France and Policy of Collective Security HST 332: Age of Dictators, Europe 1850-1914

Outline Clemenceau and Versailles The Failure of Collective Security

Clemenceau and Versailles Permanently weakening Germany Military pre-conditions of the Armistice Military clauses in Treaty of Versailles Occupation of western approaches Collective security against German resurgence League of Nations Allies in the “shatter zone”

Permanently weakening Germany Military pre-conditions of the Armistice Military clauses of the Treaty of Versailles 100,000 man army No machine guns, tanks, barbed wire or chemical weapons Limited navy to coastal defense No air force Occupation of the Rhine bridgeheads for 15 years (to 1935) Territorial diminution of Germany Saarland independent for 15 years Attempt to pull the Rhineland out of Germany

Collective security League of Nations Allies in the “shatter zone” Alliance against aggressive war Participation in re-drawing map of Near East Allies in the “shatter zone” Military intervention Aid to Romania in putting down Hungarian Soviet government Aid to Poland in Russo-Polish War of 1920 Participation in partition of Turkey Nation-building Czechoslovakia Hungary Yugoslavia

The Failure of Collective Security Americans refuse to enter into an alliance U.S. Senate denies Treaty U.S. banks - with government backing - demand repayment of French war loans The Reparations Crisis Germans are uncooperative on reparations Reluctantly accept London Ultimatum Failure to pay in 1922, reinforced by American pressure to repay loans, causes Poincare government to occupy Ruhr to take reparations “in kind”, as was France’s right under both the Armistice and Versailles

The Ruhr Occupation French troops enter along with Belgians French use of colonial troops is greatly resented There is some violence, put down violently Germans begin (generally) passive resistance Unions declare general strike Government agrees to pay workers as if they were working and firms as if they were earning This commitment causes hyperinflation, making it impossible for Germany to pay and internationalizing the Crisis French extract only a portion of what they are owed

The Ruhr Occupation American and British opinion is opposed to Occupation Sponsored by the American government, Charles Dawes proposes a way out of the conflict January 1924 French forces withdraw Germans introduce new currency German budget - supervised by the Amis - makes provisions for reparations to France

The Aftermath The French can claim victory, but they were really sold short by their Allies It is clear that military enforcement of the Versailles provisions will not be allowed if Germany pretends to “plays nice” Rising pacifist tide and resistance to new military spending led to “soft” methods of collective security Power projection in eastern Europe Kellogg-Briand Pact making the waging of aggressive war a crime under international law