Course Essay - What was the treaty of Versailles, what did it contain and how did it affect the countries involved.

Q. What was the treaty of Versailles, what did it contain and how did it affect the countries involved.

The Treaty of Versailles () was a which officially ended between the and . It was signed exactly 5 years after the , the event that triggered the start of the war. Although the signed on , put an end to the actual fighting, it took six months of negotiations at the to conclude a peace treaty. Of the many provisions in the treaty, one of the most important and controversial provisions required Germany and its allies to accept full responsibility for causing the war and, under the terms of articles 231-248, disarm, make substantial territorial concessions and pay to certain countries that had formed the Allies.

Even before meeting in , the leaders of France, Britain, and the United States had stated their differing objectives for the peace conference had wanted Germany to be punished, wanted a relatively strong, economically viable Germany as a counterweight to French and Russian dominance in , and the wanted the creation of a permanent peace as quickly as possible, with financial compensation for its military expenditures. The result of these competing and sometimes incompatible goals among the victors was a compromise that left nobody satisfied. Germany was neither crushed nor conciliated, which, in retrospect, did not bode well for the future of Germany, Europe or the world as a whole.

In Versailles, initially over 70 delegates from 26 nations attended. Having been defeated, Germany, , and were excluded from the negotiations.

Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles assigned blame for the war to Germany; much of the rest of the Treaty set out the reparations that Germany would pay to the Allies.

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In Versailles, initially over 70 delegates from 26 nations attended. Having been defeated, Germany, , and were excluded from the negotiations.

Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles assigned blame for the war to Germany; much of the rest of the Treaty set out the reparations that Germany would pay to the Allies.

The total sum due was decided by an Inter-Allied Reparations Commission. The war reparations that Entente demanded from Germany was 226 billion Reichsmarks in gold (around £11.3 billion), then reduced to 132 billion Reichsmarks. In , this number was officially put at £4,990,000,000, or 132 billion marks. The standard view is that the reparations, particularly forcing Germany to accept the entire blame, were the cause of Germany's economic woes and the concomitant rise of Nazism to power.

The provided for the creation of the , a major goal of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson. The League of Nations was intended to arbitrate international disputes and thereby avoid future wars. Only three of Wilson's were realized, since Wilson was compelled to compromise with Clemenceau, Lloyd George and on some points in exchange for retaining approval of Wilson's "fourteenth point," the League of Nations

Treaty terms

Overview

The terms of the Treaty, which Germany had no choice but to accept, were announced on May 7, 1919. Germany lost:

13% of its national territory
All of its overseas colonies (including , , , and )
12.5% of its population
16% of its coalfields, and half its iron and steel industry.
Union with Austria (Anschluss) forbidden.

Territorial Restrictions on Germany

yielded to France.
Saar coal fields placed under French control for 15 years.
Annexation of prohibited.
Annexation of prohibited.
Annexation of and prohibited.
Loss of all overseas colonies.

Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia became independent states (acquired by Germany from Russia at ).

Military Restrictions on Germany

The to be a demilitarized zone.
The German armed forces cannot number more than 100,000 troops and no conscription.
men were to be retained for at least 12 years; were to be retained for at least 25 years.
Manufacturing of weapons is prohibited.
Import and export of weapons is prohibited.
Manufacture or stockpiling of poison gas is prohibited.
Tanks are prohibited.
Naval forces limited to 15,000 men, 6 battleships (no more than 10,000 tons displacement each), 6 cruisers (no more than 6,000 tons displacement each), 12 destroyers (no more than 800 tons displacement each) and 12 torpedo boats (no more than 200 tons displacement each).
Submarines are prohibited.
Military aircraft are prohibited.
Artillery is prohibited.

Legal Restrictions on Germany

Forced to accept sole responsibility of war and had to promise to make good all the damage done to civilian population of the allies. Also known as the "War Guilt Clause".
Former German emperor, Wilhelm II was charged with supreme offence against international morality. He was to be tried as a war criminal.
Many were tried as war criminals. Some could not be tried as they were hiding inside countries.