The Treaty of Versailles was written in January of 1919 in Paris, influenced by seventy delegates from twenty-seven nations who met to work out a peace treaty that laid out the terms of the postwar settlement with Germany. Although there were representatives from twenty-seven different nations, the treaty was said to mainly be influenced by the big three; the United States, Great Britain, and France.
U.S. president Woodrow Wilson brought ideals from his previous peace proposal, the Fourteen Points, along with the idea of a League of Nations, and the principles of national self-determination each for different purposes. Wilson believed the Fourteen Points, which called for open diplomacy, a reduction in armaments, and freedom of commerce and trade would be successful in bringing unselfish peace among the nations instead of providing punishment for Germany. Insisting on a League of Nations to protect member states from aggression and prevent future wars was important to Wilson for setting a peace standard, although it ended up being to weak to achieve its grand purpose. Wilson's final idea of a national self-determination notion was to allow the people to freely choose their own government through the process of democratic vote. The majority rule would determine the winner of the election. Self-determination also stated they could live free from external involvement in states defined by borders.
Although these were all seen as peaceful resolutions France wanted revenge, economic and financial retribution, and long lasting security from Germany. This took up many discussions between the big three with the main issue being that France wanted a buffer state between them and Germany. This would entail permanent demilitarization of Germany. After being deadlocked with little to no hope of moving forward France finally agreed to compromise and give up the idea of a buffer state in return for French military rule of the region for the next fifteen years along with a defense pact with the United States and Great Britain.
In conclusion, Wilson was the main voice behind the peace initiative, many of his ideas were put down by the majority. One of the most controversial clauses of the treaty that Wilson opposed of was the war guilt clause. The war guilt clause declared that Germany was responsible for the war and had to pay their due reward equal to all civilian damages caused by the fight. The Treaty ultimately stated new German boundaries and assigned liability for reparations. Some claim that this treaty, due to the direct harshness toward Germany, led to WWII. Thoughts?
Citations:
Pruitt, Sarah. “How the Treaty of Versailles and German Guilt Led to World War II.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 29 June 2018, www.history.com/news/treaty-of-versailles-world-war-ii-german-guilt-effects.
https://www.history.com/news/treaty-of-versailles-world-war-ii-german-guilt-effects
"Fourteen Points" History.com, A&E Television Networks, 16 Nov. 2009, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/wilson-delivers-fourteen-points-speech.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/wilson-delivers-fourteen-points-speech
Great read! I have always thought the Treaty of Versailles was interesting, due to the fact that if Woodrow Wilson had not been present, it would have been a "stomp on Germany fest". Obviously we understand why France was angry, but some of the clauses they brought up were a little over the top. Germany was already in despair, but by making them pay for everything, the country would have ruined itself. I do believe that this treaty caused Germany to become angry and yet again, strive for overall control, leading to WWII.
ReplyDeleteI think the most interesting part about this treaty is, the amount of countries represented in the treaty compared to how many had a competitive voice in what was actually written into the treaty. Just another example of how power still overcomes the idea of equality when it benefits those in power.
ReplyDeleteThis was really interesting to read and really well put! I remember learning about the Treaty of Versailles and the war guilt clause back in AP US History in high school and have always been intrigued by it. It was important that Germany took some of the blame for causing so much damage, but could have been put in a "lighter" way and not put all the blame on Germany. I believe the harshness of the Treaty may have made Germany upset and in turn leading to World War II. Like Marlea said, Germany was already in despair, so putting the full blame on Germany wasn't the right way to go about it.
ReplyDeleteIt was always interesting that Germany got the blame of the war and yet it actually started between Austria-Hungary and Serbia. Germany got involved to defend Austria-Hungary, and because of the harsh treatment from the Treaty of Versailles, this contributed to the start of world war 2.
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of a voice did the other twenty-four countries have during the Treaty of Versailles? Did the majority of them ever differ from the opinions of the "Big Three", and if so, how did that play out? And going off of that, I wonder how many others sided with Wilson over the War Guilt Clause and what kind of tension that caused amongst those crafting the Treaty.
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