The Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles (1) PDF

**The Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles** =========================================================== The Armistice that ended WWI was signed at 11 am on November 11th 1918. The Paris Peace Conference convened in January 1919 at Versailles just outside Paris months later. The conf...

**The Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles** =========================================================== The Armistice that ended WWI was signed at 11 am on November 11th 1918. The Paris Peace Conference convened in January 1919 at Versailles just outside Paris months later. The conference was called to establish the terms of the peace after World War I. Though nearly thirty nations participated, the representatives of the United Kingdom, France, the United States, and Italy became known as the "Big Four." The "Big Four" dominated the proceedings that led to the formulation of the Treaty of Versailles, a treaty that ended World War I. 1. -- -- *Treaty of Versailles* Negotiations at the Paris Peace Conference were complicated. The United Kingdom, France, and Italy fought together as the Allied Powers during the First World War. The United States entered the war in April 1917 as an Associated Power. While it fought alongside the Allies, the United States was not bound to honor pre-existing agreements among the Allied Powers. These agreements focused on postwar redistribution of territories. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson strongly opposed many of these arrangements, including Italian demands on the Adriatic. This often led to significant disagreements among the "Big Four." 2. +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | b. The goal of the meeting was to discuss ways in which the | | countries in Europe could stop fighting, and get along with each | | other. | +=======================================================================+ | a. The goal of the meeting was to determine which countries would | | control the lands and resources lost by the central powers in the | | war. | +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ Treaty negotiations were also weakened by the absence of other important nations. Russia had fought as one of the Allies until December 1917, when its new Bolshevik Government withdrew from the war. The Bolshevik decision to repudiate Russia's outstanding financial debts to the Allies and to publish the texts of secret agreements between the Allies concerning the postwar period angered the Allies. The Allied Powers refused to recognize the new Bolshevik Government and thus did not invite its representatives to the Peace Conference. The Allies also excluded the defeated Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, and Bulgaria 3. -- -- According to French and British wishes, the Treaty of Versailles subjected Germany to strict punitive measures. The Treaty required the new German Government to surrender approximately 10 percent of its prewar territory in Europe and all of its overseas possessions. It placed the harbor city of Danzig (now Gdansk) and the coal-rich Saarland under the administration of the League of Nations, and allowed France to exploit the economic resources of the Saarland until 1935. It limited the German Army and Navy in size, and allowed for the trial of Kaiser Wilhelm II and a number of other high-ranking German officials as war criminals. Under the terms of Article 231 of the Treaty, the Germans accepted responsibility for the war and the liability to pay financial reparations to the Allies. The Inter-Allied Commission determined the amount and presented its findings in 1921. The amount they determined was 132 billion gold Reichmarks, or 32 billion U.S. dollars, on top of the initial \$5 billion payment demanded by the Treaty. Germans grew to resent the harsh conditions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles. 4. -- -- Many Germans wanted to refuse to sign the treaty; some even suggested that they start the war again. They were angry about having to pay Reparations; they said France and Britain were trying to starve their children to death. At first they refused to pay, and only started paying after France and Britain invaded Germany in January of 1921. The citizens of Germany felt that having their military branches stripped of power, weapons, and size, left them helpless against other countries. In protest, the navy sank most of their ships rather than have to hand them over to other European powers. The loss of territory, Germans argued, was simply an attempt to destroy their economy. Worse still, new national boundaries left once German citizens separated from their mother country. What angered them the most though, was Clause 231, also known as the guilt clause, which required Germany to claim sole blame for the war. Germans felt that not was this not true, but also a way to further humiliate and degenerate a once proud people. 5. +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | d. What parts of the treaty did Germans believe left them vulnerable | | to future attacks? | +=======================================================================+ | | +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | c. What parts of the treaty did Germans feel left them vulnerable to | | financial ruin and embarrassment? | +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | | +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+