John Maynard Keynes's The Economic Consequences Of Peace

John May hand Keynes said “This treaty threatens the health and prosperity of the Allies themselves. By making impossible demands it leaves Europe unsettled than it found it”.

Some might argue that President Wilson’s actions and mindset was moderately to blame for the failure of the Treaty of Versailles to persuade the Senate. After all, President Woodrow Wilson refused to take any Republican Senators with him to the Paris Peace Conference. Additionally, President Wilson held strong unwillingness to compromise during his whirlwind tour throughout the nation to gain support for the treaty, until when he suffered a stroke and collapsed from the public view. However, these mistakes of Wilson seem very miniscule when compared to the immense impact the opposition of the public and the Senate had on the defeat of the Treaty of Versailles.

1. According to the authors of Germany’s complaint. The various provisions of the treaty hurt Germany’s economy by forcing Germany to accept full responsibility for the damages caused not only by the Germans but also by everyone associated with them and the damage that was caused. As stated in the article, Comments of the German Delegation to the Paris Peace Conference, 1919 President Wilson recognized in his speech of 1916 “no single fact caused the war, but that in the last analysis the whole European system is in a deeper sense responsible for the war, with its combination of alliances and understandings, a complicated texture of intrigues

Keynes, a liberal economist, who had been present at the peace conference in Paris thought Wilson’s principles were ‘wrongly conceived ....... and too little regard had been given to the economic realities’[5] but he looked on them more favourably than the eventual conditions in the Treaty of Versailles. Alan Sharp suggests that Keynes was torn between ‘fascination at the speed with which Lloyd George could absorb both atmosphere and complex briefs and disgust at his lack of fixed principles.[6] The British delegation containing on the one hand Jan Smuts, who took a more liberal stance on the Treaty and Billy Hughes, the Australian Prime-minister, who became the ‘most vocal exponent of a Carthaginian peace among the British delegation in Paris’[7] shows the divisions amongst the British delegation and possibly reflects the indecision in Lloyd George’s mind. He felt Germany needed to be left with enough room to recover and take her place in Europe but was anxious in the aftermath of the carnage of war that Germany should be seen to be punished. Italy’s Prime Minister, Vittorio Orlando, was not vociferous at the Conference but was asking for Fiume to be assigned to Italy but it had already been assigned to Yugoslavia. Wilson resisted Orlando’s request and he and the Italian delegation eventually gave up and removed

The Treaty of Versailles did not help ensure peace and it did not help Europe recover from war because Europe’s economy was still the same. Document 3 states that the treaty did not help Europe make the defeated Central Powers into good neighbors, also an arrangement wasn’t reached to restore disordered finances of France and Italy. This document explains that after the war was over and the treaty was made Europe remained the same. Document 8a article 51 also states that the treaty didn’t help Europe because the territories stopped being under

When Germany received this treaty they were very surprised with the terms. The terms included, war guilt clause, which meant Germany accepted all the blame for World War One. Reparations, Germany had to pay millions in damage from the war. Disarmament, Germany could not have tanks or air force and land was taken away from them and given to other countries. The Germans were not happy with this treaty and thought of it as very harsh. However the Germans took responsibility and continued on in hope to get revenge later. In 1919, to help keep the world safe for democracy the League of Nations was set up. League of Nations would intend that if there were disagreements between countries they would negotiate rather than fight. The failure of the League of Nation can be summarized by points such as, not all countries joining in such as Germany as a punishment and Russia because of the spread of communism. The League of Nations had no power or any army. Countries were hesitant to get involved with an aggressive country and taking direct action against them. These things led to the fall of the League of Nations. People were angry because they did not want to cut off resources with other countries, even if they were aggressive because during the late 1920’s depression hit most of them. “The depression destroyed the market for imported silk from Japan, which had provided the country with two fifths of its export income’’ (The History on the Net Group). Economic problems played a

President Wilson was seen as an the only idealistic person from the influential people in the conference. As a matter of fact the Treaty of Versailles is seen from historians’ point of views as one of the main reasons that lead to World War Two. The questions that remains a mystery is where is the peace that President Wilson wanted and promised for

After losing a generation of men and experiencing the hardships of war, many peace related objectives were put into place to prevent another war so destructive and disastrous. The road to peace started with the Paris Peace Conference in 1919. United States President, Woodrow Wilson, presented a drafted series of peace proposals called the Fourteen Points. The last point addressed the possibility of having a group dedicated to peace and interactions among nations no matter the size (Macmillan). This organization would stop wars like World War I from happening so that it does not become part of the culture of the Western World yet again. While the idea of the league was originally rejected, the Treaty of Versailles, the most significant treaty to come out of WWI, established the League of Nations. Eventually, the League of Nations disbanded in five years after the start of World War II and the United Nations was formed. Newton Diehl Baker, Woodrow Wilson’s Secretary of War argues that the lack of such a league to keep peace in 1914 is what threw the world into the chaos of World War (Macmillan). Even Baker did not know the ramifications the war would have due to the lack of peace structure until after the war

Peace is the ability to manage conflict. It is a commitment to understanding, it is a commitment to nurture all and harm none. Peace is when everyone is equal and treated the same. However, this was not the case at the end of World war I. As the leaders made negotiations they did not commit to understanding the circumstances during the time, they did not nurture one another or other countries, as they left Germany deceived. The Treaty of Versailles was an attempt to create peace which led to another conflict. In article 159 an excerpt located in the Treaty Versailles reads “The German military forces shall be demolished and reduced as prescribed hereinafter”, is this peace? David Lloyd, the Prime Minister of Great Britain read from of his speeches “We propose to demand the whole cost of the war from Germany”, is this peace? Peace escalated tension between the leaders and

France and Britain made Germany sign The Versailles Peace Treaty but once Hitler became the leader of Germany, he wanted to change everything in Germany and make it powerful like it was once before. The League of Nations came into being after the end of World War One. The League of Nation’s task was simple to ensure that war never broke out again but eventually the League of Nations failed. As the League of Nations crumbled, politicians turned to a new way to keep the peace appeasement. This was the policy of giving Hitler what he wanted to stop him from going to war. It was based on the idea that what Hitler wanted was reasonable and, when his reasonable demands had been satisfied, he would stop. There were many reasons why Chamberlin appeased Hitler. A few of them

Imagine going to war right after graduating high school. How would you feel if you or your friends had to go to war right after graduating? How do you think a war would impact your life if you had to go to war right after graduating? War plays a key role in the story, A Separate Peace, by John Knowles. Throughout A Separate Peace, the outcome of the war is showcased. The impacts of war can be overwhelming and disheartening but can also be beneficial for some individuals. War is capable of completely changing an individual's life. In A Separate Peace, this message is seen when war impacts Phineas, Leper, and Gene remarkably.

The Successes and Failures of the Treaty of Versailles in Addressing the Causes of Conflict and Restoring Peace and Normality

The Paris of Peace conference was held on January 1919 in Versailles just right outside of Paris. Paris of Peace conference was called to establish reasonable terms to make peace with the countries after World War I. In that conference there was almost thirty nations that were participates. The “Big Four” were there as well, the big four consisted of Great Britain, represented by David Lloyd George, France, represented by George Clemenceau, United States, represented by Woodrow Wilson, and Italy, represented by Vittorio Orlando. David Lloyd George wanted moderate peace he also wants to alienate Germany as a naval threat. Vittorio Orlando wanted the territory was promised by the other countries. George Clemenceau wanted ironclad guarantees against future German military threat and he wanted Germany to pay for all the damages they caused during World War I. Woodrow Wilson wanted peace without Vengeance that were based on his fourteen points. One through five on his points consisted of open covenants, openly arrived at; which means no more secret treaties, freedom of the seas, free trade, and reduction of weapons. Six through thirteen consisted of self-determination of Europeans and point 14 consisted of the League of Nations. Woodrow Wilson was not successful in his goals, but in 1920 the League on Nations was established; after

War has influenced economic history profoundly across time and space. Winners of wars have shaped economic institutions and trade patterns. Wars have influenced technological developments. Above all, recurring war has drained wealth, disrupted markets, and depressed economical growth.