...Protests against the Treaty of Versailles in Germany. Protests against the Treaty of Versailles in Germany. Question: What were ‘reparations’, and what changes were made to the Treaty of Versailles over this issue between 1919 and 1932? Question: What were ‘reparations’, and what changes were made to the Treaty of Versailles over this issue between 1919 and 1932? Versailles Treaty Reparations on Germany Versailles Treaty Reparations on Germany Word Count: 1,101 Word Count: 1,101 2014 2014 Joel Joel Versailles Treaty Reparations on Germany Versailles Treaty Reparations on Germany What were ‘reparations’, and what changes were made to the Treaty of Versailles over this issue between 1919 and 1932? After WWI, following the defeat of the Central Powers, the Treaty of Versailles, designed chiefly by France, Britain, and USA, was signed by Germany. The treaty was intended to suppress Germany under the reins of a ‘harsh peace’. The conditions of the treaty subjugated Germany in many ways: Germany had to accept guilt for starting the war, had land taken in what is known as the Territorial Clauses, had limits put on their military power in what is known as disarmament, and were excluded from the League Of Nations; but worst of all the terms, Germany had to pay reparations – the bill to compensate for war damages. Article 232 of the Versailles Treaty read, “The Allied and Associated Governments, however, require, and Germany undertakes, that she will make...
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...peaceful democracy. Through two distinct historiographical lenses, one can determine whether the collapse of the Weimar Republic (1919 to 1933) was genuinely inevitable. Historical View #1 proposes that Hitler was a product of Germany’s authoritarian culture, and the Germans failed to develop a democratic tradition because they preferred a stronger state led by a powerful individual. Historical View #5 suggests that German support of Nazism was an emotional response to the crisis-state; Germans were disoriented with the economic crisis, and similar to View #1, sought firmer leadership. The Treaty of Versailles doomed the Weimar Republic because the German administration was unable to fulfill the treaty’s unrealistic demands for reparations, which ruined their domestic economy and fostered a strong authoritative leadership that would defend Germany against the terms and impoverishing effects of the ill-advised treaty. The Treaty of Versailles was intended to guarantee the Allies (and neighboring countries) peace and safety; however, the Allies neglected to recognize that the harsh demands of reparations would drive Germany into the hands of a dictator. Virtually the whole nation repudiated the Treaty of Versailles; it was introduced to promote peace, but instead stripped Germany of her self-determination and potential prosperity, leading to a domestic rebuke of its onerous terms. Additionally, President Wilson’s following Fourteen Points were also considered to deny millions of...
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...war meet in Versailles to discuss the terms of peace. The peace treaty, known as the Treaty of Versailles, placed harsh punishments on Germany. Germany was forced to pay for the cost of the war, and accept full blame for the war. Also, in order to weaken Germany, territory was taken from Germany and given to other countries, or used to create new countries. These terms of peace left Germany impoverished and its people angry. Hitler’s inevitable rise to power was a direct result of the reparations, war guilt, and loss of territory demanded by the Treaty...
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...in the Versailles Treaty resulted in World War 2; moreover, lost territories, reduced military, reparations and humiliation were the leading causes to Germany's aggression/hostility. The Treaty of Versailles minimizing Germany’s territory caused a thirst for Nationalism. In result of the Versailles Treaty, Germany lost the Polish Corridor, Danzig and other small territories (Doc A). In addition to that, the loss of these territories meant less coast land and people who lived in the lost area experience extreme hardship and lost their homes. Hitler was a big advocate in motivating people and keeping citizens spirits high. In attempts of doing so he said, “No nation can remove his hand from its throat...
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...by Charles G. Dawes, an American banker. The plan was named Dawes Plan, and its clauses were that there was to be a two-year freeze on the payment of reparations and that the level of German payments was to be scaled down. The USA offered huge loans to Germany, and France then agreed to take their troops out of the Ruhr. Germany was receiving more than what they were paying, the plan was initially a great success. The new German currency Retenmark became stabilized and inflation was under control. The large loans from the USA were used in investment in Germany and for the reduction of unemployment. Overall, Germany was able to meet the obligations that was set for her under the Treaty of Versailles for five years. German politicians like Adolf Hitler and Alfred Hugenberg attacked the Dawes Plan because it did not completely reduce reparations, they also disliked the idea that foreigners would have control over the German economy. The Young Plan was substituted in 1929. Owen D. Young, American banker, devised the Young Plan, which suggested that reparations should be reduced by about...
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...Introduction The purpose of this essay is to investigate and explain how the Treaty of Versailles affected the German economy. I find this subject relevant since it is a big event in European history. During the years after the First World War Germany had a lot of debts and faced a lot of reparation costs. Even though the meaning of most of the peace treaties was to encourage the world economy, re-build cities and maintain peace, not a lot of these goals were fulfilled. Background The First World War was a military conflict that included a lot of countries around the world. The war started at June 28, 1914 and lasted until November 11, 1918. The war was played out between the great power countries and they were divided in to two parts, the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary and Ottoman Empire) and the Entente (Russia, Great Britain, France and USA). When the war ended in 1918, negations began to try to come up with solutions to all the problems and crises that had been caused by the war. All the countries involved in the war gathered in France in 1919 to start the peace negotiations. An important treaty written during these negotiations was the Treaty Of Versailles. It was signed by Germany and the Entente.1 The Demands Germany was seen as being head responsible for the upcoming of WW1 and had caused the most damage to other countries; therefor the Treaty of Versailles included numerous demands that Germany had to obey. France got permission to occupy the coal-mines...
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...many significant consequences; one of which was the Treaty of Versailles. This treaty was a peace settlement signed after World War 1 which came to an end in 1918. The treaty was formed in order to punish Germany for all damages she had supposedly caused in World War 1. The treaty was signed at the Versailles Palace near Paris, between Germany and the Allies. The three most important politicians were there; David Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau and Woodrow Wilson. The treaty of Versailles was a peace settlement between Germany and the Allies after World War 1. The many countries that defeated Germany in World War 1 blamed Germany for causing the war and initiating severe damages.The treaty took away and placed control...
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...The Versailles Treaty The Treaty of Versailles was the PEACE settlement signed after World War I ended in 1918 and in the shadow of the Russian Revolution and other events in Russia. The treaty was signed at the vast Versailles Palace near Paris between Germany and the Allies. The three most important politicians were there David Lloyd George of Britain Georges Clemenceau of France and Woodrow Wilson of the United States. The Versailles Palace was considered the most appropriate venue because of its size many hundreds of people were involved in the process and the final signing ceremony in the Hall of Mirrors could accommodate hundreds of dignitaries. The Paris Peace Conference opened on 12th January 1919, meetings were held at various locations in and around Paris until 20th January, 1920. Leaders of 32 states representing about 75% of the world's population, attended. Negotiations were dominated by the five major powers responsible for defeating what was called the Central Power the United States, Britain, France Italy and Japan. Eventually five treaties emerged from the conference that dealt with the defeated powers. The five treaties were named after the Paris suburbs of Versailles of Germany, St Germain of Austria, Trianon of Hungary, Neuilly of Bulgaria and Serves of Turkey. The main terms of the Versailles Treaty were: (1) the surrender of all German colonies as League of Nations mandates. (2) the return of Alsace-Lorraine to France. (3) cession of Eupen-Malmedy to...
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...Why was the Weimar Republic so unpopular with many Germans between 1919 and 1923? Why was the Weimar Republic so unpopular with many Germans between 1919 and 1923? After The War a new type of government was set up in Germany. This was the Weimar Republic. Between 1919 and 1923 it had to deal with many problems. 1919 saw the Spartacist Rebellion and the new government was forced to agree to the unpopular Treaty of Versailles. In 1920 the Kapp Putsch succeeded in taking over the government for a while. In 1921 Germany began to pay reparations and inflation began to get out of control. Two years later France and Belgium invaded the Ruhr and the hyperinflation was now out of control. The NSDAP, led by Adolf Hitler and General Ludendorff, tried to take over the government at this time. This bad start had three main causes. The First reason why the Weimar Republic started badly was that there were political problems. Some people were very upset that the Kaiser had been forced to leave. This was a politically a bad start because it showed that some people would have preferred to have had the previous political system. The communists disliked the new republic because not much would change. The workers would still be poor and the rich would still be rich. ...read more. Middle The President of the Weimar Republic had potential to become a military dictator. This was a political problem for the Weimar Republic because the President could ignore the Chancellor and the Reichstag. Another...
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...Case Study 2 : Versailles : The Allies’ “Last Horrible Triumph” The Treaty Of Versailles was a document that listed various conditions that were agreed upon by the countries involved in World War I to cease fighting. The treaty was great news for the allied powers but, many believe it was too skewed in their favor leaving Germany with less than what they had prior to the war. Germany felt like they got the short end of the stick in the treaty and on October 19th 1919, the german delegation at the paris peace conference detailed their issues with the treaty and is what some people say started World War II. Germany’s economy took a huge hit when the Treaty Of Versailles was signed. One of the biggest complaints the german delegation had was the reparations germany was expected to pay out after the treaty is signed. The issue for them was there was no set amount agreed upon at the time of the signing. It would be decided after the fact and the deciders would be the enemies of Germany during the war. After the treaty was signed while the commissions was deciding on germany’s final reparation amount, they were required to hand over 5 billion dollars which with inflation would be close to 7 billion today. It is not an amount that can be just handed over, it hurt Germany’s finances and the economy would be the next victim as money was being taken out of the system. No money being spent means no money being made so the economy was in ruin. The german delegates argue that the...
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...the unfairness of the Treaty of Versailles signed by the Allis in 1919 at the Paris Peace Conference, that ended WWI. Countries of the Central Powers were bitter and stuck with having the whole blame of First World War and the lost of their land and money while none of the Allied Powers took any blame. This unfairness may have made war inevitable. Germany wanted revenge by gaining back what they had lost after the Treaty of Versailles. Hitler promised revenge to the German people, who did not want to live with the horrible way they where force to live by treaty. Hitler knew that the Germans would not stand for this. Thus, the Treaty of Versailles led to the rise of a dictator who caused and directed events that led to the outbreak of WWII. Allied delegates in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles witness the German delegation's acceptance of the terms of the Treaty Of Versailles, the treaty formally ending World War I. Versailles, France, June 28, 1919. When the fighting ended in WWI with an armistice in 1918 there was the need for peace. This peace was aimed to be achieved through a coalition between the three major countries of the Allied Powers: Great Britain, France, and the United States of America. The Central Powers were left out of this coalition called “The Paris Peace Conference” because they were blamed for the war. Through this “peace” that the Allied Powers wanted to establish in the world they placed all of the blame on Germany when the treaty was formed. Russia (later...
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...said "This [The Treaty of Versailles] is not a peace. It is an armistice for twenty years". World War 1 was caused by the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, the future emperor of Austria-Hungary. Serbia financed the assassination which lead to Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia. Each country's allies declared war on each other eventually leading to a global conflict. The Great War involved 32 countries killing over 8 million soldiers. After four years, the Treaty of Versailles ended the War-to-end-all-wars on June 28, 1919 in Paris, France. The Allies argued about the punishment Germany should receive. France and England wanted...
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...Week 2: Versailles: The Allies’ “Last Horrible Triumph” Steven A. Smith Chamberlain College of Nursing Week 2: Versailles: The Allies’ “Last Horrible Triumph” The Treaty of Versailles, drafted by the Allied Forces, was drafted in with good intentions by some but not all. In the following writing, I will portray some of the complaints by Germany. As well as, what they believed would have led to them being treated differently in the sanctions. I will also delve into the higher “fundamental laws” in the document that side with the German viewpoints. There were many views of the treaty and although I have mine, its important to also views the points of those who would defend the treaty and the reasons for it. There were many provisions written in the treaty but most of which were geared toward Germany and its peoples. Their economy would be damaged and controlled by the Allied Powers with no end in sight. “Germany must promise to pay an indemnity, the amount of which at present is not even stated” (German Delegation, 1919). This indemnity later led Germany to borrowing money to pay reparations to other states. It is worth noting, the Germans were not part of the commission, which was mainly compromised of its enemies from the war. Many of the economic strong points/areas in Germany were given to foreign nations. Also, many of the ways to ship goods and such were controlled by foreigners who could limit the growth possible for the nation. Giving away key cities, controlling...
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...be argued from one’s perspective that the Treaty of Versailles was the main significant force responsible for the political and economic collapse of stability in Weimar Germany. Furthermore another angle of this debate could blame alternative factors for political and economic stability between the years 1919-23 such as the forming of coalition governments causing political instability and the famous Occupation of the Ruhr causing so called economic instability. Firstly it could be argued that the Treaty of Versailles was the leading factor which caused political instability. A significant element of the Treaty of Versailles which was known as Article 231 stated Germany must admit to starting WW1. This angered the German people. Despite at that moment in time German people united against article 231 and were a collective unit by the time 6 months had passed it was a completely different set of events. The Reichstag were issued an ultimatum to sign the Treaty (all of its terms) or be bombed. Germany understandably had no choice but to sign it. However the government felt no need to explain the Ultimatum to the public which made the public think the government were corrupt which developed the well known “stab in the back” theory. The people felt a sense of betrayal from the politicians which severely threatened the existence and support of the Weimar government, which suggest that it is fairly accurate to assume the Treaty of Versailles was mainly responsible for political instability...
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...sign the treaty of Versailles, which was very unpopular. This resulted in problems as Germany was unable to keep to some of the treaty. Germany’s economic problems in 1923 stemmed from the treaty of Versailles: one of the points of the treaty was that Germany had to pay reparations to France, Belgium and the United Kingdom as a payment for the allies’ loss in the war. However, the huge sum of 132000 million marks was practically impossible for Germany to pay, especially after the devastation of the First World War, when a lot of the country’s money had been spent on industry, making war materials. France and Belgium saw this as a refusal to keep to the terms of the treaty; they therefore invaded the Ruhr (the part of Germany where its industries were) to take the money by force. The Germans could not resist this invasion physically as their arms had been dramatically reduced by the treaty of Versailles. Instead, they fought back by passive resistance and refused to work for their occupiers. But, as they weren’t working, they didn’t get paid – so the Weimar government began to print millions of marks to keep up their payment. Consequently, the German economy spiralled into massive hyperinflation – in November 1928, one egg cost 80000 million German marks. Workers’ wages simply could not keep up with the rate of inflation. One of the ways Streismann helped Germany to recover from this economic crisis was to introduce a new currency called the rentenmark. The old German marks...
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