The Treaty of Versailles

The World After WWI

• WWI had a profound effect on world history

• Europe suffered terrible destruction

• ~22 million soldiers and civilians died

• The result

  • ecoconomic crisises

  • radical changes in government

  • a decline in the power of many European countries

• Hitler is ANGRY about how the war ended

• 11/11 Germany surrenders to the allied countries

  • **France, USA, and Britain wanted to create a treaty that punished Germany for starting WWI

  • Austria-Hungarian empire invaded Serbia and Russia had to help Serbia which starts the war

• But what should they do?

  • punish or rebuild them

  • no German cities needed to be rebuilt, only France, Belgium, and parts of Russia were invaded and bombed

    • they wanted revenge

    • that didn’t know how to punish Germany

    • France was the leading country in punishments

• Allied countries couldn’t agree on what the treaty should include

  • they couldn’t agree where to decide the terms → they finally choose Versailles

    • the find Versailled as mutual ground → France and Britain still tense

  • In 1919, leaders from countries involved in the war met here to write a treaty

  • treaty outlined the terms of the winners and what they expected of the losing country

    • they’re only going after Germany

• France, USA, Britain → “sign the treaty or we will invade you… it’s your choice“

  • the treaty was dictated to Germany, they had no say in it

What did the Treaty of Versailles do

• Pay Reparations

  • Germany had to pay 33 billion dollars

• War Guilt

  • they are held responsible and blamed for the war and no one else

  • they had to accept blame for starting the war

• German Land Given Away

  • had to give up their colonies and a lot of land from Germany and Austria-Hungary

• Disarm German Military

  • their army could only be 100,000 and they could only have 6 battle ships. no planes, tanks, or submaries could be built

  • takes away almost all opportunity to defend thair country

• Germany lost about 10% of its land and about 10-15% of its population

  • German people were now living in foreign countries

• They took German coal mines away so allies had access and not Germany

• Austria-Hungary split apart and becomes two small countries

Effects of the Treaty

• Germany was a proud country sue to military strength and strong traditions of dominance within that area of Europe

  • the treaty created different feelings → humiliation, bitterness, embarassment, and revenge

• The war had left Germany bankrupt. As its people starved and the country lay in chaos, the allies gave them a bill they could’t afford to pay

  • the stock market crash in America sent the world into a depression

  • Germany had it the worst, their money was essentially worthless and only good for burning

• Germany isn’t the only country that suffered

  • in the 30s, the world fell into a worldwide economic depression

• Hitler arrives on the scene

  • people in Germany that wouldn’t find jobs joined the Communist parties and National Socialist party

  • National Sociaists’ leader was Hitler, he gained more and more power

  • they were mad that the treaty only blamed Germany

    • many Germans wanted revenge

• Nazi Party

  • as more and more Germans became poor and angry, more people joined National Socialist party

  • before long, the party is large and Hitler becomes very powerful

  • they also change the name of the National Socialist' party name to the Nazi party