Once again his spirits were raised when the unit under his command received orders overseas to France. This time his wishes were thwarted when the armistice was signed, just a week before departure. Completely missing out on the warfront left him depressed and bitter for a time, despite being given the Distinguished Service Medal for his work at home.[citation needed] In World War II, rivals who had combat service in the first great war (led by Gen. Bernard Montgomery) sought to denigrate Eisenhower for his previous lack of combat duty, despite his stateside experience establishing a camp, completely equipped, for thousands of troops, and developing a full combat training schedule.

How long before Eisenhower was to be transferred to France did World War I end?