Treaty of Versailles

Treaty of Versailles 28 June, 1919

Legacy of the First World War • Collapse of the four empires of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, and Turkey • The First World War created problems surrounding Germany’s place in Europe • Land and borders were in dispute • The allies might claim that the war had been brought on by German aggression • Germany might argue that the war had been brought on by their refusal to grant Germany her rightful place as a great power

‘Big Three’ known as David Lloyd George of Britain, Clemenceau of France and President Woodrow Wilson of America. • Solution of the first world war left up to ‘big three’ 28 June, 1919; Wilson, Clemenceau, George and Italian prime minister Vittorio Orlando

Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Points • President Wilson gave a speech to the congress on January 8th, 1918 outlining the United States war aims • Became known as his 14 points, that he believed would create a just, long lasting peace in Europe. • Considered controversial by his allies, and were resisted during the subsequent Paris Peace Conference • Used as a base for the Treaty of Versailles one year later

Open Diplomacy - There should be no secret treaties between powers Freedom of Navigation - Seas should be free in both peace and war Free Trade - The barriers to trade between countries such as custom duties should be removed Multilateral Disarmament - All countries should reduce their armed forces to the lowest possible levels Colonies - People in European colonies should have a say in their future Russia - Russia should be allowed to operate whatever government it wanted and that government should be accepted, supported and welcomed. Belgium - Belgium should be evacuated and restored to the situation before the war. France - should have Alsace-Lorraine and any lands taken away during the war restored. Italy - The Italian border should be readjusted according to nationality National Self -Determination - The national groups in Europe should, wherever possible, be given their independence. Romania, Montenegro and Serbia - Should be evacuated and Serbia should have an outlet to the sea Turkey - The people of Turkey should have a say in their future Poland - Poland should become an independent state with an outlet to the sea. League of Nations - An assembly of all nations should be formed to protect world peace in the future.

Germany had expected the treaty to cover these 14 points • Negotiations had to be made • French felt the plan was too lenient and that the defeated powers should be punished severely • Lloyd George agreed with Wilsons points, however was afraid of the rise of Communism in Russia, and had a fear of it spreading throughout western Europe. • He knew if he sided with Wilson he would lose the next election.

Wilson believed that Germany should be punished but in a way that would lead to European reconciliation as opposed to revenge. • After many negotiations a treaty was drawn up that satisfied all members of the Allies. • Wilson, Lloyd George, and Clemenceau signing the treaty in the Hall of Mirrors

Germany was forced to sign the treaty • They were in no position to continue a war • Lack of consultation about the treaty with the allies angered them, however they could not do anything about it • The first time the German representatives saw the treaty was a few weeks before they were due to sign it • They had two options:- sign the treaty - be invaded by the allies

The Versailles System • The peace settlement, also known as the Versailles system, was multiple treaties developed to created peace amongst European countries • Germany was blamed for world war one, • The treaty was also set up to make Germany pay for the damage they caused, and to prevent another war from being started. (War guilt clause)

The Versailles treaty was signed in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles on June 28th , 1919.

There were a total of 440 clauses within the final treaty • The first 26 clauses dealt with the newly established league of nations • The remaining 414 clauses laid out Germany’s punishment • The treaty included general clauses, military clauses, financial clauses of the reparations, the establishment of the League of Nations,, territorial clauses, and the war guilt clause.

The League of Nations • The league of nations (articles 1-30 in the treaty) was created to ensure that war never broke out again. • Wilson figured that the only way to prevent such a war again was to develop an international body whose sole purpose was to maintain world peace and which would sort out international disputes as and when they occurred • This became the task of the League of Nations • Geneva, Switzerland was chosen to be where the league would be based • This was because Switzerland was a neutral country and had not fought in WW1 • No one disputed this choice, seeing as the International Red Cross was already based there as well

One of the leagues greatest weaknesses was that America, the worlds most powerful country, was not apart of it • The American senate failed to ratify the treaty. Instead of signing the treaty of Versailles, the U.S signed a separate peace treaty with Germany • This treaty conformed to the Versailles agreement except for the omission of the league of nations provisions.

Financial and Economical Clauses • Articles 231-247: Reparations • Articles 248-263: Financial clauses • Articles 264-312: Economical clauses • Germany had to pay a total of £6,600 million (This figure was agreed by the Allies in 1921) in monthly payments • This was difficult for Germany because they had to rebuild their own economy from after the war, as well as paying these reparations • In addition, Germany had lost land that was rich in natural resources

Military Clauses • Army - was to be reduced to 100,000 men and no tanks were allowed • Navy - Germany was only allowed 6 ships and no submarines • Britain would have been successful in eliminating Germany as an imperial and naval threat • Airforce - Germany was not allowed an airforce • Rhineland - The Rhineland area was to be kept free of German military personnel and weapons • Articles 159-215 in the treaty

Territorial Clauses • Germany was not allowed to unite with Austria • Germany lost Alsace-Lorraine (it was returned to France) • Eupen and Malmedy were given to Belgium, • North Schleswig was given to Denmark • Land was also taken from Germany and given to Czechoslovakia and Poland. • The League of Nations took control of Germany's colonies

German Territorial Losses

“War Guilt” Clause • Germany had to take full responsibility for starting the war • Article 231 in the treaty alleges: ``The Allied and Associated Governments affirm, and Germany accepts, the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments and their nationals have been subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them by the aggression of Germany and her allies.''

The Peace Settlement that Remained Unfinished • Germany was very resentful of the situation after the peace agreements • Controversy over the severity of the treaty, some say it was too harsh, others say it was not severe enough • It was contemplated to revise/reconstruct the treaty to bring Germany into satisfactory treaty relations with all her neighbors(policy of appeasement)

The failure to revise the treaty of Versailles had given rise to Hitler and the excesses of his regime • Hostility left after the treaty • Treaty acted as a temporary fix • Assumption that the settlement was followed twenty years later by another major war indicated that it must have been fatally flawed

References • Andersson, M. "World War One- Treaty of Versailles". History on the Net Group. September 20, 2009 <http://www.historyonthenet.com/WW1/versailles.htm>. • Crozier, Andrew J. 1997, The Causes of the Second World War, Massachusetts, Blackwell Publishers Inc. • Duffy, Michael. "The Causes of WWI". September 20, 2009 <http://www.firstworldwar.com/origins/causes.htm>. • Taylor, A.J.P 1961, The Origins of the Second World War, New York, Fawcett World Library. • Trueman, Chris. "Treaty of Versailles". History Learning Site. September 20, 2009 <http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/treaty_of_versailles.htm>. • Rothwell, Victor 2001, The Origins of the Second World War, Manchester, Manchester University Press.

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Treaty of Versailles