace . At the first shot fired from the Eiffel Tower , the Ministry of War and the Élysée Palace displayed flags, while bells around Paris rang. Five hundred students gathered in front of

6497-483: Was spring drive , a torsional shock absorber mounted at the input end of the drive line. Commercial vehicle activity increased. Their first was a van for Harrods in London . Dennis made its first bus in 1903 and their first fire engine in 1908 — for Bradford Council Fire Department. The last car was made in 1913 after the Dennis brothers saw there was less competition in the commercial vehicle market. The rate of growth of

6586-460: Was a manufacturer of motor-vans, motor-lorries, motor-fire-engines, motor-cars etc. The brothers' offer of shares to the public was substantially over-subscribed and Dennis Brothers Limited became a publicly listed company. Rising international tensions precipitated a major contract for supply of 1,000 3-ton "subsidy" lorries to private buyers on terms set by the War Office . Taking the subsidy obliged

6675-505: Was also developed. Peace was ratified at 4:15 p.m. on 10 January 1920. For the Allies, the personnel involved were all military. The two signatories were: Other members of the delegation included: For Germany, the four signatories were: In addition the German delegation was accompanied by two translators: Among its 34 clauses, the armistice contained the following major points: A. Western Front B. Eastern and African Fronts C. At sea D. General The British public

6764-483: Was complementary to the existing range. On 31 December 1977 Dennis Motors Limited was renamed Hestair Dennis Limited . The former Dennis Motors business was renamed Hestair Dennis by August 1977. A Queen's Award for Export was received in 1978. In February 1980 John Smith, the managing director of Hestair Dennis, was jailed for life in Baghdad for paying "huge amounts for commercial deals and secret information". Four of

6853-501: Was followed by the Lance which used independent front suspension to allow a low floor halfway down the vehicle. Commercial vehicle In the United States, a vehicle is designated "commercial" when it is titled or registered to a company. This is a broad definition, as commercial vehicles may be fleet vehicles , company cars , or other vehicles used for business. Vehicles that are designed to carry more than 15 passengers are considered

6942-410: Was found for an expansion and modernisation programme and twelve months later the new chairman reported activities had been split into six clear-cut divisions and claimed they were "poised for recovery". The shareholders were faced with continuing losses. Responding to their invitation John King of Pollard Ball took up the challenge and accepted the position of chairman of the board. Julian Amery ,

7031-483: Was not until April 1919 that it was made public Dennis Brothers and White and Poppe had agreed to an exchange of shares in each other's business. The swap gave Dennis Brothers the controlling interest in White and Poppe. Alfred White and Peter Poppe joined the Dennis Brothers board but it was not until March 1933 in the midst of the 1930s depression that engine production was transferred from Coventry to Guildford. One chassis

7120-442: Was nothing with which we could celebrate, except cookies." On the Allied side, euphoria and exultation were rare. There was some cheering and applause, but the dominant feeling was silence and emptiness after 52 exhausting months of war. According to Thomas R. Gowenlock, an intelligence officer with the U.S. First Division , shelling from both sides continued during the rest of the day, ending only at nightfall. The peace between

7209-465: Was notified of the armistice by a subjoined official communiqué issued from the Press Bureau at 10:20 a.m., when British Prime Minister David Lloyd George announced: "The armistice was signed at five o'clock this morning, and hostilities are to cease on all fronts at 11 a.m. to-day." An official communique was published by the United States at 2:30 pm: "In accordance with the terms of

7298-413: Was powered by a White and Poppe engine. This power unit was soon fitted to all their vehicles. Until well into the early years of the twentieth century the back wheels of most vehicles were driven by a chain from each side of a differential fixed to the chassis frame. Dennis Brothers developed and patented a reliable worm drive into a differential mounted on the back axle. Another feature of that period

7387-401: Was renamed Dennis Motors Limited and with Eagle and Yorkshire Vehicles, managed as the Vehicle Division of Hestair Engineering. In June 1972 the manufacture of trucks for haulage ceased. In September Hestair sold Dennis' Mercury towing tractors and motor mowers to Marshalls (Halifax) and new plant was bought for the Guildford factory. Envec, an acronym for Environmental Vehicles, was chosen as

7476-464: Was the Dominator with a double-deck body followed by more new buses named Jubilant , Dorchester , Lancet and Falcon . The Falcon chassis took either single or double-deck bodies. All these names belonged to previous successful Dennis models. A new range of fire appliances, the R series, went into production in 1976. A single specialist fire engine chassis on which modular body units could be mounted it

7565-531: Was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, at sea, and in the air in World War ;I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany . Previous armistices had been agreed with Bulgaria , the Ottoman Empire and Austria-Hungary . It was concluded after the German government sent a message to American president Woodrow Wilson to negotiate terms on

7654-451: Was the last Frenchman to die when he was shot on his way to tell fellow soldiers, who were attempting an assault across the Meuse river, that hot soup would be served after the ceasefire. He was killed at 10:45 a.m. Marcel Toussaint Terfve was the last Belgian soldier to die as he was mortally wounded from German machine gun fire and died from his lung wound at 10:45 a.m. Earlier,

7743-486: Was the manufacture of chassis for fire appliances and public service vehicles. Almost all the 35-acre Woodbridge Hill site was sold. At the October 1988 Motor Show Dennis and Duple displayed their new Dennis Dart midibus. At the end of 1988 the Vehicle Division of Hestair Engineering comprised: Trinity Holdings, the management of the Vehicle Division of Hestair Engineering with the backing of banking institutions, bought Dennis from Hestair. Geoff Hollyhead, former head of

7832-525: Was unable to supply. During 1957 sales in both home and export markets fell. Demand for commercial vehicles did not recover after the Suez Crisis . The new Loline buses were in service and a variant new chassis was now available with front entry providing driver control of the door. In the 1960s engines moved to the back of the buses. In May 1962, Dennis bought the fire appliance division of Hawker Siddeley Group's Alfred Miles. In April 1964 Dennis purchased

7921-552: Was used for both lorries and buses. In the 1920s Dennis began to design and build separate chassis for their public service vehicles (buses) with a lower ride height. Pneumatic tyres were introduced. Forward control buses were added to their catalogue in the same decade. Export markets were developed between the wars, particularly vehicles for Hong Kong. The decade began with the Great Depression . Diesel engines were in demand for larger commercial vehicles. New Dennis buses were

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