German Reaction to Versailles The Paris Peace Settlement June 1919

Why did the Germans hate the Treaty of Versailles? Aims To identify the key terms of the Treaty of Versailles and understand how Germans reacted to them

Reasons for German optimism Germany initially felt optimistic about the Paris Peace Conference (1919). Delegates outside the Palace of Versailles

? Reasons for optimism Abdication of Kaiser New democratic govt Expectations the Allies would help the new Weimar Govt President Wilson’s desire for fairness – 14 Points Other countries were not blameless What do you think Chancellor Ebert was thinking on the eve of the Paris Peace Conference?

The Actual Treaty The Germans were not invited to discuss the terms of the Treaty. It was put together by a leader who hated them (Clemenceau of France), a leader whose country hated them and wanted revenge (Lloyd George of Britain) and a leader who wasn’t able to persuade the other two to be more reasonable (Wilson of the USA)

‘Big Three’, Lloyd-George, Clemenceau & Roosevelt Wilson Lloyd-George

 Starter 28 June 1919 Germany signed up to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles formally ending WWI. How do you think the artist of this cartoon viewed the outcome of the Treaty for Germany? Who do you think the people are in this picture?

A Diktat The Germans had no choice, but to accept. The end of the fighting on November 11th 1918 was only an armistice. If Germany had refused to continue fighting the war would have restarted. Germany was weak, broken and politically unstable. They couldn’t do this. Therefore on 28 June 1919 German representatives reluctantly signed the Treaty. But they called it ‘the shameful diktat of Versailles’.

 Your task Why did Germans hate the Treaty of Versailles? Reparations War Guilt Why did Germans hate the Treaty of Versailles? Territorial losses Germany’s colonies Military restrictions

Why did many Germans resent this clause? War guilt clause Article 231 of the Treaty stated that Germany was to blame for causing the war. Why did many Germans resent this clause?

Reparations Why did many Germans complain about reparations? As Germany was held responsible for the war, the allies could claim reparations for the damage caused In 1921 a special commission fixed a sum of £6,600 m. to be paid in annual instalments The Treaty also took away 10% of Germany’s industry and 15% of its agricultural land

Germany’s colonies Germany’s colonies were handed over to the League of Nations, who gave them to Britain and France to run. Why did many Germans resent the League of Nations running their colonies?

Military restrictions Air force was disbanded Army limited to 100,000 soldiers Navy limited to 15,000 sailors, six battleships and no submarines Which country was keen to restrict Germany’s navy? Why?

Military restrictions Rhineland occupied by the Allies for 15 years No German troops allowed in this area Why were the Germans especially unhappy about these terms?

Which of the territorial losses would have angered the Germans most? Alsace-Lorraine returned to France West Prussia and Posen (Polish Corridor) lost to Poland Saarland taken over by the League of Nations for 15 years Which of the territorial losses would have angered the Germans most?

What questions might I be asked in the exam?

Easy- Describe Describe the terms of the treaty of Versailles (4) Simply list 4 different terms of the treaty. Take a new sentence for each one. Use effective connectors, eg: Another term of the treaty was… You would get 6 minutes in the exam to answer this question.

WAGOLL One term of the Treaty of Versailles was the war guilt clause which forced Germany to accept the blame for starting the war. Another term was the reparations which forced Germany to pay £6,600 million in annual instalments. Another term was…

A bit trickier- Explain Explain why Germany was angry with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. (6) State the term, then explain why this made Germany angry. You would get 9 minutes to answer this question in the exam.

WAGOLL- Explain why Germany was angry with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. (6) One term of the Treaty of Versailles was the war guilt clause This made Germany angry because they believed this was unfair as all the allies had helped start the war, not just Germany. Germany were also forced to reduce their army to 100,000 men and get rid of conscription and their air force which made them angry because it left them vulnerable to attack from other countries such as France .

Long term effects of the Treaty The link to the armistice and Treaty of Versailles had serious repercussions for the Weimar Government. The Weimar Government was associated with failure in World War One since it had signed the Treaty of Versailles that had ended the war. Many nationalists believed the government had sold Germany out to its enemies by ending the war too early. The “November Criminals” and the legend of the “Stab in the Back” were phrases used in many of Hitler’s speeches. Ideas that the Treaty was signed by anti–patriotic left wing politicians (the November Criminals), and that these same politicians were responsible for the 'stab in the back' of the army that led military defeat in 1918, discredited the Weimar Government.

The “November Criminals” and the legend of the “Stab in the Back” were phrases used in many of Hitler’s speeches. Ideas that the Treaty was signed by anti–patriotic left wing politicians (the ‘November Criminals’), and that these same politicians were responsible for the 'stab in the back' of the army that led military defeat in 1918, discredited the Weimar Government.

Think! Who do you think would win votes by peddling the ‘stab in the back’ myth? Do you think it is fair to accuse the Weimar government of being criminals? Some historians argue the T of V helped cause WWII. Can you think why? Do you agree?

Task Who were the November Criminals (remember the armistice was signed in November!) What is meant by the phrase ‘stab the army in the back’ (who held the knive, what does this suggest the army could have done if the war had continued…) Was it fair to accuse the Weimar government of these things? Why do you think Germans would be more likely to listen to Hitler’s fiction than historical truth?