When the Treaty terms were announced in June 1919, there was a mixed reaction. The general opinion in Britain was that the terms were fair and should probably have been more serious. British newspapers suggested that Germany would no longer threaten world peace. Any complaints by the Germans were dismissed. When Prime Minister David Lloyd George returned from Paris in June 1919, he received a hero's welcome. The king came out to meet him at the railway station, which was completely unheard of in British history.
How did France react?
Reactions in France were mixed. There were celebrations that the war was definitely over. People approved of the amends that Germany had to pay. They also liked the fact that Germany's borders with France (the Rhineland) would be remove all military forces. This meant Germany could not station any troops in this area. They appreciated that the coalmines of the Saar would bring success to France instead of Germany. They also believed that the League of Nations would be a
…show more content…
The USA reactions to the Treaty were negative. Many Americans felt that the Treaty was unfair on Germany. More importantly, they felt that Britain and France were making themselves rich at Germany's expense and that the USA should not be helping them to do this. This was not really the case, but many Americans believed it.
This was partly because American politics were deeply divided at the time. President Wilson led the Democratic Party. However, his rivals in the Republican Party dominated the US Congress. They used the Treaty as an opportunity to attack Wilson. Wilson has to take some of the blame for this as he made little effort to tell the Republicans about the Treaty. Americans were also worried about Wilson's plan for a League of Nations. They were concerned that belonging to the League would drag the USA into international debate that were not their concern. In the end, the Congress rejected the Treaty of Versailles and the League of