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The Cause And Impacts Of The Treaty Of Versailles

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In 1918, the ignorance surrounding the idea that the end of a catastrophic war would contribute to a much greater battle was immense. The signing of the Treaty of Versailles took place on June 28th, 1919. In summary, the treaty made Germany liable for war reparations as well as reassigning German boundaries. The Treaty of Versailles substantially influenced the events that led to the start of World War II by the disillusionment of German citizens; this created the initial German reaction of the war to be falsified, therefore causing the seeking of vengeance while penalizing Germany economically, emotionally, and politically. The treaty had a lasting impression on Germany’s pride which overall impacted their actions throughout the 1940s. After …show more content…

One particular instance was the handing over of the Alsace-Lorraine. After the Franco-Prussian war, the land was taken by Germany. This region became an industrial center for Germany; it vastly contained coal and iron reservoirs. The Alsace-Lorraine was critical in the German economy as well as to build war machinery. After the World War I, the treaty handed this land back to France (United States Department of State). In consequence, Germany’s economy suffered even more from not only the reparations, but the war debt as well. This can begin the spark of the economic destruction of Germany which would eventually ignite the desperation for somebody to blame. The rising leader of Germany, Adolf Hitler, wrote in the autobiographical novel, “Mein Kampf,” “He who would live must fight. He who doesn't wish to fight in this world, where permanent struggle is the law of life, has not the right to exist” (Hitler 168). Hitler greatly targets his audience and begins the initial thoughts of targeting a group of people. Due to Germany’s crashing economy, Hitler shifts his focus to unifying his nation and attacking the man who “doesn’t wish to fight in this world,” especially in the time of need. These ideologies combined with the amalgamating of the country set the world for

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