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The War Aims of the Great European Powers
When World War One broke out in July 1914, all European nations had their own goals in the war, and spent the next five years fighting for these goals. Germany who has commonly declared the agressor, as well had a set of goals to achieve. The ultimate goal was to control Europe indirectly through a customs union firmly dominated by herself. This customs union would include most of the continental western Europe, Poland, the Scandinavian states, the Balkans, Austria-Hungary and Turkey. The German government believed that when Germany was in control such large parts of Europe, she would be able to challenge Britain. Eventually she would create a large central African Empire to expand her world-wide position even further. It is important to notice that Germany had the most agressive war policy with the highest ambitions. This would affect the humiliation of defeat, as the desire for world domination still burned in the German people, even after the war had ended. With the economic crisis following the war, the living conditions were low in all of Europe during the thirties, making it much easier for new leaders to gain popularity, as proven when fascism and communism arose.
The war aims of the allied powers were mainly to put an end to the expansionist ideas of Germany. Once Germany had declared war on Russia on August 1 of 1914, it was the goal of the allies to protect their own position in the world and crush the Germans. Especially the French who hadn't forgotten the humiliating defeat by Bismarck in 1892, were eager to make sure that Germany would not get in a position of potential world domination once again. This view was clearly shown by Clemenceau during the negotiations. His goal was to cripple Germany in such a way that it would be impossible to rise again and make war on all of Europe. Why the Treaties of Paris failed to do this will be discussed later in this essay.
Britain and the United States were not threatened by Germany in the same way as France and Russia. However the British and American governments knew that if they were to have any hope of dominating the peace negotiations when the war was eventually over they would have to join against the Central Powers. The British decision to enter the war in 1914 was obviously influenced by the German invation of Belgium which provoked British interests in such a way that war was inevitable. In addition to this, England and the US also wanted to avoid a Europe dominated by Germany, as it would endanger their own world positions.
Other European nations entered the war as a chance to seek their own individual goals by allying with the strongest nations. For example Italy decided to join the allied cause in order to protect her extensive coast line in the Mediterranean, which was threatened by the Central Powers' expansionist ideas in Eastern Europe and the Middle East. On the other hand Turkey decided to ally with the Central Powers as their promised support for the Turkish annexation of Russian border territory. This alliance proved to be a serious threat to Britain's Imperial communications through the Suez Canal and forced her to employ large-scale forces in its defense.
The war aims of the many different nations involved in the war proved to be important for the outcome of the peace negotiations when the war ended. This is because the different nations kept their particular desires in mind when they went to negotiate in Paris during 1919-20. (Binder 61-68)
The Peace Settlements, 1919-23
The peacemakers negotiating the Paris treaties after the war were faced with many different problems. The Russian Revolution in 1917 presented the threat of communism from the East. In order to prevent communism to overtake the weakened nations after the war, several buffer states were created to contain the revolutionary threat. It was decided that Germany should remain an independent nation as long as a new government was formed. This served the purpose of creating a strong buffer state in western Europe to block the spread of communism. Also Poland remained independent, and when she defeated the Red Army in 1919, it was at the same time a defeat of the Comintern (USSR agency determined to spread communism through ways of revolution throughout the world) and communist expansion in western Europe.
Another dilemma facing the representatives negotiating the peace treaties was to set up new national states in the vacuum created by collapse of Austria-Hungary and the defeat of Germany (Binder p. 70). These newly created states were particularly vulnerable to revolution. Combined with the influenza pandemic which by the spring of 1919 had caused the deaths of millions of people, it was certain that strong nations should be established in eastern Europe in order to withstand communism. This is also why the negotiaters refrained from weakening Germany too badly as this would send the nation into the hands of the Bolsheviks.
The immediate armistice presented by Wilson according to his Fourteen Points and revised by the allies went far to protect their position at the coming Peace Conference. It demanded Germany to evacuate all occupied territory, including Alsace-Lorraine and to withdraw beyond a 10 kilometre wide neutral to the east of the Rhine. The German navy was also to be interned in either a neutral or a British port. These terms immediatly ended German influence outside of Germany itself, thereby making it easier for the victorious nations to negotiate the future of Europe.
The French Premier Clemenceau was convinced that only an effective balance of power in Europe coul dcontain Germany. He was aware that France, with it's 1.3 million casualties and severely weakened economy was facing Germany which, as a consequence of her collapse of Austria-Hungary and Tsarist Russia, was potentially stronger than in 1914. Therefore Clemenceau was anxious to enforce maximum disarmament on the Germans, but on the other side leave the country with enough power to withstand the Bolshevist threat in the East. Not all negotiators shared the same view. England for instance focused her efforts on relieving Germany of all her overseas possessions, and at the same time protect her own. However the British representatives did work towards ending German influence in Europe, and were in many ways succesful, at least in the short-term. Wilson's most immediate aim was to have the constitution (or covenant) of the League of Nations quickly established, and incorporated into the Treaty. He was convinced that an international organization as the League would make "nearly all the serious difficulties" somehow disappear, as he believed that it would create a sturdy framework for solving the less significant parts of the Treaty. Later this was acknowledged, however, as being a wildly optimistic assumption. (Binder 69-72)
All peace settlements are to a greater or lesser extent the result of compromises between the negotiating powers. The Versailles Treaty was no exception. As so many different views were represented at the negotiations, the key clauses of the treaty were the result of fiercely negotiated agreements, which were often only reached when the conference was on the brink of collapse. There was however one fact that could be agreed by all sides, that Germany was guilty of having started the war. Therefore it was decided that Germany should pay an indemnity to the victors. Yet there was a debate of how much she should pay. Another problem was that British Treasury was reluctant to continue its wartime co-operation with the French Finance Ministry. In March of 1919 all further financial assistance from Britain to France was stopped. France had no option therefore but to seek financial reparation from Germany which seemed the most obvious thing to do. (Binder 73-5)
On June 28 1919 the Treaty was signed in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles where in 1871 the German Empire had been proclaimed. A serious problem arose however. Wilson failed to secure the necessary 2/3 majority of in the Senate. It was a major personal defeat for Wilson and his believes, and the consequences for Europe were serious. It basically meant that only two Great Powers were left to enforce the Treaty in the years to come, Britain and France.
Whether these agreements can be described as an unsatisfactory compromise between hopes for reconciliation and a desire for punishing the Central Powers must be taken into consideration. Most of the key clauses of the Treaty were definately a compromise between Clemenceau's group with the desire to severely punish Germany, and the more peaceseeking nations attempting to protect their own interests. Reconciliation was reached in many ways, but the Treaty failed to inforce a serious objective, to create a stable balance of power in Europe. This was clearly shown during World War Two where Hitler swept through Europe like another Genghis Khan. There was definately not a firm balance of power in Europe at the time, considering one nation was able to conquer two-thirds of the continent. (Binder 76-85)
The Economic and Social Crisis
In order to determine the relative success of the Treaty of Versailles one must evaluate the situation in Europe in the years following the signing of the agreement. Worth to mention is the impact the Paris treaties had on the German economy. When the Weimar Coalition was formed in 1919 Germany became a democracy. Eventhough a new government was formed, the "Prussian pride" of the German people persisted, meaning that the German militaristic traditions and desire for world domination prevailed. The Germans didn't look at the League of Nations as a peaceful international organization established to maintain peace in the world, but rather the opposite, a tool for the allies to dominate the world (mostly Europe). The Treaty of Versailles, that was a grave humiliation to the Germans, didn't improve the common opinion of the allies in Germany.
A lack of capital for investment, a large trade deficit, and the difficulties of readjusting a war economy to the requirements of peace were certainly not helped by demands for reparations from the Allies and the loss of important industrial regions by the Treaty of Versailles (Layton p. 91). These harsh economic conditions triggered an inflation of such dimensions as never seen before. By the end of 1923 the German Mark was practically not even worth the paper it was printed on, and the German economy crashed. Living conditions in Germany were terrible, as the economy was only slowly converting from war-time to peace-time needs, a famine swept through Germany. At this time, especially the United States became aware of how vulnerable Germany was to revolutionary ideas such as communism, so economic aid was sent to Germany. A new currency was established and large amounts of capital was raised in an attempt to reestablish the German industry. The defeat of Germany in 1918 had knocked over the strongest economy in Europe, and this dragged the rest of the west-European nations down as well. That is also why the Allies decided to aid Germany, as long as it remained without an army and with a democratic government. To a certain extent the Treaty of Versailles succeeded to punish the Central Powers. Austria-Hungary was disintegrated in to several independent states, and Germany was deprived of all military power and her economy was crushed. (Layton 83-109)
Conclusion
By the Versailles Treaty Germany was probably not deminished to the level that Clemenceau wanted, but it was definately weakened to the point that it wasn't a military threat to the other European nations. However this was only a short-term success for the Allies. As mentioned above the desire for power still remained within Germany, and the restrictions enforced by the Treaty of Versailles wouldn't last forever. Therefore it can be said that the Versailles Treaty was only a short-term victory for the Allies. When the American Senate voted against the Treaty it also took away the prestige from the League of Nations that was the only hope for persistent peace that remained after the war. As the balance of power had been knocked over by the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian empire and the Russian revolution, Europe was left in a very unstable situation.
The Allied hopes for reconciliation were in some ways met. The autocratic and militaristic ideas that led great powers like Germany and Austria-Hungary disappeared with the victory of the Allies. The long-term mobilization and race for overseas expansion that were factors of war, became ideas of the past. Even though England and the United States remained a colonial power to be reckoned with, the empiralistic tendencies of the Great Nations of the world were partly forgotten after the war. But this didn't mean that the Allies achieved reconciliation because of the negotiations after the war. The balance of power was lost, and the situation was unstable. Therefore it would be correct to say that the Paris settlements were an unsatisfactory compromise between hopes for reconciliation and a desire to punish the Central Powers, because neither of the two were achieved. Germany prevailed as a more potential power because of the disturbance in the balance of power, and reconciliation between the nations of Europe is not the correct way to describe post-war international relations. It was a short-term victory for democracy and security against militarism, but at the same time a hypocritical act of vengeance and economic ignorance. (Binder 81-83)
Bibliography
Class Binder
Layton, Geoff. From Bismarck to Hitler: Germany 1890-1933. Hodder & Stoughton Educational. London, 1995.