A treaty that was designed to end all wars actually ended up setting the stage for the worst one that the world has ever seen. The newly formed German democratic government saw the Versailles Treaty as a “dictated peace” (Diktat). The peace treaty did not ultimately help to settle the international disputes which had initiated World War I; on the contrary, the treaty exposed the underlying issues which had caused the war in the first place. Hitler was able to gain a foothold in German society and government in being able to capitalize on the resentment and frustration that the Treaty instilled in the German people. Hitler willingly became the outlet for the German people through which they could voice their discontent, so much of it at the …show more content…
On the other hand, the treaty created a small army full of monarchist officers, which easily became a state within a state and remained hostile to the democratic republic (which a cumbersome amount of governments didn’t engage with). This contributed to the rise of Hitler by aiding the creation of a power vacuum, trying to fill the army with whatever and whomever they could find, and then supporting Hitler. The small army also left many bitter ex-soldiers unemployed and willing to join what was now warring on the streets. This didn’t just help Hitler and his followers, but in the vast mix of groups, made political violence normal.
Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933 by using a strategic form of manipulation against the Germans, and often using things that seemed good to commit bad deeds. The Allies used appeasement in an effort to control Hitler; however, the strategy was deemed ineffective. In return for his demands to be met, Hitler promised the Allies that he would leave the rest of Czechoslovakia alone, and abandon all further ambitions of territorial expansion. When Hitler broke his pledge, took the rest of Czechoslovakia, and invaded Poland in 1939, France and Great Britain declared war. With the majority of Germany perceiving the Treaty of Versailles to be unfair and cruel, Hitler disregarding (and later falling to meet) the terms of
Though the treaty of versailles created peace and harmony in many nations after the first world war it left Germany to be humiliated and dishonored and to be worthless as a result Germany revolted, plunging the world into a second world war.
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.
While leader of Germany Hitler revealed his corruption and dishonesty to the world by violating the peace treaty that brought an end to World War I, The Treaty of Versailles. World War II began when the Treaty of Versailles was violated by Hitler’s rebuilding of the German Army, alliances, reparations, and invasions. Hitler’s first act of corruption towards the Treaty of Versailles was rebuilding the German air force and navy which was a obvious violation of the peace treaty. In 1935 Hitler began his construction on rebuilding the once strong German airforce and navy. The Treaty of Versailles had banned Germany from rebuilding their army which caused Hitler to rebuild in secret (Stokes). The Treaty of Versailles limited Germany’s army to 100,000 men, Hitler had rebuilt the army ten times the size of what the Treaty allowed, he had done these advancements in private while in public he claimed that Germany was committed to the peace intentions (Strokes). Hitler revealed his dishonesty when lied to the public and the world for the sake of his own power. The corruption of the German dictator is illustrated by his violations against Treaty of Versailles for constructing a army that was nor prohibited which also made him put an end to paying reparations. After World War I the League of Nations came together and forced Germany to sign the Treaty of Versailles. In the treaty Germany were given sixty six years to pay 6.6
"So long as this Treaty stands there can be no resurrection of the German people; no social reform of any kind is possible!".1 The Treaty of Versailles demanded exorbitant repetitions for a war Germany did not start. Adolf Hitler took the opportunity to address issues in his own hands after he left WW1 because the situation in Germany incited immense anger and distress in the people.
There is no excuse for the horrible things Nazi Germany did during World War II. However, we get a better idea as to how that war started by learning about how World War I ended. The Versailles Treaty was created by the winners of World War I, like France, Great Britain, and the United States to make peace. How did it help contribute to an even worse war less than twenty years later. The Treaty Of Versailles helped cause World War II by treating Germany harshly. This harsh treatment can be seen in three areas: territorial losses, economic losses and ¨ war guilt.¨
The Treaty of Versailles & WWII DBQ The Treaty of Versailles had the most direct impact on the general German acceptance of the Nazi Party, which in turn caused World War II to break out. While it was not the sole cause, if such harsh terms had not been imposed upon an already struggling post-war country, a war of the scale that the Second World War was might not have happened at all. David Lloyd George and Georges Clemenceau both wanted to ensure a strong Germany would never return, and given the great losses from both sides this is understandable, however giving such a nationalistic country with barely a military to protect themselves will only produce one thing: rebellion. While the Treaty of Versailles ended World War One, since it took land, restricted military, needed large reparations, and demanded an admittance of guilt from Germany, it set the stage for a bigger war and was one of the
The Treaty of Versailles left Germany extremely vulnerable to invasion, making them scared and searching for a leader. Many Germans disagreed with the treaty because it weakened their country. Hitler despised the Treaty of Versailles because he wanted Germany to be in power again. His anger towards the treaty motivated him to strive for power. In order to rise to power, he manipulated people by reminding them of propositions of the treaty that they disagreed with and promising to change
The Treaty of Versailles was meant to prevent another devastating World War, but instead it gave rise to the Nazi party and started the Second World War. World War I was a deadly internationally battle that killed 10 million soldiers and seven million civilians, and wounded ten million more. Germany and Austria-Hungary fought against France, England, Russia, and the United States, and ultimately lost. After the war ended, the leaders of the world, except from Germany, met and formed the Treaty of Versailles, which was signed on June 28, 1919. This agreement was meant to prevent future German aggression through strict rules. In reality, it helped cause World War II by imposing territorial losses, military restrictions, economic reparation, and a War Guilt Clause.
The Treaty of Versailles was a controversial treaty, not only because of what it embodied, but what it took to get the Treaty in motion. The Great War, or World War I, lasted between 1914 and 1918. This war occurred over a variety of factors, including, but not limited to, political alliances between nations, ethnic tensions in Europe, and most of all, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Austria-Hungary. With the bloody stalemate continuing without any end, the United States still held its position as a neutral world power, but events, such as the sinking of the Lusitania, caused the United States to recant its neutral position to a position in fighting against Germany. The end of World War I officially ended by the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, but wasn't signed by the U.S. Whether this was President Wilson's fault or the Senate's fault, has been questioned over the last decade.
Adolf Hitler had served in the German arm during the First World War, and felt enraged and betrayed by the Treaty of Versailles. Like many Germans, Hitler did not believe that Germany had been defeated on the battlefield, but that they had been betrayed by a revolution at home. Subsequently, the Treaty of Versailles established a harsh peace settlement, which imposed significant economic penalties upon the German people, restricted the size of their military, and reduced their geographic territory.
The Treaty of Versailles only partly helped Hitler become chancellor. On 28 June 1919, Germany signed the Treaty with the allies, losing 10% of her land. The German army was reduced to 100,000 men
The Treaty of Versailles was quickly doomed to fail as a foreign policy strategy of isolationism, by the U.S. and Great Britain, left France extremely vulnerable to the threat of a German military attack. This strategy of isolationism also weakened what became known as the League of Nations, an international organization dedicated to preserving peace. The League of Nations however, quickly became irrelevant as the U.S. refused to join and the rest of the members conducted a policy of appeasement that inevitably lead to the start of WWII. The Treaty of Versailles, also contained a war-guilt clause, which Germany was forced to sign, thus making Germany accept blame for the start of the war. Germany was also forced to pay steep restitutions and had it’s military might cut down. The combination of these clauses, quickly angered the German people who believed they were being treated unfairly by not only Europe, but also by their government who signed the treaty. This anger stayed with many Germans, and was eventually used a tool for Adolf Hitler’s rise to power and the start of
Like many Germans, Hitler believed that the Treaty of Versailles was unjust. He hated the Treaty and the German politicians were in his view, “November Criminals”. The worst aspect of the Treaty was that it was a reminder to the Germans of their defeat in the First World War and their humiliation by the Allies. His promise to the German people was that if he was the leader of Germany he would reverse this. By the time Hitler came to power, some of these terms had already been changed. The
In order to fully understand the role the Treaty of Versailles played in the initial upcoming of Adolf Hitler, we must first delve into the reasoning behind German involvement in World War One. Since the late 1800s, Germany was intent on expanding its borders, by any means necessary. Otto von Bismarck, Chancellor of Germany, was obsessed with his desire to “create a German Empire out of the group of smaller German states” mainly under Austria-Hungary’s authority (Schmidt, 2006). In order to expel Austria as the primary influence over these smaller German states, war was inevitable. Subsequently following the war, also known as the Seven Weeks War, Bismarck extorted the small German states of “Schleswig, Holstein, Hanover, Hesse, Nassau, and Frankfurt, which created the North German Federation” (Schmidt, 2006). Even more importantly, Austria was successfully displaced as the major influence over those small German states. Bismarck’s next calculated move was to achieve the same unification in the southern parts of Germany.
With factors including the economic crisis to the weaknesses of the Weimar republic, the strengths of the Nazi party allowed it to get into the position of Hitler being made chancellor. Almost all of the reasons for Hitler’s rise to power as a dictator would not have happened if it weren’t for the Treaty of Versailles. This treaty was “not a peace. It [was] an armistice for twenty years.” As Marshal Ferdinand Foch stated, it proved to be a gross misjudgment by the Allied Powers at the end of World War I. In fact, almost exactly twenty years had passed from the treaty of Versailles when World War II officially