Germans territories and colonies were affected. All of the German overseas colonies were taken away. This was a big factor in the lowering of the German morale, they felt angry that the colonies that they had owned were being given to other countries especially Britain and France. Another problem with the way that the treaty distributed the land was that they just gave people a new nationality over night, especially with the area of Alsace-Lorraine. With the huge bitterness between Germany and France if you were a German living in that area you would not accept that you were French just because a treaty drawn up by enemy politicians said that you were. Twelve percent of the German population was in this position. As I said in the last chapter about the reparations some of Germanys most affluent industrial areas had been lost, such as Saar and Upper Silesia. Sixteen percent of the German coalfields and almost half of its iron and steel industry were taken away, making it very hard for the Germans to pay its reparations.
Disarmourment was one of the most controversial points of the treaty. The German army was not allowed to exceed 100,000 men. As it was over 2 million before the war this was far too small for a country of Germany’s size. This made the German people feel threatened, as France was still hostile towards them. Germany was also held back in the field of military development they were not allowed to develop any armoured vehicles, submarines and most importantly aircraft as these will become a major factor in later wars. They were also only allowed six battle ships. The Rhineland was also demilitarised this would make it very easy to be invaded by France.
When the League of Nations was set up it was seen as an international police force but it had no real power as one of the most powerful post-war nations America had not joined after Woodrow Wilson was very influential in setting it up. Germany was not invited in to the league. This was stupid as a country like Germany would be needed to help to keep the peace.
On the other hand there are many factors that show that the Treaty of Versailles was a fair and successful treaty. With the war guilt clause, the Germans had called it a Diktat (dictated peace) but in fact they had done the very same to the Russians in the treaty of Brest-Litovsk. This treaty made Russia give up a lot of land such as Ukraine, Finland, Poland, the Caucasus as well as many other terms that crippled Russia. This was an even bigger Diktat than Versailles as when the Russians refused the first treaty, the German army restarted the war. When the Russians again surrendered the Germans forced them to sign an even harsher treaty than before. Another reason that the war guilt clause was fair was that if you lose a war you have to take the consequences. The Germans got involved in the war so they can’t whinge when they get punished. Also as they showed with their treatment of Russia the Germans would not be fair to Britain or France if they had won so they cannot expect them to be fair on them.
The reparations are not totally unfair because the French Prime Minister George Clemenceau would have made the Germans pay ten times as much, so the Germans may think that they have got off lightly. The Germans were made to pay a lot by the allies but also they did cause a lot of damage. Many French villages were totally destroyed everything flattened with all their men dead. Also it is not just the massive physical damage that the Germans should have to pay for, millions of French, Belgian and British workers were killed in war. This will knock millions off their respective economies without men to work in the factories, offices etc.
The redistribution of German land and colonies was good as many countries had a chance to gain their independence such as Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. The French deserved to regain the province of Alsace Lorraine, as this had been taken from them in an earlier war with the Germans so it deserved to be returned to them. The allies were also doing Germany a favour by taking away their colonies as it can cost a lot to run a foreign country and with them already in debt from paying for the war having to care for many overseas colonies will just hold back their economy. Also it would not be good for the collinies themselves to be in the rule of a country that is heavily in debt. Another point that is positive that came from the treaty was that Germany could not rejoin with their former ally Austria these two countries have made a formidable partnership before.
Germany was made to disarm. This was a fair part of the treaty as it made all of the other countries that had feared Germany before feel safe such as France. This was also the case with the demilitarisation of the Rhineland this would have been very intimidating to the French if they had German troops based on the border between them. The use of conscription was banned this would be a big weapon in stopping the Germans preparing for another war. This is because the Germans had seen first hand the horrors of war so few men would volunteer to go to war again. The Germans were forbidden to produce weapons of war such as armoured vehicles and an air force this was another factor that made neighbouring countries feel safer.
The League of Nations was a force for good as it tried to prevent later wars. This made some of the smaller nations feel safe, as they knew that if they were in the league and they were attacked the larger countries in the league would come in to help them. We can tell that the League was a success as we still have it today in the form of the United Nations.
All of the countries in the treaty had different perceptions of the end result. Firstly the war guilt clause, the French were pleased with this part of the treaty as they believed that now Germany had been found guilty they could be punished. The British agreed with France initially but within a year they were less sure about it. The Americans did not like article 231 though as they thought that Germany should take some blame but not all of it. Understandably the Germans were outraged about this as they believed that they did not start the war and therefore should not be blamed.
There are many differing perceptions of the reparations as well. France were glad to have received some money back but they were expecting a lot more. Britain on the other hand believed that Germany was made to pay too much, America also believed that it was unrealistic to force Germany to pay. Germany was outraged as they thought that this amount was too much and they would be forced into huge debts. Also they believed that they should receive money as they were damaged too.
With the military restrictions the French were generally happy that the German army was reduced as this gave them greater safety but they would have liked the restrictions to go further. The British were especially pleased with the naval restrictions as this kept their navy as the greatest in the world for a long time. The Americans were happy with this as it reduced the likelihood of war but it went too far in their opinion. The Germans were unhappy as this left them in their opinion defenceless and also as none of the other powers involved in the war had to disarm.
Territorial restrictions on Germany were greeted with happiness from the French as they regained the area of Alsace-Lorraine as well as gaining more land in Africa. But they wanted this part of the treaty to go further and break Germany in to a selection of small states. The British liked the territorial restrictions as this increased the size of their empire. The Americans liked that there was self determination but felt that Britain and France should not take land for themselves. Germany is upset that its land has been taken away as some of this land was rich and industrial so would help them to pay reparations.
The League of Nations was not liked by any of the four major countries. Firstly the league was the American president Woodrow Wilson’s idea but the American public did not want the USA to get into other peoples wars. This affected both Britain and France as they were happy when they signed up for the league to just let the Americans run it. But when the Americans pulled out they were left to run the league. Germany liked the idea of the League of Nations but when they were told that they could not join they were outraged.
In conclusion the Treaty of Versailles was a failure and unfair on Germany. The main reason for this was that the treaty was too hard on Germany leaving the German people demoralised impoverished and ready to be led by Hitler; therefore this treaty caused the Second World War.
