How far were the peace treaties of 1919?

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Cambridge IGCSE History - Core Content Option B Topic 1

How far were the peace treaties of 1919?


  1. What did Clemenceau want to achieve from the peace settlement of 1919–20?
He wanted revenge against Germany for all the suffering of WWI. 
He wanted revenge for the defeat in the war of 1870–71 (1) and the loss of Alsace-Lorraine. (2)
He wanted Germany to pay for all the cost of the damage.
He wanted a weak Germany. He wanted to ensure Germany could not attack France again (1)
by taking land and weakening industry, reducing her armed forces. (2)
He wanted to split Germany into a number of small states. (1) Germany should lose the Rhineland, Saarland, Danzig and East Prussia. (Max 2 for naming)

  1. What did Wilson hope to achieve from the peace settlement of 1919–20? [5]
Wilson did not want Germany treated harshly because he thought that if Germany was
punished severely, Germany would take revenge in the future.
He wanted to strengthen democracy in the defeated nations so that its people would not let
its leaders cause another war.
Wilson hoped that nations would co-operate to achieve world peace and in his ‘14 Points’ he
proposed the setting up of an international body called the League of Nations.
Wilson believed in the principle of self-determination and he wanted the different peoples of Eastern
Europe to rule themselves.

  1. What did Lloyd George want to achieve from the peace settlement of 1919–1920?
He sought order and balance of power for Europe to safeguard Europe’s future security and Britain’s own trade interests and colonial empire.
He wanted to protect British interests by ending the threat to the Navy and Empire.
He had promised the British public to take revenge on Germany: “squeeze the German lemon until the pips squeak”.
He wanted to reduce German power but also to ensure that France did not become too powerful.
He wanted to make sure Germany was not treated too harshly because it may lead to future problems if Germany wanted to take revenge. He also wanted Germany as an important trading partner with Britain.

  1. In what ways did the Treaty of Versailles weaken the German economy? [5]
The financial impact was high.  They lost important land.   Unemployment rose.
They could not meet repayments.
Germany had to accept full blame for starting the war and, therefore, had to pay reparations of £6,600 million.
A reduction in the numbers in the armed forces increased unemployment.
The Saar and Upper Silesia were lost. These were important industrial areas.

  1. What were Germanys main territorial losses under the Treaty of Versailles?
Germany lost land it had previously won.  Germany lost its colonies. Germany lost industrial land.
Level 2 Describes losses [2–5] (One mark for each relevant point; additional mark for supporting detail.)
Alsace-Lorraine was returned to France.
Eupen, Moresnet and Malmedy were given to Belgium.
West Prussia and Posen were given to Poland.
Danzig was to be a free city under the League of Nations.
Memel was given to Lithuania.
The area known as the Saar was to be administered by the League of Nations for 15 years.
Upper Silesia was handed to Poland.
Northern Schleswig was given to Denmark.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania became independent states. Germany had taken these from Russia in 1918.
German African colonies were taken away. Togoland and Cameroon to Britain and France.
German East Africa to Britain. German South West Africa to South Africa. New Guinea to
Australia. Samoa to N.Zealand. The Marshall, Mariana and Caroline Islands went to Japan.
(Not Rhineland)

  1. In what ways did the Treaty of Versailles weaken Germanys armed forces? [5]
  2. What military restrictions did the Treaty of Versailles impose on Germany? [5]
Germany’s armed forces were greatly reduced: The army was limited to 100,000 men. (1) There was to be no conscription. (1)
Germany was not allowed tanks, submarines or military aircraft.
The navy could only have six battleships (1) and was limited to 15,000 men. (1)
They could not put troops in the Rhineland. (1)
(No credit for just Rhineland.)

In what ways did the Treaty of Versailles weaken the German economy? [5]
The financial impact was high.
They lost important industrial land which could help Germany recover from the war’s devastation.
Germany had to accept full blame for starting the war and, therefore, had to pay reparations of £6,600 million, which will cripple Germany’s economy as Germany failed to pay.
A reduction in the numbers in the armed forces increased unemployment.
The Saar and Upper Silesia were lost. These were important industrial areas.

  1. (b) Why did Clemenceau demand that a harsh peace be imposed on Germany?
To pay for all the damage Germany had caused because...
To prevent future German attacks on France because...
To gain revenge (for all the French suffering) because...
France had very high casualties during WWI and lost many soldiers.
France had suffered enormous damage to its land, industry and people. Clemenceau was under intense pressure from his people to make Germany pay for the suffering they had endured both in 1870 and the Great War.
Ever since 1870 France had felt threatened by its increasingly powerful neighbour,
Germany. Clemenceau saw the treaty as an opportunity to cripple Germany by breaking it up into small, weak states so it could not attack France again.
France had borrowed huge sums of money to fight the war and was faced with enormous debt. Clemenceau wanted Germany to pay this debt.

  1. (b) Why did the terms of the Treaty of Versailles cause so much bitterness in Germany? [7]
They were not based on the Fourteen Points.  They did not believe they had lost the war.
They were not represented at the talks.       It led to events in 1923.
They were bitter because of the war guilt clause.
They were not allowed self-determination.  They were not invited to join the League of Nations.
Level 3 Explains why 4–7
They thought the terms of the Treaty were harsh and unreasonable and they were not allowed to negotiate them. They called the Treaty a diktat.
It left the new Weimar Republic vulnerable and open to revolution by extremists as with the Spartacus League (1919) and the Freikorps (1920).
The terms made Germany weak economically as the land lost contained much of Germanys
coalfields and iron industry. This made it difficult to raise money to pay reparations.
Germany resented the loss of land to Poland. Germany was now split in two by the Polish Corridor.
The army was their pride and joy and it was drastically reduced. Having to disarm left them
vulnerable to attack from neighbouring states.
They were forced to accept responsibility for war and the damage caused. For this they had to pay reparations which were extremely high and this led to inflation and hyperinflation.
Germany’s colonies were taken and yet the Allies kept theirs.

  1. (b) Why did the Big three disagree over how to treat Germany? [7]
The Big Three were Wilson, Lloyd George and Clemenceau.
They were from different countries with different ideas.
Wilson wanted to use the Fourteen Points.   Clemenceau wanted security.   
The French wanted revenge.    Lloyd George wanted to protect British interests.
Wilson had his Fourteen Points. He wanted these to be the basis for peace.
At Versailles he was forced to compromise as others were less idealistic.
He was weakened by lack of support back home.
Clemenceau wanted France to be secure from future German attacks. This meant
weakening Germany and reducing its military strength.
The French wanted revenge on Germany for the destruction the war had caused.
Lloyd George wanted to protect British interests but was aware that treating Germany too
harshly would store up trouble for the future. He had however promised the British people that he would squeeze the German lemon until the pips squeaked.

  1. (b) Why were German people horrified when they discovered the terms of the Treaty of Versailles?
It affected the strength and wealth of the country.  They lost military power.
They felt the reparations were too harsh.  They resented the War Guilt Clause.
Germany lost important pieces of territory. The terms were not based on Wilsons Fourteen Points.
Level 3 Explains why [4–7] (Award one mark for an explanation, additional mark for full explanation.)
Limiting the German armed forces would create unemployment and a lack of security. The Army had been held in high esteem by the German people and, therefore, hurt their pride.
The Germans did not think that Germany was solely responsible for starting the war as implied in Article 231 and, therefore, should not have to pay the massive reparations.
Many Germans were horrified to find that part of Germany had been handed over to Poland and they were under Polish rule. Those living in Alsace-Lorraine found themselves being governed by the French while those living in Eupen Malmedy were now living under Belgian rule. The loss for 15 years of the Saar to France also horrified Germans as the German economy would suffer from its loss.

  1. (b) Why did the Treaty of Versailles cause problems for Germany from 1919 to 1923?
It affected the strength and wealth of the country.  It caused inflation/hyperinflation.
They lost their military power.  It led to an invasion.  They could not pay the reparations.
It led to political unrest.
Level 3 Explains why [4–7] (Award one mark for an explanation, additional mark for full explanation.)
Germany thought the terms were harsh and unreasonable and they were not allowed to negotiate. This upset the German people.
Many Germans did not realise they had lost the war and blamed the Weimar Republic for accepting the harsh terms of the Treaty. There were extremist attempts to overthrow the Weimar Republic such as the Spartacist League and the extreme nationalist Freikorps.
Germany delayed reparation payments and French and Belgian forces occupied the Ruhr in 1923. The government action of printing more money caused the German mark to lose its value.
The Ruhr crisis caused Germany to become bankrupt. A new government under
Stresemann accepted that reparations would have to be paid.
The harshness of the reparations made it extremely difficult for Germany to recover economically.
The loss of the Saar and Upper Silesia did not help Germanys economic recovery.
The drastic reduction of the armed forces caused security problems and severe unemployment.

  1. (b) Why did Clemenceau and Lloyd George disagree over how to treat Germany? [7]
Clemenceau wanted France secure in the future because...
He wanted to cripple Germany because...
He wanted revenge on Germany because...
Lloyd George wanted to protect the British Navy because...
He did not want France to become too powerful because…
Level 3 Explains why [4–7] (Award one mark for an explanation, additional mark for full explanation.)
Clemenceau wanted to secure France from future German attacks by reducing German
military strength and taking back Alsace-Lorraine and taking the Saar and the Rhineland.
Lloyd George wanted to reduce German strength but he did not want to make France too
powerful and therefore he would resist the taking of German territory to aid France.
Clemenceau needed to placate a vociferous French public and therefore wanted severe
terms like huge reparations to repair French damage. Britain had not been invaded and
damaged and therefore Lloyd George wanted more moderate demands so that Germany would not seek revenge in the future and Britain could resume being an active trading partner with Germany.
Clemenceau felt that Lloyd George was quite happy to treat Germany fairly in Europe, where
France rather than Britain was most under threat. Lloyd George, however, was less happy to
allow Germany to keep its navy and colonies, which could be more of a threat to Britain.

  1. (b) Why did the victors fail to get everything they wanted at Versailles?
The victors were Wilson, Lloyd George and Clemenceau. They were from different countries with different ideas.
Wilson wanted to use the Fourteen Points, which included the ideas such as….
Clemenceau wanted security and revenge.
Lloyd George wanted to protect British interests.
Wilson had his Fourteen Points. He wanted these to be the basis for peace. At Versailles he was forced to compromise as others were less idealistic.
Wilson was weakened by the lack of support from back home.
Clemenceau wanted France to be secure from future German attacks. This meant weakening Germany and reducing its military strength. He even wanted the break up of Germany as a state, but he was opposed by Wilson and Lloyd George.
The French wanted revenge on Germany for the destruction the war had caused and,
therefore, wanted massive reparations. These were moderated by the influence of other two.
Lloyd George wanted to protect British interests but was aware that treating Germany too
harshly would store up trouble for the future.
Lloyd George did not want to treat Germany too harshly as he wanted Germany as a future trading partner.

  1. (c) The Treaty of Versailles was a fair settlement. How far do you agree with this statement? [8]
Not Fair
The Treaty was dictated to Germany. The Germans were not allowed to negotiate.
The Germans felt they would be dealt with under the Fourteen Points. This was not so.
The heavy reparations punished the ordinary people of Germany rather than the ruler. It was unfair on the German people as they suffered lower standards of living. The harshness of the reparations made it extremely difficult for Germany to recover economically and made future war likely.
It was not fair because reparations were higher than Germany could afford.
Germany should not have been the only one to be blamed. It was not right to put blame on Germany for starting the war when other countries were just as aggressive in the years leading up to 1914.
It was harsh as it took away German armed forces while other nations did not have to face this.
Germany felt they had been left vulnerable to future acts by the reduction in the armed forces.
The Treaty aimed to destroy Germany economically. Europe needed a strong German industry.

Fair
It was fair because Germany had agreed an armistice agreement.
The peacemakers did a reasonable job. It was a complex matter and, given the demand for revenge from the British and French public, they could have been harsher as was the German peace treaty with Russia at Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
The Treaty was not as bad as Germany argued. By 1925 German steel production was twice that of Britain.
The Treaty was strict, but they were not entirely unexpected. When the Armistice was signed in Nov 1918, the Germans knew they would have to pay reparations, surrender territory and have their armed forces reduced. These were the usual consequences of defeat in war.

Level 3 Explains agreement OR disagreement [3–5]
Level 4 Explains agreement AND disagreement [5–7] Both sides of Level 3
Level 5 Explains with evaluative judgement of how far [7–8]

  1. (c) How far did the Big Three achieve their aims at the Paris Peace Conference? Explain. [8]
Level 2 Identifies aims/successes/failures [2–3]
Wilson wanted to use his Fourteen Points.  Clemenceau wanted security.
Lloyd George wanted to protect British interests.
Wilsons 14th Point of establishing the League was agreed.
Clemenceau’s demand for a very weak German army was agreed.
Level 3 Explains success OR failure of aims [3–5]
Clemenceau had fought in the Franco-Prussian War and wanted revenge for France.
He achieved a tough treaty on Germany, which could be considered revenge.
Clemenceau also wanted security for France and this was achieved with the drastic reduction in the German armed forces.
Clemenceau was successful in regaining Alsace-Lorraine, which had been taken by the
Germans at the end of the Franco-Prussian War.
Woodrow Wilson was able to use some of his Fourteen Points, the most notable being the
establishment of the League of Nations.
Wilson was able to achieve some self-determination in the formation of new states such as
Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Lloyd George had promised the British electorate to be tough on Germany, although he did
not want to be too tough as Germany was a good trading partner. There is some evidence
that he managed to moderate Clemenceau’s tough demands.
Lloyd George wanted to weaken the German navy and this was achieved when the
Germans sunk their fleet and in the military terms of the treaty.
 Lloyd George wanted German colonies to destroy its empire and this was achieved.
Lloyd George wanted to make sure that France did not become too powerful. He managed
to resist many of Clemenceau’s demands for the break up of Germany and the movement of the French-German border.
Clemenceau wanted Germany split into many small states so that it could never threaten
France again. This was resisted by Lloyd George and Wilson.
Clem wanted the Rhineland to be an independent state and the Saar to be French. Again,
this was resisted by Lloyd George and Wilson.
Wilson failed to get all his 14 Points as a basis for the Treaty as Lloyd George resisted the
freedom of the seas point.
Wilson did not want heavy economic penalties on Germany as this might lead to revenge in the future, but he failed to convince Clemenceau.
Lloyd George did not want too severe economic penalties because of Britain’s trading with Germany, but this was hampered because of the demands for reparations.
Level 4 Explains success AND failure of aims [5–7]
Both sides of Level 3
Level 5 Explains with evaluative judgement of how far [7–8]

  1. (c) The Treaty of Versailles was too harsh on Germany. How far do you agree with the statement?
It did not weaken the German economy as much as the Germans indicated.
It was too harsh on the ordinary German people.
It was too harsh as it took away much of the armed forces.
Level 3 Explains agreement OR disagreement [3–5]
The Treaty was not as harsh as Germany argued, especially its complaints that the terms would ruin the German economy. By 1925 German steel production was twice that of Britain’s production.
The harshness of the reparations made it extremely difficult for Germany to recover economically and, because of the resentment caused by this, made future war likely.
The treaty left Germany vulnerable to future attacks by the drastic reduction in the armed forces.
It was harsh on the ordinary Germans whose standard of living suffered because of the reparations. The punishment should have been reserved for the rulers of Germany at the outbreak of war.
Level 4 Explains agreement AND disagreement [5–7]
Both sides of Level 3
Level 5 Explains with evaluative judgement of how far [7–8]

  1. (c) How far could the Treaty be justified at the time? Explain your answer.
The Treaty of Versailles could have been harsher.
The T of V failed to encompass the Fourteen Points.
The T of V was acceptable to people in Britain and France.
They blamed the wrong people.   Germany had to be punished.
Level 4 Explains agreement AND disagreement [5–7]
Many think a reasonable job was done as the problems faced were very complex with
strong demands for the Treaty to be even harsher against Germany as Germany had forced a much harder peace on Russia under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
In the Armistice, the Germans agreed to reductions in their armed forces, losses of territory and the principal of reparations. They should not be surprised when these were included in the peace treaty.
Many at the time though it was about right. A more generous treaty would not have been
acceptable to the people of Britain and France who wanted compensation for loss of lives and damage.
The treaties left Germany very bitter and determined to get revenge. Germany could not
defend themselves and were open to political unrest.
The Treaty punished the ordinary German people rather than those responsible. Would it
have been better to keep Germany relatively happy with the rise of Communism in Russia?
It was wrong to put the sole blame on Germany as other countries had followed aggressive
imperialism including Britain and France.
Level 5 Explains with evaluation of how far [7–8]

  1. (c) The peacemakers of 1919–23 coped successfully with the problems they faced. How
far do you agree with this statement on the treaties made with the defeated powers?
The Treaty of Versailles could have been harsher. 
The T of V failed to encompass the Fourteen Points.
The T of V was acceptable to people in Britain and France.
The treaties led to another war.
They failed with the countries of central Europe.
They blamed the wrong people.
Level 4 Explains agreement AND disagreement 5–7
Many think a reasonable job was done as the problems faced were very complex with
strong demands for the Treaty to be even harsher against Germany as Germany had forced
a much harder peace on Russia under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
In the Armistice, the Germans agreed to reductions in their armed forces, losses of territory and the principal of reparations. They should not be surprised when these were included in the peace treaty.
Many at the time though it was about right. A more generous treaty would not have been
acceptable to the people of Britain and France who wanted compensation for loss of lives and damage.
The treaties left defeated countries very bitter and determined to get revenge. This is
particularly true of Germany where Hitler gained support to overthrow the Treaty.
The treaties failed in Central Europe as they created too many states of minority nationals,
such as Yugoslavia.
Turkey was treated unfairly to satisfy France, Britain and Greece and the Treaty of Sèvres
only lasted three years.
They failed to deal with the problems as war broke out again in 1939 and the Treaty was a
long-term cause which Hitler chose to destroy.
The Treaty punished the ordinary German people rather than those responsible. Would it
have been better to keep Germany relatively happy with the rise of Communism in Russia?
It was wrong to put the sole blame on Germany as other countries had followed aggressive
imperialism including Britain and France.
Level 5 Explains with evaluation of how far 7–8