treaty of versailles

• The Treaty of Versailles is often referred to as one of the most hated treaties in history
• Every country that signed the agreement was deeply unhappy with the outcome
• The 'Big Three' of Britain, France and the USA met at the Palace of Versailles


  January 1919
• Georges Clemenceau


  France's Prime Minister who wanted the treaty to be harsh on Germany
• France and Germany had fought multiple times during the 19th century
• Germany had taken key areas from France including the region of Alsace-Lorraine
• Clemenceau


  Saw the Treaty of Versailles as an opportunity to gain territory back and ensure Germany could not launch future invasions into France
• The majority of the Western Front was in France
• The fighting had destroyed many roads, hospitals and factories in France
• Clemenceau


  Wanted Germany to pay to repair these damages and take responsibility for starting the war
• Woodrow Wilson


  The American president who wanted to create a lasting peace after the First World War
• Wilson did not want to make Germany pay large reparations to the Allies
• Wilson wanted Germany to join a new organisation called the League of Nations</b>
• David Lloyd George


  Britain's Prime Minister who held an opinion in between Wilson and Clemenceau's
• Britain had experienced high casualties like France
• The British public hated Germany and wanted revenge
• Before the start of the First World War, Germany had challenged Britain's naval power
• Britain also supported Wilson's point that a strong Germany was better for European economies
• With so much difference in opinion, it is clear why the final agreement dissatisfied every contributor and became a controversial treaty
• The Allies banned Germany from attending the peace talks in January 1919
• The Weimar Republic had little choice but to sign the treaty
• The treaty's terms brought anger to the German public
• The public's hatred towards the Treaty of Versailles lasted into the 1930s
• Hitler utilised this anger as a way to win the support of the people
• One of the first actions of the Weimar government was to surrender to the Allies
• The government had little choice but to bring an end to the First World War
• Germany was experiencing civil unrest and their economy was collapsing
• Matthias Erzberger


  A member of the Centre Party who signed the armistice on 11th November 1918
• Withdrawing from the First World War tainted public opinion of the Weimar government
• People believed that the government had begun as a failure
• The government would need to prove their ability to govern if they were to change this opinion
• The German army retreated in November 1918 but it was not defeated
• Some people did not believe in signing the armistice because Germany had not lost the war on the battlefield
• The armistice only ensured temporary peace
• There needed to be an official peace document where the Allies agreed on the terms of Germany's defeat
• Discussions began at the Palace of Versailles, Paris


  January 1919
• No German representatives were allowed to attend the peace talks
• Diktat


  The treaty was known as a 'diktat', meaning the losing side has the terms of peace imposed upon them
• Germany had 15 days to ask the Allies to change sections of the treaty
• The Allies denied every concession the Germans requested