Effects Of The Treaty Of Versailles On Germany

In 1919 at the close of the Great War, the combined world powers convened at Versailles, on the outskirts of Paris, to define the conditions of the Armistice that ended the war. The product of their meeting was the Treaty of Versailles which placed restrictions on the German military, forced Germany to pay reparations to the Allies and placed full responsibility of the war on Germany. These conditions of the treaty created a loss of sovereignty of Germany and placed hardships on the German population. The combined result was a decline of social and economical capital in German society. The Nazi party capitalized on the conditions present in Germany and was able to rise to power. The following sections provide a brief overview of the problems

Germany owed an abundant amount of money to the Allies, “[a] contracting 21.5 billion RM in foreign debts…”1 The reparations due caused a state of hyperinflation within Germany which also produced many to lose their jobs and savings because of the collapsing economy. As the economy continued to collapse, the Third Reich started to materialize, however, in the beginning, the new parliament too had to deal with the ensuing debt. “The Third Reich inherited from the Weimar Republic a chronically weak balance of payments that severely limited its freedom of maneuver. The First World War had stripped Germany of its foreign capital assets and replaced them with the liability of reparations.”2 It is clear that the effect of the reparations due to the Allies had a tremendous effect on the economy, which in turn would directly affect the people of Germany as

The German military was frustrated by the feeling that they had been betrayed by the political leaders who chose to end the war. In 1919, the German government was weak because leaders fled government positions as the war was closing. The treaty required the military to keep its navy, army and air force small. Section V. Articles 159-213 outlined the restrictions. The Army was limited to 100,000 troops with no armored vehicles (See Chart). The Navy was limited to six battleship, six light cruisers, twelve destroyers, twelve torpedo boats, and no submarines. The Air force was restricted to 100 aircraft for search and rescue only and no armament was allowed on aircraft. Furthermore, Germany was required to destroy bunkers, defense systems, and to remove mines from rivers, seas and harbors. The total sum of the restrictions dismantled the German military and aimed to not allow it to be