treat of versailles

• The Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28th June 1919 to seal the fate of Germany following their defeat in WW1. The Treaty severely punished Germany, leading to widespread resentment and hostility in Germany, ultimately acting as a long term cause of WW2.
• Britain


  David Lloyd George
• David Lloyd George


  • Prime Minister since 1916
  • Able politician
  • Brilliant lawyer
  • Willing to compromise
• Britain's attitude towards Germany


  Thought Germany should be punished but not too severely, as wanted to maintain trade links
• Britain's aims


  Gain Germany's colonies to strengthen own empire as well as dominance over the seas
• Britain's view of the Treaty of Versailles

  • Felt that Germany was punished too severely and were worried about long term impact of this
  • Happy to expand its own empire and weaken Germany's navy to gain dominance over the seas
• Georges Clemenceau


  Elected in 1917, he was critical of former French war leaders. Hard & tough politician, uncompromising.
• Georges Clemenceau's attitude towards Germany


  Hated Germany and strongly wanted revenge and for Germany to be severely punished.
• France's aims


  Aimed to cripple Germany, remove its army and break it up into smaller states. Rebuild France.
• France's view of the Treaty of Versailles

  Pleased that Germany was punished harshly by the Treaty and that their army was reduced. Felt that Germany should have been punished even more severely, losing more land and reparations.
• Woodrow Wilson


  President of USA since 1912, idealist and reformer
• Wilson had focused on keeping USA out of war
• USA entered the war late


  Not majorly impacted
• Wilson's attitude towards Germany

  Wants to rebuild Germany as barrier against Communism
• Wilson aimed to attain his Fourteen Points, bringing peace and reform, along with ideas such as self-determination
• Wilson was very concerned that Germany was punished too harshly in the Treaty of Versailles
• Wilson was worried about the impact and spread of Communism
• Wilson was pleased the League of Nations is set up, however USA do not join
• Wilson was happy about self-determination in East
• The Terms of the Treaty of Versailles - WALTER - War Guilt

  •Article 231 states that Germany and her allies were 100% to blame for causing WW1.

  •The Treaty was a Diktat, forced peace, meaning that Germany had no say and was made fully responsible.
• The Terms of the Treaty of Versailles - WALTER - Armed Forces

  •Germany’s army was reduced to 100,000 men., no tanks or airforce, only 6 battleships and no submarines.

  •Conscription was banned and the Rhineland demilitarised. All of this damaged German pride and left them vulnerable to attack.
• The Terms of the Treaty of Versailles - WALTER - League of Nations

  •The League of Nations was set up as part of the Treaty of Versailles, but Germany was not allowed to join.

  •This therefore prevented Germany from re-building relationships with other major powers and left them isolated.
• The Terms of the Treaty of Versailles - WALTER - Territory

  •Germany lost roughly 10% of it territory, including Posen, Upper Silesia, the Saar & Northern Schleswig.

  •It also lost 12.5% of its population, 16% of its coalfields and nearly half of its iron and steel industries.
• The Terms of the Treaty of Versailles - WALTER - Empire

  •Germany lost all of her overseas empire. Many of the colonies were put under the control of the League of Nations.

  •This further damaged national pride and led to the loss of valuable resources from Germany’s colonies.
• The Terms of the Treaty of Versailles - WALTER - Reparations

  •Germany was fully responsible for the war, so had to pay £6.6 billion in reparations, mainly to France and Belgium.

  •This crippled Germany’s economy and caused a range of economic problems including hyperinflation. Germans hated it.
• Why Germany hated the Treaty of Versailles

  • German people resented being made to be fully to blame for the war, felt this was highly unfair
  • The fighting had not took place in Germany, the public did not feel they were losing and felt 'stabbed in the back' by the government
  • The reparations payments crippled Germany's economy, which was already struggling with many people living in poverty
  • The restrictions on the armed forces and the loss of its empire greatly damaged Germany's national pride and hindered its recovery
  • The lack of an army also made Germany vulnerable to future invasion and caused unemployment due to loss of military jobs
  • The loss of territory left people without an identity as they now lived outside of Germany, also lost some of their most valuable resources, damaging the economy
• Kapp Putsch


  Right wing opponents launched an attempt to seize power from Ebert's new fragile government
• Kapp Putsch


  Defeated when Berlin workers called a general strike, but added to the chaos in Germany and hatred of the Treaty of Versailles
• Austria

  Treaty of St Germain -  Sept 1919

  Bulgaria

  Treaty of Neuilly - Nov 1919

  Hungary

  Treaty of Trianon – June 1920

  Turkey

  Treaty of Sevres – August 1920

  Treaty of Lausanne – June 1923