From Versailles to World War II: Comprehensive Study Notes

Treaty of Versailles: Contemporary Critiques & Political Cartoons

  • Cartoon 1 (Foch pointing at “Terms”)

    • Scene: Presentation of Treaty of Versailles reparations clause; officer ≈ Marshal Ferdinand Foch.
    • Visual metaphors
    • Scroll labelled “Terms” crushing “The German People”.
    • Officer’s rigid posture ⇒ punitive Allied attitude.
    • Intended message
    • Treaty was excessive, vengeful, not conciliatory.
    • Warning: humiliation ⇢ resentment ⇢ future conflict.
    • Historical significance
    • Reflects 1920s-30s inter-Allied debate about fairness.

  • Cartoon 2 (Hitler crawling from “Versailles Treaty” tube)

    • Scene: Figure labelled “Hitler Party” exits pipeline titled “THE SOURCE”.
    • Symbolism
    • Tube = punitive treaty conditions.
    • Emerging soldier = rise of Nazi movement.
    • Intended message
    • Harsh peace directly produced extremism.
    • Foreshadowing of WWII; bad peace ⇢ worse war.

Hitler’s Stated Foreign-Policy Aims (1933 speech & Mein Kampf distilled)

  • “Abolish the Treaty!” – erase ToV\text{ToV} military, territorial, economic clauses.
  • “Expand German territory & unite all German speakers”
    • Lebensraum (“living space”) in east; union with Austria; reclaim lost lands (Saar, Polish Corridor, Sudetenland).
  • “Defeat Communism” – ideological crusade, domestic propaganda, foreign alliances (Anti-Comintern).

Territorial Expansion Snapshot

  • 1919 map: mutilated Germany encircled by new/expanded states.
  • 1939 map: Germany enlarged by Rhineland, Austria, Sudetenland, Bohemia-Moravia, Memel, parts of Poland; demonstrates rapid revisionism 1933-39.

Master Timeline of Causes of WWII (1931-39)

  • 1. Japanese invasion of Manchuria (Sept 1931 – July 1937)
    • Trigger: staged sabotage on S. Manchurian Railway.
    • League steps: Lytton Commission (Apr ’32) ⇒ condemnation (Oct ’32) ⇒ vote (Feb ’33) without sanctions.
    • Consequences
    • League’s impotence revealed; aggressors emboldened.
    • Encouraged European dictators; showed Britain/France unwilling to deploy force.
  • 2. German military build-up & conscription (1935)
    • Events
    • Oct ’33: Germany quits League.
    • Mar ’35: conscription; parade of 2 0002\,000 aircraft.
    • Army reaches 1 million1\text{ million} by 1939.
    • Impacts
    • Direct breach of ToV Articles 159-213.
    • Domestic popularity via jobs; Britain views as buffer v. USSR (Anglo-German Naval Agreement implicit).
  • 3. Saar plebiscite (Jan 1935)
    • 90 % vote to return; legal under ToV §49.
    • Boosts Nazi prestige; provides coal resources.
  • 4. Italian invasion of Abyssinia (Oct 1935 – May 1936)
    • Mussolini exploits Walwal incident.
    • League sanctions limited (arms & imports) while Hoare-Laval pact secretly offers ⅔ Abyssinia.
    • Outcomes
    • League credibility shattered; Rome-Berlin Axis (Nov ’36).
  • 5. Remilitarisation of the Rhineland (7 Mar 1936)
    • 22 000 troops enter Cologne; France lacks British backing.
    • League pre-occupied with Abyssinia; issues only verbal protest.
    • Hitler’s risk pays off ⇒ fortified western frontier.
  • 6. Spanish Civil War (Jul 1936 – Apr 1939)
    • Hitler & Mussolini aid Nationalists; USSR aids Republicans.
    • Germany tests Luftwaffe (e.g., Guernica, Apr 1937).
    • Axis cohesion deepens; Anti-Comintern Pact with Japan (1936, expanded 1937).
  • 7. Anschluss with Austria (Mar 1938)
    • Sequence: foment unrest → ultimatum to Chancellor Schuschnigg → plebiscite under intimidation (99.75 % yes).
    • Gains: }{200\,000} Austrian troops, gold, iron ore.
  • 8a. Munich Conference & Sudetenland (Sept 1938)
    • Participants: Hitler, Chamberlain, Daladier, Mussolini; Czechs excluded.
    • Agreement: Germany receives Sudetenland; Hitler promises “last territorial demand”.
    • Establishes policy of Appeasement.
  • 8b. Occupation of Czechoslovakia (Mar 1939)
    • Breaks Munich pledge; Bohemia-Moravia becomes German Protectorate.
    • Britain issues guarantee to Poland (31 Mar 1939) → Mutual Assistance Treaty (25 Aug).
  • 9. Nazi-Soviet Pact (23 Aug 1939)
    • Public clause: non-aggression for 1010 years.
    • Secret protocol: spheres – USSR (Finland, Baltics, E.Poland, Bessarabia); Germany (W.Poland, Lithuania swap later).
    • Britain/France lose prospect of USSR alliance; Hitler secures eastern neutrality.
    1. Invasion of Poland (1 Sept 1939)
    • Germany strikes from west & East Prussia; USSR invades from east (17 Sept).
    • Britain & France declare war (3 Sept) ⇒ WWII officially begins.

Cumulative Patterns & Themes

  • League of Nations failures
    • No binding military enforcement; decisions required unanimity.
    • Pre-occupied great powers allowed sequential aggression (Manchuria → Abyssinia → Rhineland).
  • Appeasement logic
    • War-weariness, economic strain (Great Depression\text{Great Depression}), and belief ToV unjust.
    • Misread Hitler’s ultimate aims; concessions whetted appetite.
  • Axis Formation
    • Rome-Berlin Axis (Nov 1936) → Anti-Comintern Pact (German-Japanese, 1936; Italy joins 1937) → "Pact of Steel" (May 1939).
  • Economic & ideological drivers
    • Lebensraum requires eastern conquest; anti-communism rallies domestic support.
    • Rearmament alleviates unemployment: from 6 extmillion6\, ext{million} jobless (1933) to near full employment (1939).

Key Quantitative References (All expressed formally)

  • German armed forces growth
    • Army size<em>1933≈100 000→Army size</em>1939≈1 000 000\text{Army size}<em>{1933} \approx 100\,000 \rightarrow \text{Army size}</em>{1939} \approx 1\,000\,000
    • Luftwaffe show-of-force Nplanes=2 000N_{planes}=2\,000 (1935 parade).
  • Saar plebiscite result: Yes%=90\text{Yes}_{\%}=90.
  • Anschluss plebiscite result: Yes%=99.75\text{Yes}_{\%}=99.75 (under duress).

Ethical & Philosophical Implications Discussed

  • Punitive peace vs. sustainable reconciliation: cartoons caution against vindictive settlements.
  • Collective security vs. national self-interest: repeated League failures show primacy of realpolitik.
  • Appeasement debate: moral hazard of rewarding aggression; echoes in modern diplomacy.

Cause-Effect Chain Summary

  1. Weak international enforcement (League impotence) ➜ emboldens aggressors.
  2. Economic & nationalist grievances exploited by dictators ➜ popular support for expansion.
  3. Each successful breach of ToV (Rhineland, Anschluss, Sudetenland) ➜ larger gambles.
  4. Failure of Britain/France/USSR to align ➜ Nazi-Soviet Pact ➜ strategic green light.
  5. Invasion of Poland triggers Allied red line ➜ outbreak of global war (1939-45).

Suggested Study Practices

  • Recreate timeline with dates, actors, outcomes, League/Allied responses.
  • Cross-reference with maps of territorial changes 1935-39.
  • Debate: Could earlier firm action (e.g., Rhineland) have deterred Hitler?
  • Compare Manchuria & Abyssinia cases for League procedural flaws.