Diplomacy: Discuss the reasons why the Treaty of Versailles was unsatisfactory Flashcards
Introduction
Because of what Germany had expected from Wilson’s 14 points
Develop
Paragraphs
P1: Diktat and war guilt clause (Role of AH role in outbreak of WW1)- they had been expecting victory in the war
P2: Economic and military effects
P2: Not harsh enough on Germany from some POVs
Too harsh/unfair- war guilt clause & Diktat
-The ‘war guilt’ clause provided justification for Allied demands for reparations.
-They were angry that they had not been allowed to negotiate. They called Versailles a diktat or dictated peace.
-Austria-Hungary was the country that declared war first
-Wilson’s 14 points
Unfair- diktat and war guilt clause- explanation
-Germany encouraged Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia, but it was ultimately Austria-Hungary, not Germany, that first declared the war, and Germany only declared war later in August. Therefore, the Germans were not the only ones to blame.
German perspectives- counterarguments
-However, although some will argue that the reparations caused the economic crisis that Germany faced in the early 1920s, this was in fact due to the actions of the Weimar government in issuing banknotes.
-It can be argued that France deserved to be compensated for the destruction of so much of its land and industry; Germany had not been invaded and so its farmland and industries therefore remained intact.
-However, although the outbreak of the war might not have been entirely Germany’s fault, its brutal actions during the war, such as the targeting of British merchant ships using U-Boats, meant that it was to blame.
Not harsh enough from some POVs- examples
-France lost 1.3 million soldiers in the war, large parts of northeastern France, and the nation’s most advanced industrial and agricultural areas were devastated (‘zones rouges’).
-Industrial production had fallen to 60 percent of the prewar level in France; economic growth had been set back by a decade. The enormous cost of the war seriously undermined the franc and foreshadowed many years of currency fluctuation.
-Terms of Brest-Litovsk: The terms of the Brest-Litovsk treaty, signed in March 1918, were very harsh: Russia lost territories inhabited by more than 1/4 of its citizens
Not harsh enough from some POVs- explanations
-The French had their land and economy devastated during the war- a large part of which was done by the Germans.
-The huge demands of the Treaty of Brest Litovsk with Russia and Romania also indicate that Germany would have sought huge areas of land from the Allies had it won.
Not harsh enough from some POVs- historiography
Historiography: Ruth Henig points out that in comparison to Brest Litovsk treaty (where Germany imposed very harsh terms on Russia), the ToV was moderate.
William Carr historiography
William Carr: the main reason for the Germans being upset was resentment towards the War Guilt Clause
Believes that Germany could have fared worse in the treaty
Unfair/too harsh because of economic and military changes- examples
-Alsace-Lorraine was returned to France.
-Reparations sum of 6.6 billion pounds
-Germany lost 10% of its land and 50% of its iron and steel industries.
-Germany was to disarmed. It was forbidden to have submarines, an air force, or tanks. The army was reduced to 100,000 men who were for providing internal security.
Unfair/too harsh because of economic and military changes- explanation
-Germany suffered economically because of the loss of Alsace Lorraine because of its valuable iron ore deposits.
-Effect on economic crises- counter about Weimar Republic
