When Germany signed the armistice on November 11, 1918 to end the hostilities of World War I, its leaders believed they accepted a “peace without victory,” as U.S. President Woodrow Wilson pointed out in his famous Fourteen Points. But from the moment the leaders of the . After the Central Powers launched Operation Faustschlag on the Eastern Front, the new Soviet government of Russia signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany on March 3, 1918. [11] This treaty ended the war between Russia and the Central Powers, annexing 1,300,000 square miles (3,400,000 km2) of territory and 62 million people. [12] This loss corresponded to one third of the Russian population, a quarter of its territory, about a third of the country`s arable land, three quarters of its coal and iron, a third of its factories (a total of 54% of the country`s industrial capacity) and a quarter of its railways. [12] [13] However, it was clear that there were different desired outcomes, especially since Clemenceau insisted that Germany be dismembered geographically and militarily so as never to pose a threat to France again. The most controversial issue most remembered today was the issue of reparations. In the end, Germany and its allies were responsible for all the war damages, but the exact amounts of the payments were not specified. I leave Paris, after eight fateful months, with contradictory feelings. Looking back at the conference, there is much to approve and yet much to regret. It`s easy to say what should have been done, but harder to have found a way to do it.

I would like to admit this to those who say that the Treaty is bad and should never have been concluded and that it will put Europe in infinite difficulties in its implementation. But I would also say in response that empires cannot be broken and new states cannot be built without being disturbed on their ruins. Creating new frontiers means creating new problems. One follows the other. Although I would have preferred a different peace, I doubt very much that it could have been made, because the necessary ingredients for a peace such as the one I would have missed in Paris. [90] The last treaty of the Paris Peace Conference, the Treaty of Sèvres, was signed in August 1920 between the Allies and the former Ottoman Empire. Although it was accepted by Sultan Mehmed VI, it was rejected by Mustafa Kemal, a Turkish nationalist who was waging a war of independence at the time. Negotiations between Kemal`s representatives and the Allies eventually culminated in the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, which recognized the new nation of Turkey. This turned out to be the oldest of all the Paris Treaties, which testifies to equal negotiations between the participants and the acceptance of compromises. The Treaty of Versailles was an important step for the international legal status of the British dominions. Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa had each made significant contributions to the British war effort, but as separate countries rather than British colonies. India also made a significant contribution in troops, although, unlike the dominions, it was under direct British control.

The four dominions and India all signed the treaty separately from Britain,[n. 2] a clear recognition by the international community that the dominions were no longer British colonies. “Their status escaped the scrutiny of international and constitutional lawyers, but it was clear that they were no longer simply seen as colonies of Britain.” [75] By signing the treaty individually, the four dominions and India were also founding members of the League of Nations and not just as part of the British Empire. The Treaty of Versailles was signed by Germany and allied nations on June 28, 1919, officially ending World War I. The terms of the treaty required Germany to pay financial reparations, disarm, lose territory and abandon all its overseas colonies. He also called for the creation of the League of Nations, an institution that President Woodrow Wilson strongly supported and originally described in his “Fourteen Points” speech. Despite Wilson`s efforts, including a national tour of lecturers, the Treaty of Versailles was rejected twice by the United States Senate, in 1919 and 1920. The United States eventually signed a separate peace treaty with Germany in 1921, although it never joined the League of Nations. After Wilson`s presidency, his successor, Republican President Warren G.

Harding, continued American opposition to the formation of the League of Nations. Congress then passed the Knox-Porter Resolution, which formally ended hostilities between the United States and the Central Powers. It was signed by President Harding on July 2, 1921. [88] [89] Soon after, the German-American Peace Treaty of 1921 was signed in Berlin on August 25, 1921, and on August 24 and 29, 1921, two similar treaties were signed with Austria and Hungary in Vienna and Budapest. Germans of all political persuasions condemned the treaty – especially the provision that blamed Germany for starting the war – as an insult to the nation`s honor. They called the treaty a “diktat” because its terms were presented to Germany on a take-it-or-leave-it basis. Germany`s first democratically elected head of government, Philipp Scheidemann, resigned instead of signing the treaty. In a passionate speech to the National Assembly on 12 May 1919, he described the treaty as a “murderous plan” and exclaimed: “On 28 June 1914, the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist. [4] This caused a rapid escalation of the July crisis, which led Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia, followed by the entry of most of the European powers into World War I. [5] Two alliances faced each other, the Central Powers (led by Germany) and the Triple Entente (led by Britain, France and Russia). Other countries intervened as fighting raged in Europe, as well as in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. In 1917, two revolutions took place within the Russian Empire.

The new Bolshevik government of Vladimir Lenin signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in March 1918, which was very favorable to Germany. Germany felt victory before the U.S. armies could be ready, now moving its forces to the Western Front, trying to overwhelm the Allies. It failed. Instead, the Allies won decisively on the battlefield, forcing an armistice in November 1918 that amounted to a capitulation. [6] During the Paris Peace Conference, three treaties were signed with members of the former Central Powers, and two more treaties were concluded after the official conclusion of the conference in January 1920. The first and most significant was the Treaty of Versailles, signed on June 28, 1919. Despite the large number of issues to be dealt with and the absence of a clear agenda, the “Big Four” considered Germany a top priority; In 1914, Germany perceived the dominant mood as a warmonger. The 5.

In May 1921, the Reparations Commission drew up the London payment plan and a final reparation sum of 132 billion gold marks to be demanded of all the Central Powers. It was the public assessment of what the Central Powers could pay together, and it was also a compromise between belgian, British and French demands and assessments. In addition, the Commission acknowledged that the Central Powers could not pay little and that the burden would fall on Germany. As a result, the sum was divided into different categories, of which Germany had to pay only 50 billion gold marks ($12.5 billion); This was the Commission`s true assessment of what Germany could pay and allowed the Allied Powers to save face with the public by presenting a higher number. In addition, payments between 1919 and 1921 were taken into account, reducing the sum to 41 billion gold marks. [98] [99] Of the many provisions of the treaty, one of the most important and controversial required “germany to assume responsibility for the cause of all loss and damage” during the war (the other members of the Central Powers signed treaties containing similar articles). This section, Article 231, later became known as the war guilt clause. The treaty required Germany to disarm, make vast territorial concessions, and pay reparations to certain countries formed by the Entente powers. In 1921, the total cost of these repairs was estimated at 132 billion gold marks (then $31.4 billion, or £6.6 billion, or about $442 billion, or £284 billion in 2020). At the time, economists, including John Maynard Keynes (a British delegate to the Paris Peace Conference), predicted that the treaty was too harsh – a “Carthaginian peace” – and said that the reparations figure was exaggerated and counterproductive, views that have since been the subject of ongoing debate among historians and economists. On the other hand, prominent figures on the Allied side, such as Marshal Ferdinand Foch, a Frenchman, criticized the treaty for treating Germany with too much leniency. The first part of the treaty, like all treaties signed at the Paris Peace Conference,[iv] was the Covenant of the League of Nations, which provided for the creation of the Confederation, an organization for the settlement of international disputes.

[n. 37] Part XIII provided for the establishment of the International Labour Representative to regulate hours of work, including a maximum working day and a maximum working week; the regulation of labour supply; prevention of unemployment; the provision of a living wage; the protection of the worker against illness, illness and injury resulting from his employment; the protection of children, young people and women; prevention of old age and injury; the protection of the interests of workers working abroad; recognition of the principle of freedom of association; the organisation of vocational and technical training and other measures. [n. . . .