The Declaration Of The Treaty Of Versailles

Article 231, in the Treaty, is commonly known as the “Guilt Clause”. This said that the Germans were responsible for the whole of the War. The Germans had no say in anything and just had to keep quiet and take the blame for everything.

What responsibility did each of the “Big Three” have for the failure of the Versailles Treaty to bring peace to Europe? Be sure to discuss what each wanted to accomplish.

Almost all nations desired to completely destroy Germany and make them work almost like slaves (Doc 3). The other nations act as if they had no part or fault in the war when in reality they were part of it just as much as Germany. Great Britain, France, and Italy all wanted revenge and saw this as their opportunity to get it. The treaty caused restrictions to their military and also made Germany lose their territory and colonies. The fault was entirely placed on their shoulders and the weight only became greater with the treaty. Germany was also not the one to start the war but yet were accused of it

Even though it wasn’t their fault that the war started, the Big Four countries made them sign something that claimed it was their fault and they admitted it. In Document C, it says that Germany was forced to undertake the responsibility for all the damage that was done to the Allies. This made Germany very mad because they also had loses and they didn’t start the war in the first place. In Document D, it states that Germany had to take full blame and accept the consequences, also, that Germans saw the Treaty of Versailles as an evil thing and that it needed to be destroyed, this starting the Nazi party and for Hitler to rise in his power for all the countries to look at Germany as something else, more powerful, and for the countries to fear

One way the Versailles Treaty treated Germany unfairly was by having them take full responsibility for the war damages. Document C states in article 232 “that she will

Ninety-eight years ago, after the fighting of World War I subsided, the Treaty of Versailles (“the Treaty”) was signed at the Palace of Versailles in France by the Allied powers and Germany. The compromise of the Treaty is that it ended World War I. The conflict of the Treaty is that it fed the German’s hate for the Allied Powers and, in turn, was the cause of World War II. “In their hearts was a stern resolution that the fiasco of November 11, 1918, would not be repeated for all serious people in America, as in all nations, remembered that much hailed Versailles Treaty was sown the very seeds of World War II” (Library Of Congress. Manzanar free press, November 12, 1942. 1942. Newspaper. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/sn84025948/1942-11-12/ed-1/. )

On January 22, 1917, Woodrow Wilson addressed the United States Senate appealing for a settlement of conflict for ‘peace without victors’. Unfortunately the Treaty of Versailles was signed by participating nations and could not end the hostilities that terrorized to destroy European Civilization. The Treaty of Versailles is one of the most important social and physical agreement or disagreements that help shape the European 20th century. The treaty was very important because it violated Wilson’s ideals. The Treaty of Versailles was the official end of the World War I and was ultimately the main reason that led to World War II.

How did the Versailles Treaty help cause World War II? The Treaty of Versailles was created on June 28, 1919, a year after the end of World War I. The head principals of the Versailles Treaty were George Clemenceau of France, David Lloyd George of England, Woodrow Wilson, the president of the United States. Germany was treated unfairly after World War I. World War I wasn’t entirely their fault, they had to admit to causing it anyways.

As stated in document D, article 231 says that “The Allied and Associated Governments affirm and Germany accepts the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments and their nationals have been subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them by the aggression of Germany and her

The war guilt clause of the Versailles treaty further magnified national shame by forcing them to accept the blame for WWI, stripping

Firstly, we must proceed to explain the nature of Article 231 in order to be able to analyse its judgement about Germany's responsibility for the war. After the war had ended, Europe's, especially France's economy was devastated. There was also a general desire for such a war never to repeat itself, as the first proof of modern warfare proved to be ruinous. To deal with this two issues the allied powers made Germany sign the "war guilt clause" which made it accept all the guilt for the war and because of this, pay reparations to the affected states. In this way France's economy would theoretically recover faster while Germany was kept economically weak so it could never attempt to cause a war again.

The final product of the Versailles Treaty’s terms was the humiliation of Germany and more importantly, its individuals. Supportingly, Document D reports that, “The Allied and Associated Governments affirm and Germany accepts the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments and their nationals have been subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them by the aggression of Germany and her allies.” (Document D) As the Treaty enforces blame, it singles out Germany. This attempt to prevent war only fueled the fire, creating bitterness that would be a massive contribution to World War II. In agreement, Document D continues the theme, relaying that, “What they knew of the treaty was etched

invaded, but years of war had taken a toll on Germany and it could not

The Paris Peace Conference took place in January 1919 at Versailles near Paris. The purpose of the gathering was to build up peace after World War I. In spite of the fact that about thirty countries took part, the agents of the United Kingdom, France, the United States, and Italy wound up noticeably known as the "Enormous Four." The "Huge Four" commanded the procedures that prompted the detailing of the Treaty of Versailles, a settlement that finished World War I. The Treaty of Versailles explained the bargains came to at the meeting.

“ARTICLE 231 The Allied and Associated Governments affirm and Germany accepts the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments and their nationals have been subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them by the aggression of Germany and her allies.”(Treaty of Peace).