Tuesday, February 24, 2009

The Treaty of Versailles


After WWI, Europe was left in bad conditions and Germany was blamed for the whole war. Most of Germany's territory was taken from them, and all of their land overseas was lost. The League of Nations took control of all their colonies. The war cost them nearly 10 percent of their land and their overseas colonies, were taken away by allies, who blamed Germany for their losses. On June 28, 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was signed. The treaty of Versailles was an official peace treaty which officially ended the war. It was signed exactly 5 years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which was the same reason why the war started in the first place. The Treaty put all the blame on Germany for the causes of the war. Germany was responsible for paying the damages that the war had caused. Life for the German people became very difficult after the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty also took control of Germany’s military. Their armies reduced 100,000 men and were now allowed to only have 6 ships. The German army and navy were limited and bans where put on the use of heavy artillery, tanks, and aircrafts. A major result of the treaty was terrible hardships in Germany, they wanted to get revenge. German people felt let down and angry with the treaty of Versailles because it wasn’t fair. They believed that if they had a strong leader Germany would become better.

I don’t think that the treaty of Versailles was fair because all the blame was put on Germany. They had to pay all the consequences due to the war. This ruined Germany's economy. The Treaty of Versailles was a treaty made without thought of fairness or consideration as to what its effects might be. Instead the treaty created an alien system of democracy. Some historians say that the treaty of Versailles led to the rise of Fascism and Adolf Hitler. The Treaty gave Germany many hardships and it lead to the great depression in Germany. Many people lost their jobs and starved. The country was becoming worse and people were desperate for a new ruler that would bring there country back up. Adolf Hitler was able to take control. He blamed outsiders for causing problems in the nation and attempted to over throw Germany’s government. He talked in a way that impressed and convinced the German people. He had absolute power over the entire country.








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