CH1: 1919-23 Peace Treaties Flashcards
(23 cards)
Who formed the Big 3?
- Woodrow Wilson (President of USA)
- David Lloyd George (PM of Britain)
- Georges Clemenceau (PM of France)
What is an armistice?
A formal agreement between countries to stop war.
When did the Paris Peace Conference take place?
January 1919
What was the aim of the peacemakers at the Paris Peace Conference?
For the victorious allies - Britain, France, Italy and US
and the defeated powers - Austria-Hungary, Germany and their allies
to agree on the terms of the treaties to be signed to officially end WW1.
Which treaty dealt with Germany?
The Treaty of Versailles
What was Woodrow Wilson’s aim at the PPC?
- an IDEALIST who wanted to strengthen international corporation to achieve world peace after WW1
- presented 14 points at the PPC to help achieve this
> no secret treaties
> free access to the seas during peacetime and wartime
> all countries to work towards DISARMAMENT
> SELF DETERMINATION for the ppl of Eastern Europe (the Poles, Czechs and Slovaks)
> LEAGUE OF NATIONS to be set up - Did not want TOV to be too harsh
> feared GER would seek revenge
> main aim was to strengthen democracy in GER so its ppl would not let its leaders start another war.
What was the public sentiment in Britain regarding the TOV?
British public wanted GER to be HARSHLY PUNISHED
> believed GER was responsible for the war and should be punished
> war had been costly for GB in terms of lives and money
> GB lost 2% of it population in WW1
> civilians faced food and medicine shortages
Was Lloyd George in favour of punishing GER harshly? Why/Why not?
Did not want GER to be harshly punished
- A weak GER would be detrimental to GB’s security.
> If Bolsheviks won the civil war in Russia, Russia would emerge as a strong power and try to spread communism through revolution or war.
> GER needed to recover economically to hav enough military power to act as a buffer against the rise of communism in Europe
> war reparations cannot be too demanding + military power cannot be reduced excessively - Wanted to rebuild GB’s economy
> GER was GB’s second-largest trading market after the US
> If harshly punished, GER’s economy would be weakened > reduce trade with GB > worsen GB’s economy
What was Lloyd George’s key priorities at the PPC?
- Protect Britain
GER to lose its COLONIES and NAVY > GB and GER were separated by the English Channel > GB wanted to increase their naval supremacy + protect from invasion GER > not keen on Wilson’s plan for freedom of the seas. - Rebuild Britain’s economy
By increasing trade with GER
> GER was GB’s second-largest trading market after the US
> If harshly punished, GER’s economy would be weakened > reduce trade with GB > worsen GB’s economy - Maintain Britain’s empire
> concerned about Wilson’s idea of self-determination > would lose its colonies in Asia and Africa.
What did Lloyd George disagree with Wilson about?
- free access to the seas > leave GB vulnerable to invasion from GER
- self-determination
GB would lose its overseas colonies in Asia and Europe - formation of the League of Nations
did not believe it would be able to enforce peace
What was the public sentiment in France regarding the TOV?
French public wanted GER to be harshly punished.
> suffered the most damage out of the big 3
> large stretches of Northern France had been invaded
> over 1.7mil deaths
> lost 4% of its population
> 40 000km2 of territory devastated and industries destroyed
Did Clemenceau want GER to be harshly punished? Why/why not?
Clemenceau demanded a treaty that would weaken GER as much as possible
> was worried about the possible future threat posed by GER
> wanted to ensure GER would not be able to start another war against France again
What did Clemenceau want in the TOV?
- GER to be broken up into smaller pieces
> GER had a younger and larger population (65mil) than France (40mil) > GER could use its people to start a future war - GER’s economy to be weakened more than France
> As there had been no fighting in GER territories, its industrial was not badly damaged > GER’s economy could recover more quickly than France - Control over the Rhineland + GER troops to be disallowed from the Rhineland
> FR and GER shared a border > Rhineland which was in GER’s possession > made FR vulnerable to invasion - Wants Alsace-Lorraine back from GER
- Formation of League fo Nations to prevent the start of another war
What did Clemenceau not agree with Wilson on?
- Treating Germany less harshly
- Self determination > lose colonies in Asia and Africa
What compromises were made at the Paris Peace Conference?
- Clemenceau had to give up the aim of breaking up GER > got reparations + some control over Rhineland + coalfields in the Saar
- Wilson got self-determination + freedom of the seas
Key terms of the Treaty of Versailles:
- War guilt clause
> Article 231 states GER to accept total blame for starting the war - Reparations
> GER to pay 6.6 billion pounds/132 billion goldmarks as reparations to the allies for war damages - Military
> Army limited to 100 000 men
> Conscription was banned, soldiers had to be volunteered
> No armoured vehicles, submarines or aircrafts allowed
> Navy could only have 6 battleships
> The Rhineland was demilitarised > german forces not allowed - Territory
> GER to lose all its overseas colonies + distributed amongst victorious nations
> GER to give independence to Poland and Czechoslovakia
> Forbidden to make alliances with Austria - League of Nations
> A discussion platform to help countries resolve disputes and enforce decisions
> GER excluded from League of Nations
As a result of the TOV, what did Germany lose?
- 10% of its land
- 12.5% of its population
- 16% of its coalfields
- almost 1/2 of its iron and steel industry
What was Germany’s reaction towards the TOV?
Germans RESENTED the TOV
Why did German’s resent the TOV?
- angry that their government had not been consulted on the terms of the TOV and were forced to sign the treaty.
- War guilt clause
They did not feel they had started the war - Reparations
GER already had huge debts from the war efforts. Many feared reparations would ruin the economy. - Disarmament
> An Army of 100 000 was too small for a country of GER’s size
> The army was a symbol of GER pride
> None of the allies were disarmed to this extent even though Wilson’s 14 points stated ALL countries to work towards disarmament - Territory
> losing so much territory was a major blow to GER pride and economy
> thousands of German’s had to live under the rule of other gov. in Poland and Czechoslovakia
> had to lose the Saar and Upper Silesia > impt industrial areas
> losing their colonies > increase the size of France and Britain’s empire - Being excluded from the League of Nations
GER did not feel they had lost the war (only victorious allies formed the LON). Being left out of an international body insulted GER.
What was the short term impact of the TOV on Germany?
- Many Germans felt their country as been stabbed in the back by Jews, communists and weak politicians
- Many Germans were bitter towards the new democratic system of government > gov. became unpopular
What was the medium term impact of the TOV on Germany?
GER faced a POLITICAL and ECONOMIC crisis
- In 1922, GER fell behind on reparation payments
> French and Belgium army invaded the Ruhr in 1923 and took what they owed in the form of raw materials and goods
> humiliating for GER
> violent invasion, killing 130 civilians - HYPERINFLATION disrupted GER’s economy
> Gov. printed money to pay the reparations
> prices of goods increased rapidly (e.g. a loaf of bread rose from 250 goldmarks to 1.5 million goldmarks from January to September 1923)
> German’s suffered economic hardships and poverty
> German’s blamed the government for their hardship, causing POLITICAL INSTABILITY
What was the long term impact
The german’s resentment towards the TOV was exploited by Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party in the early 1930s
How was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk important in influencing the harshness of the TOV?
In 1918, GER forced Russia to sign the treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
1. forced to give GER large areas of its territory including, large areas of prime agricultural land, industrial areas and much of its coal mines.
- lost 1/3 of its population and resources (oil and iron stores)
- required to pay 6 billion goldmarks in reparatiosn to GER
Seeing how ruthless GER was with Russia, the case for treating GER harshly was strengthened.
