Treaty+of+Versailles

Declan Vick Treaty of Versailles

The Treaty of Versailles was the treaty that ended World War I. It involved the Allied and Axis powers, signed in 1919, five years after Archduke Ferdinand's assassination. The Treaty is known for its extensive punishment of the Germans for WWI.

According to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the Treaty of Versailles was presented to German leaders in Winter of 1919 to sign, because they were recognized as the chief belligerents of the war. Many punishments were installed upon Germany through the treaty. The treaty was signed in the Palace of Versailles because the amount of people involved in the process took up a lot of space. They had to give territory to other countries, including Belgium, Poland, France, and Czechoslovakia. Overseas colonies in Oceania and Africa were seized, and Rhineland and Saarland were lost as well, although later in history retaken. The part of the Treaty of Versailles that was perhaps the worst for Germany was known as the War Guilt Clause. In the clause, Germany had to accept responsibility for its actions during World War I. This caused Germany to go greatly into debt, because they were forced to pay for the physical damage they had caused, and its military shrunk considerably due to other sanctions in the clause. There could be no air force in Germany, and the government also had to conduct trials against the Kaiser and other military leaders for war crimes. The last part did not work however, and most leaders were acquitted.

The Treaty of Versailles, in its extensive punishment of Germany, still did not resolve disputes that started the war. Faults like these would eventually lead to the second World War. Many parts of the treaty hindered the nations at fault. Economies crumbled and the people gained even more hatred towards the Allied powers. Some say that because of how the Treaty was created, and how it did not address many issues that caused WWI, may have led in part to WWII.