Hammond History-ESSAY,Treaty failure(Revisionworld)

Why did The Treaty of Versailles lack durability?

Paragraph one

• Begin the answer setting out the factors that proved to be a problem:
• Germans throughout the political spectrum regarded it as a harsh ‘diktat’ with humiliating intentions and implications
• Victorious powers unable to agree on how far to go, but to many it seemed vindictive, vengeful and imprudent
• It made worse the various tensions in German political life
• Outside France reservations about the treaty’s efficacy allowed the Weimar regime to virtually restore German sovereignty before Hitler became chancellor
• Post-1929 depression boosted revision of the Treaty and put paid to mere revisionism in Germany – brought Hitler to power and he wanted more than revisionism
• 1919 no consensus and resolve to diminish German power – no concerted effort to be conciliatory either

Paragraph two

• Examine the nature of the ‘diktat’
• It contradicted the principles of Wilson’s 14 Points
• Germans shocked and angry
• German military limited – 100,000 strong army, no tanks, planes and submarines, conscription banned and long-term military service imposed to prevent build-up of large trained reserve forces
• Colonies confiscated
• Article 231 – war-guilt clause, Germany to accept blame for war
• Reparations set at £6,600 million by 1921
• Lost one-eighth of territory and 6 million of population
• East Prussia separated from main part of Germany causing ethnic Germans to come under Polish rule
• German economy weak due to cost of war – exacerbated by loss of large reserves of iron-ore, coal, and zinc (transferred to Poland and France)

Paragraph three

• Possible future consequences of the Treaty:
• President Wilson wanted conciliation and self-determination but French wanted to diminish Germany’s potential as a power…