TOV

• France hated Germany after the war and Clemenceau pushed for them to accept full responsibility for starting WW1
• Clemenceau had to convince Lloyd George and Wilson that this was fair, but eventually got his way as most of the damage caused by the war was to France
• This humiliated Germany as they were seen as the sole cause of the 20 million dead/injured on the battlefields
• Despite them having no part in Franz Ferdinand's death and the aftermath involving Austria and Serbia, Germany were forced to accept full responsibility for causing World War One
• Further hatred from the German public towards France now started
• The German people were also unhappy with their own government accepting this and this was the part of the TOV that they detested the most
• Germany were now regarded in Europe as an aggressive country and one that could not be trusted, which would impact their ability to trade and work with other European nations
• Germany were forced to pay huge sums of reparations (war damages) to the defeated powers
• The war was expensive for everyone so many wanted compensation, especially France and Belgium, as the majority of war was fought on their land, which was heavily damaged due to the style of trench warfare
• The public of the winning European countries demanded Germany be punished severely
• After much discussion a sum of £6.6 billion was decided for Germany to pay
• They were given 42 years to pay the entire sum, with separate instalments agreed each year
• This caused Germany to go into a national depression
• High levels of unemployment, homelessness and starvation occurred
• The new German government would later struggle to pay off their debt and hyperinflation occurred, as the government attempted to print new money to pay France and Belgium
• Germany was a place of financial ruin and never really recovered until Hitler took over in 1933
• This caused the Germans to hate the peacemakers, in particular France, and for many years they wanted revenge for this
• France wanted Germany to be so devastated that Germany would never threaten them with war again
• Germany's army was reduced to only 100,000 men, which was roughly the same size as Britain's at the beginning of WWL
• This made Germany vulnerable to an attack
• Tanks, air force and conscription (military service) were not allowed
• Germany were only allowed to have 6 battleships and 15,000 men in their naval fleet, handing naval supremacy (control of the sea) over to the British
• Germany's Rhineland was demilitarised (no soldiers allowed) for years, which had previously acted as a measure to stop France from invading
• This had now been taken away from Germany, and French and British troops would now occupy this area, making Germany vulnerable to an invasion
• Germany lost many territories under the Treaty of Versailles, including Alsace and Lorraine, the Saarland, the Polish Corridor, and Danzig
• When the Treaty of Versailles was signed it became international law, but almost immediately the countries who had signed it began to regret some of the terms
• Germany was outraged at how harsh the treaty was
• Before the war Germany had arguably been the strongest country in Europe, but now, because of the TOV, the country was in ruin
• The German government knew that they had no choice but to sign the Armistice and then the Treaty, but they were promptly hated by the population
• They became known as the "November Criminals" and it was said that Germany had been "stabbed in the back" (By the government, France and Jews)
• After the Kaiser abdicated there was no one left to run the country, and a new democratic government was set up called the Weimar Republic
• Many disliked the new form of government, as many just wanted one strong leader, someone like a Kaiser
• As a result, it was unstable and many revolts (fights) broke out against its rule
• The part the German people hated the most about Versailles was War Guilt - Germany had to accept full responsibility, while also paying £6.6 billion in war damages
• The German economy was in ruins and the German government claimed that 763,000 Germans died of starvation
• Germany also lost the coal in the Saar, 13% of its land and 6 million Germans now found themselves living in different countries (Poland and France mainly)
• Germany was humiliated and felt vulnerable to attack with an army of just 100,000 men, with many fearing an attack from France or Russia at any time
• Many in France were not happy as they felt the Treaty of Versailles could have been even harsher
• Many felt the Rhineland should have been taken completely away from Germany and that the Saar should have been given to France permanently
• Many also said that £6.6 billion was not enough and that Germany should be left with no army