Chapter 1

Were the peace treaties of 1919-1923 fair?

 Materials for the Chapter Test

Paper 1.
1. Hatred of Treaty of Versailles
2. The Common Features of the Peace Treaties
3. The Impact of the ToV on Germany
4. Could the treaties be justified at the time?
Focus points
• What were the motives and aims of the Big Three
at Versailles?
• Why did all the victors not get everything they wanted?
• What was the impact of the peace treaty on Germany
up to 1923?
• Could the treaties be justified at the time?
The Causes of World War I 1914-1918?
The Keys Causes of 1st World War

M-A-I-N
Militarism
Alliances
Imperialism
Nationalism
Causes of The First World War
1. The alliance system
2. Austria-Hungary & Russia
mobilized their armies first
3. Strong feeling of
nationalism and
competition between
countries
4. Naval arms race caused
tension and distrust
 Timeline
1. June 28th 1914  Franz Ferdinand assassinated
2. July 28th 1914  Austria declared war on Serbia
3. Aug 1st 1914  Germany declared war on Russia
4. Aug 3rd 1914  Germany declared war on France
5. Aug 4th 1914  Britain declared war on Germany
6. Apr 6th 1917  USA declared war on Germany
7. Mar 3rd 1918  The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed
between Russia and Germany.
8. Nov 11th 1918  Germany signed an armistice with the allies
 Focus Point No. 1: What were the motives
and aims of the Big Three at Versailles?
Clemenceau’s aims and motives Evidence
• He wanted to punish Germany.
• He wanted Germany to be weaken by reducing
the numbers of soldiers and weapon
(DISARMAMENT), Germany had lost some
parts of its land.
• He seek for revenge. The casualties.
• France had suffered throughout the war.
• He wanted to prevent another invasion from
the Germans.
 Focus Point No. 1: What were the motives
and aims of the Big Three at Versailles?
Clemenceau’s aims and motives Evidence (page 21)
Harsh Treaty & Germany had to be • Why? Hatred because of the war
weakened. propaganda. There would never
1. Disarmament be a ‘third invasion’.
2. High war reparations • The loss of human life, damage
3. The return of the provinces of Alsace and the destruction caused by
and Lorraine the war. Countries were heavily
4. Saarland in debt.
5. The Rhineland as buffer
6. Some Germans colonies to be handed
to France
 Focus Point No.1: What were the motives
and aims of the Big Three at Versailles?
David Lloyd George’s aims and motives Evidence (page 22-23)
• He wanted to punish Germany but
not to destroy it.
• Moderate peace treaty.
 Focus Point No.1: What were the motives
and aims of the Big Three at Versailles?
David Lloyd George’s aims and motives Evidence (page 22-23)
1. Moderate peace treaty. But 1. Huge Debt. The loss of human life. Scars
put the blame for the war on of war.
Germany. 2. Why? Britain lost overseas markets. The
Europe, esp. Britain, had been forced to
2. Save/keep national self interest switch from making goods to serving
3. New International Organization military needs. Naval supremacy.
to keep the peace in Europe and 3. keep the peace in Europe and the world
the world. & solve problems through negotiation.
4. The reparation bills was not too 4. Germany must be allowed to recover
high. some of its pre war economic strength.
Rebuilding and Recovery for the
Germans.
 Focus Point No. 1: What were the motives
and aims of the Big Three at Versailles?
Woodrow Wilson’s aims and motives Evidence:
• He wanted to keep the world
peace.
• He was a pacifist.
• He wanted to prevent another
war in the future
• He initiated the 14 points.
 Focus Point No. 1: What were the motives
and aims of the Big Three at Versailles?
Woodrow Wilson’s point of view Page 23
1. World peace/Pacifist (peace 5. No secret treaties.
lovers) 6. Free trade without barriers
2. Removed all the causes of war. 7. Armaments must be reduced
(Fourteen Points)
3. Self determination (rights and
liberties of all small nations).
4. League of Nations
What did the Treaty of Versailles say about
Germany?
1. Full responsibility for causing the war. 9. Rhineland : demilitarised zone
2. Had to pay money and goods
10. All colonies went to other Great
(reparation) Powers
3. The troops was limited to 100.000
11. Union with Austria was forbidden
4. No arms trade
12. The treaty if Brest-Litovsk was
5. The type and quantity of weapons cancelled. New independent
was limited states: Estonia, Latvia and
6. No chemical weapons, armoured cars and Lithuania
tanks
13. Plebiscites in some territories
7. Lost its air force
8. Only six battleships
Focus Point No 3: What was the impact of
the peace treaty on Germany up to 1923
Germany disliked four features of the
Treaty of Versailles. WHY?
 Focus Point No 3: What was the impact of the
peace treaty on Germany up to 1923
IMPORTANT!!!
Germany disliked four features of the Treaty of Versailles.
• Diktat. No negotiation because
of the naval blockade
• Wartime propaganda &
Germany encircled by Russia and
France
• Saarland coal mines was taken
away
• Tiny army: 100.000 soldiers
D Diktat No negotiation. No Discussion. It was dictated to the Germans

R Reparation Reparations imposed for all the damage

A Armaments No air force. No submarines. Army was restricted to 100.000. Navy

restricted to six ships. Rhineland to be demilitarised and occupied by
the Allies for fifteen years

W War Guilt Germany was held to be to blame for the war

L Loss of Loss of territory reduced Germany’s size, population and economic

Territory resources, including the loss of all her colonies
ARMISTICE TREATY OF VERSAILLES
11 November 1918 28 June 1919
GERMAN EMPIRE -------- WEIMAR
REPUBLIC
GERMAN EMPIRE WEIMAR REPUBLIC
Political Impacts Economic Impacts Territorial Impacts
 What was the impact of the peace
treaty on Germany up to 1923?
November Criminals/Stabbed the
Impacts on German Politics Germany Army in the back
1. Coup: Freikorps (ex servicemen): blame the
Weimar politicians for signing the treaty.
• Right Wing gangs
• Overthrow the Weimar Republic ( coup)
• A hundreds of murders of politicians
2. The Treaty of Rapallo (Germany & Soviet
Union)
3. Dolchstoss (myth/fiction) : Weimar
politicians “stabbed the Germany Army in
the back”
BEER HALL PUTSCH
 What was the impact of the peace
treaty on Germany up to 1923?
Impact on German economics
• Pay the Bills: 6.6 billion pounds as reparation
• Germans disliked the Treaty: anger, depressed,
mourned
• Loss of land, coal deposits, iron ore deposits.
• Expenditure was high (budget deficit)—printing
money—inflation
• social riots, mob violence and unrest

• New Government by Gustav Stresemann—New Currency:

Rentenmark
• Revision of the Treaty of Versailles concerning war
reparations—Dawes Plan (1924)
Bloody Easter on the Ruhr Hyper Inflation
Chancellor Gustav Stresemann New Currency = Rentenmark
Dawes Plan of April 1923 revision of
the reparations payments
• The Dawes Plan (as proposed by
the Dawes Committee, chaired
by Charles G. Dawes)
• A plan in 1924 that successfully
resolved the issue of World War
reparations that Germany had to
pay. It ended a crisis in European
diplomacy following World War I
and the Treaty of Versailles.
 IMPORTANT!!!
Versailles Settlement/Paris Peace Conference
• A war guilt clause to
support the claim for
reparation
• Reduction in military
forces
• Acceptance of the
Covenant (Constitution)
of the League of Nations
 IMPORTANT!!!
The impact of Paris Peace Conference
1. The empires were
collapsed. The emergence
of new successor states.
2. Territorial and population
Losses
3. Disarmament.
4. War reparations. Some
countries went bankrupt.
Paris Peace Conference (page 33-34)
1. Treaty of Saint Germany
with Austria
10 September 1919
2. Treaty of Trianon with
Hungary, 4 June 1920
3. Treaty of Neuilly with
Bulgaria, 27 November 1919
4. Treaty of Sevres with
Turkey, 10 August 1920
5. Treaty of Lausanne with
Turkey, 24 July 1923
Focus Point No. 5: Could the treaties be
justified at the time?
Were the peace treaties fair to the
winners or the losers or both?
1. For the winners 2. For the losers
The winners wrote the treaties,
not the losers.

3. Conclusion.
 This is not a peace treaty,
it is an armistice for twenty years.
-Marshall Foch - French Military Leader.
 Multi
dimensional
thinking

WHAT?
WHY?
HOW?
MULTI DIMENSIONAL THINKING
• You must evaluate the statement/the case. How far do you agree? or To what extent?
• Multidimensional thinking: Think using different points of view.
• Follow the pattern.
On one hand, … justify/support the statement (AGREEMENT) using the evidence/historical
facts

On the other hand, ... refute the statement (DIASGREEMENT) using the evidence/historical
facts.

Conclusion.
• In my opinion, …. How far do you agree? To what extent? (see the next slide)
EXAMPLE
1. To what extent did Clemenceau get everything he wanted from the Versailles treaty? Explain your answer. On one
hand, …. ; on the other hand, ….
On one hand, … ;
On the other hand …
Conclusion: your own opinion about the statement/case.
– To full extent
– To a large extent
– To some extent
– To a small extent
– To no extent
2. “Clemenceau did not get anything he wanted from the Versailles treaty.” How far do you agree with the statement? Explain your
answer.
On one hand, … ;
On the other hand …
Conclusion: your own opinion about the statement/case.
– I completely agree
– I partially agree
– I completely disagree