Treaty Of Versailles And World Depression Updated Th

Unit 2 Notes

In November 1918 Germany surrenders to the Allied countries. The most powerful ones, being France, USA and Britain, wanted to create a treaty

that clearly explained what Germany would now have to do.

BUT WHAT SHOULD THEY DO?

Allied countries could not agree on what the treaty should include, but... They could agree on WHERE it should take place: A French palace in a city called Versailles (near Paris)

After World War I, leaders from countries involved in the war met here to write a treaty (peace talks)Treaty outlined the terms of the winners and what they expected of the losing country

WHY

Many Historians believe that disagreements happened because the

war affected the countries in many different ways.

WHAT COUNTRIES WERE INVOLVED...

750,000 men died

Spent nearly $8 billion of which $1 billion was

borrowed from the USA

Some British people blamed Germany for the

war and wanted revenge

The British Prime Minister thought that if the Treaty was too harsh, then Germany might one day start another

war.

I don’t want to cripple Germany in the Treaty. I think that this could start another war in the

future, but people in Britain want Germany to pay.

They joined in 1917 and lost 113,000 men.

USA’s homeland was never attacked

USA wanted a ‘softer’ treaty because they thought Germany was important for the

future...

Woodrow Wilson: I don’t agree with France. Its probably because we didn’t

suffer nearly as much as the French. However, I want to focus upon setting

up the League of Nations.

US did not join the League of Nations for fear of being drawn into more wars. This also means the US did not sign the Treaty of Versailles.

Most of the fighting took place in Northern France.

1,250,000 men died

Germany stole 90% of France’s coal and iron in

1914

Many roads and factories had been destroyed

I want to make sure that Germany pays for the problems it has caused us. We suffered the most in WW1 and we

demand revenge and reparations

Clemencau

FRANCE

USA

BRITAIN

“SIGN THE TREATY OR WE WILL INVADE

YOU……ITS YOUR CHOICE!”

The treaty was dictated to Germany-- they did not have a say in it.

LEAGUE OF NATIONS

MASSIVE ARMY CUTS

The Army was cut to just 100,000 men, the Navy could only have 6 battleships, and they were not allowed to build any

new planes, tanks, or submarines.

GERMAN LAND GIVEN AWAY

Germany lost land to France, Poland, Belgium, and Denmark. An area of Germany was even separated from

the mainland.

GERMANY’S EMPIRE

All of Germany’s colonies were taken away and given away to the

Allied countries.

PAY COMPENSATION

This was know as reparations. Germany had to pay $33 billion

dollars.

Treaty of Versailles

WHAT DID THE TREATY ACCOMPLISH?

This organization of nations would cooperate

to keep peace.

Not only did Germany lose about 10% of its land, it also consequently lost 10% of its population. German people were now living in foreign countries.

Land taken away from Germany under the treaty of Versailles

“Today in the Hall of Mirrors of Versailles the disgraceful Treaty is being signed.

Do not forget it. The German people will press forward to reconquer the place among nations to which we deserve. Then will come revenge for the shame of 1919.”

Excerpt from a German newspaper on the day the treaty was signed...

Germany was a proud country due to its military strength and strong traditions of dominance within

that area of Europe. However, the treaty of Versailles created different feelings:

The war had left Germany almost bankrupt. As its

people starved and the country lay in

chaos, the Allies gave them a bill (Treaty of Versailles) that they

simply could not afford to pay...

RESULT: German money become

worthless German money was only good for starting fires…

The Dawes PlanReduced the amount Germany owed Set payments Germany could handleLoaned Germany $200 million

Germany wasn’t the only country who sufferedIn the 1930s, countries around the world fell into a worldwide economic depression

WHY?...

1929—USA experienced a stock market crash

Value of stocks began to drop so stockholders began to sell their stocks as fast as they could

Businesses could no longer sell their goods because people had less money to spend, so many had to close & workers lost their jobsPeople couldn’t repay their loans to the bank, so they lost everything (homes, farms, etc.)

Businesses around the world traded with the US:

When the US stopped buying goods, it hurt businesses in other countriesWhen US banks closed, banks in other countries were hurt tooStockholders in other countries could no longer sell their stocks to American companies

As businesses and factories around the world closed one by one, buying and selling almost stopped…