HOW FAR WAS THE TREATY OF VERSAILLES TO BLAME FOR THE PROBLEMS OF THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC 1919-1923? Martina Occhetta Total Word Count:CONTENTS In what ways did the Treaty of Versailles punish Germany? pg. 3 Why did Germany object to the terms of the Treaty? pg. 5 How far was the Treaty of Versailles to blame for the problems of the Weimar Republic? pg. 7 Bibliography pg. 9In what ways did the Treaty of Versailles punish Germany? When Germany surrendered, they knew they had to pay a price, but the peace treaty was more severe than they expected. British Prime Minister David Lloyd George, French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau and American President Woodrow Wilson, the three leaders of the Allies, decided the fate of Germany. The Treaty …show more content…
They felt like the Allies had forced it upon them. They called it a dictated peace - ‘Diktat’. This was partially true; Germany had been allowed no negotiation and the Allies had given the German government five days to accept the treaty, and if they refused to do so, they threatened to invade Germany and go to war again. Many Germans would have preferred to fight the Allies and for this reason, those who signed the Treaty of Versailles became known as the November Criminals. However, it was clear that they had no choice; Germany was obviously incapable of undergoing more war. If Germany were to be invaded by the Allies, it would’ve been very difficult for them to defend themselves since they had been weakened by the war. Furthermore, Germany hadn’t taken part in the Paris peace conference; only the winning countries had been allowed to participate. When Germany had signed the armistice in 1918, they had thought they were accepting the fourteen point peace plan formulated by the USA President Wilson. Since this peace plan was based on fair and democratic ideas, Germany thought the Treaty would also be honest, but when, the 7th May 1919, the Treaty was put ahead of the German government, their expectations were proved