The aims of the peacemakers in 1919

• Who were the leaders of Britain, France, and the USA at the Paris Peace Conference in January 1919?

  Lloyd George, Clemenceau, and Wilson
• Why were the leaders under pressure regarding Germany at the Paris Peace Conference?

  People believed Germany was responsible for the war
• What did many people believe Germany should do after the war?

  Pay for all the damage caused by the war
• Which country was not exhausted after the war?

  The USA
• What was the state of the economies and industries of the countries that fought in the war?

  They were in a bad state
• How many young men were estimated to have been killed or injured in the war?

  Over 9 million
• What hardships did ordinary civilians face during the war?

  Shortages of food and medicine
• Which areas were devastated during the war?

  Villages and towns in Belgium and France
• What was commonplace among civilians during the war?

  Illness and disease
• What were the differing opinions on the aims of the Paris Peace Conference?

  • Punish Germany
  • Cripple Germany to prevent future wars
  • Reward the winning countries
  • Establish a just and lasting peace
• What did some people believe was the aim of the Conference regarding Germany?

  To punish Germany
• What did others believe was the aim of the Conference regarding future wars?

  To cripple Germany so it couldn't start another war
• What did many feel was the point of the Conference?

  To reward the winning countries
• What did others believe should be the aim of the Conference?

  To establish a just and lasting peace
• How was President Wilson often perceived in relation to his goals after the Great War?

  As an idealist aiming for peace
• Why did Wilson refuse to cancel debts owed to the USA by Britain and its Allies?

  To pressure them to accept his ideas
• What was Wilson's belief regarding the punishment of Germany?

  Germany should be punished but not too harshly
• What was Wilson's main aim regarding democracy in defeated nations?

  To strengthen democracy to prevent future wars
• What did Wilson believe nations should do to achieve world peace?

  Co-operate with each other
• What did Wilson publish in January 1918 to help achieve world peace?

  The Fourteen Points
• What was the most important point in Wilson's Fourteen Points?

  The establishment of the League of Nations
• What concept did Wilson advocate regarding self-determination?

  Nations should rule themselves
• Which groups did Wilson want to have self-determination in Eastern Europe?

  Poles, Czechs, and Slovaks
• Why did many people in France and Britain disagree with Wilson's Fourteen Points?

  They seemed impractical to implement
• What challenge did self-determination pose for Eastern Europe according to critics?

  Peoples were scattered across many countries
• What percentage of the population in Czechoslovakia were neither Czechs nor Slovaks?

  25 percent
• What did some historians point out about Wilson's knowledge of Eastern and Central Europe?


  He did not know much about the area
• What is the first point of the Fourteen Points?

  No secret treaties
• What does the second point of the Fourteen Points state?

  Free access to the seas in peacetime or wartime
• What is the third point of the Fourteen Points?

  Free trade between countries
• What does the fourth point of the Fourteen Points emphasize?

  All countries work towards disarmament
• What is the fifth point of the Fourteen Points about?

  Colonies to have a say in their own future
• What does the sixth point of the Fourteen Points require?

  German troops to leave Russia
• What is the seventh point of the Fourteen Points?

  Independence for Belgium
• What does the eighth point of the Fourteen Points state?

  France to regain Alsace-Lorraine
• What is the ninth point of the Fourteen Points about?

  Frontier between Austria and Italy to be adjusted
• What does the tenth point of the Fourteen Points advocate for?

  Self-determination for the peoples of Eastern Europe
• What is the eleventh point of the Fourteen Points?

  Serbia to have access to the sea
• What does the twelfth point of the Fourteen Points state?

  Self-determination for the people in the Turkish Empire
• What is the thirteenth point of the Fourteen Points?

  Poland to become an independent state with access to the sea