Armistice Canadian History

What is an Armistice?

Armistice to End the War of all Wars Signed in a railway carriage in France. Put an end to the fighting. Allied and German representatives met and signed the Armistice at 5:00am on November 11, 1918. Did not come into effect until 11am Paris time. 11th Day, 11th Hour, 11th Month…

People Involved Matthias Erzberger: German politician (civilian). Opponent of the war. Was eventually assassinated. Also included in the negotiations were a number of key German military personnel. The Allied Supreme Commander: Ferdinand Foch (Marshall of France) Rosselyn Wemyss who was the British Representative.

Allied Demands Immediate clearing of Belgium, France, Alsace-Lorraine. (14 Days) Surrender 5000 _________ (chiefly heavy), 30,000 __________, 3000 ________, 2000 planes Surrender of 5000 _________, 150,000 __________, 10,000 _________. Maintenance of enemy occupation troops through Germany.

Allied Demands Unconditional surrender of East Africa Return of prisoners of war. Return of the property of the _________, ________ and ________ gold. The blockade remains in effect. All German ships to be captured. Armistice to last 30 days.

Paris Conferences Following the Armistice the Allied powers met with German leaders in order to come up with a peace treaty. Basis for the Treaty of Versailles a particularly harsh treaty for the Germans. Woodrow Wilson’s 14 points become a key feature of the Treaty of Versailles.

Features of a One Sided Treaty One of the most important features of the Treaty is where Allies placed the blame. All of the Allies had hidden agendas for the Treaty of Versailles France, England, Both___________________________ The United States just wanted to go home and ensure that a war like this would never happen again. (14 Points)

6 Months Later…. After 6 months of negotiations and strong opposition to the Treaty by the Germans it was finally signed. June 28th, 1919.

Terms of the Versailles Treaty Germany would accept responsibility for the war. (war guilt clause) Germany would limit the size of its army and navy. A buffer zone was created between France and Germany along the Rhine. _________ and __________ was returned to France. German had to give up ________ and ______ in order to create an independent state.

Terms continued… Germany was forced to give up all its colonies to the _____________ (created through the Treaty). These colonies were then divided among the ‘winners’. Germany had to pay reparations. (_______________) A lot by their standards.

Effects of the Treaty Embarrassment: German had been one of the greatest industrial powers since the early 19th century. This was a slap in the face. They did not feel they started it, nor did they lose. Reparations were unrealistic. Lost many key industrial factories so returning soldiers were offered few opportunities.

The Treaty Many experts feel as though the Treaty of Versailles laid the groundwork for Hitler’s claim to power. By 1939 Germany had violated many of the terms and the Allies did very little.

Activity Evaluate the Armistice and the Treaty of Versailles. Based on your knowledge of the World War 1 do you think that the Treaty was too harsh. Explain your answer. Remember it is your opinion. There is no right or wrong answer.