November 11 has been celebrated for over a millennium as a day of peace, the feast of Saint Martin, a Christian ego declared that war was against the law of Christ. It sought to sacrifice others rather than to sacrifice oneself, even for enemies. 

This celebration - a precursor to Advent - a looking forward to the Prince of Peace, was transformed into Armistice Day in 1918, following the end of World War One. Still, it commemorated peace. But during the Cold War, the United States altered the focus of this day, turning it from a celebration of peace to a celebration of those who wage war.