During the period from 1919-1939 the Germans were compelled to deal with the Treaty of Versailles, a document formed solely by the Allied powers to discipline Germany. Even as the people of world marveled at the end of the “war to end all wars” and thought joyously that such a war would never be fought again, they had no idea that an even greater war was brewing, a war whose origins came in the form of the Versailles treaty. World War II was certainly no inevitable war, but a result of numerous years of German pride and contempt towards rivals building up as a result of the Treaty of Versailles. The Treaty of Versailles helped cause World War II through three main atrocities towards the German People. The first cause of World War II was the fact that the Treaty of Versailles took away valuable, natural resource rich land away from Germany. The second cause of the war was that the Treaty of Versailles heavily restricted the number of troops that Germany was allowed to have. Thirdly, the Treaty of Versailles forced Germany to pay numerous reparations that added to upwards of $700 billion dollars (Document C). The root of the war was undoubtedly the Treaty of Versailles, which heavily punished Germany while virtually ignoring other responsible countries like Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria.
As a result of the Treaty of Versailles, Germany was forced to give up some of the vital parts of its country that were extremely rich in resources. For example, Germany lost the Polish Corridor and large parts of southwestern Germany (Document A). Additionally, the Treaty of Versailles took Alsace and Lorraine away from Germany, territories that bordered Germany’s rival France (Document A). This egregious act caused Germany to lose 40% of its coal...
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...vent culminated in 1933 when Hitler came to power and immediately ceased all reparation payments.
In conclusion, The Treaty of Versailles was unquestionably the reason why World War II started. The Treaty was unreasonably vicious to the Germans by forcing them to give up valuable territory. Also, the Treaty restricted the number of troops Germany was allowed to have. Finally, the Treaty of Versailles imposed severe reparations on Germany that just angered the Germans. This bold treaty gave rise to Hitler who ignored the soldier restrictions and immediately stopped all reparation payments. The Treaty of Versailles blamed Germany solely for the war and the treaty fueled German nationalism and hatred of rival western countries. Without question, the Treaty of Versailles’ ruthless nature towards the Germans inevitably led to a global scale war less than 20 years later.
Germany and her allies were blamed for the war. The Treaty of Versailles said that they had to pay for the cost of the war. The Treaty of Versailles is what caused World War II. If it had been less harsh on Germany, the Weimar Republic would have been stronger and would not have faced as much economic and social turmoil. Had the treaty been harsher, Germany would not have had the power to make war.
There is no excuse for the horrible things Nazi Germany did during World War II. But one can get a better idea how that war started by learning about how World War I ended. The Treaty of Versailles was created by the winners of World War I, like France, Great Britain, and the United States, to make peace. So how did it help contribute to an even worse war less than twenty years later? It was mainly because it was too hard on Germany’s territory, military, economy, and national pride.
One way that the Treaty of Versailles had a part of causing World War 2, was by taking land away from Germany. This Treaty took away Lorraine and Alsace, by losing these two places Germany lost a critical resource. When these two places were taken it reduced Germany’s coal production by 40% which is really bad because everything was powered by coal at that time. Germany also lost the Polish Corridor and Danzig, this made it especially difficult to get to East Prussia Because it was surrounded by land that Germany didn’t have.(This evidence is shown on the German Territorial Losses Map). The information above supports the idea that the loss of land did affect Germany because by taking land away it takes power away too. As Hitler said in the Mein
World War II officially got under way in 1939 when the Germans, led by Adolf Hitler, invaded Poland and violated nearly every law placed against them from the Treaty of Versailles. It was nearly impossible for the Germans not to violate the Treaty of Versailles because over 100 of the 140 clauses agreed on were targeted against the Germans. The treaty placed the blame for World War I on Germany, forcing them to pay for nearly the entire war in reparations. This led to a German economic collapse, a change in the government of Germany, and also the start of World War II. When Hitler was put into power he began invading other countries and dwindling down the population of his own country, leading to World War II.
The actions of Adolf Hitler the Führer of the German Empire are the main causes for the starting of World War Two. The military actions of Germany such as rearming of the German forces, which increased Hitler’s power and confidence dramatically as did the assistance Germany provided during The Spanish Civil War. The breaking of The Munich Agreement by Hitler was also a very important cause because it made the other powers realise that Hitler could not keep his word and did not want peace. Finally Hitler’s overconfidence that he could invade Poland without starting a war was on of his most important actions as it the trigger point for the Second World War. As a result of Hitler’s actions millions of lives were lost and the entire world would never be the same again.
The harshness of the Treaty and the way in which it blamed Germany for World War I crippled Germany. Much of its territory was taken away from it, including West Prussia that went to form a new Polish Corridor to the sea. Plus the Treaty forced Germany to reduce its army, demilitarise the Rhineland and get rid of its navy. The Treaty also forced harsh reparations for the War resulting in a great deal of the German people resenting the Allies. And it was later that Hitler used the bitter memories of Versailles to gain public support for his actions.
The Treaty of Versailles is a cause of World War II because of the restrictions it placed on Germany as the alleged sole aggressor of the war. The war reparation totaled $98 billion, and under Clause 231 Germany was forced to take the entire load onto her ruined economy and attempt to repay the debt starting with an initial $5 billion payment. In terms of military, Germany was limited to a 100,000 man army, with her navy stripped to the level of a coast guard, she was allowed no heavy artillery, no weapons of mass destruction and the border with France became a demilitarized zone for 15 years following the signing of the treaty on June 28 1919. Germany also lost all her territories in Africa and became a mandate of the Allied Forces, those living in mandated zones could participate in “self-determination” after the Allies taught them how to be a democracy (...
At the end of World War One, Germany was required to pay a large sum of money to the Allies consequently resulting in the German Depression. The sum Germany had to pay was set after the Treaty of Versailles was enacted at approximately six billion, six hundred million – twenty-two billion pounds, (World War Two – Causes, Alan Hall, 2010). The large amount of reparations that Germany had to pay resulted in a depression and angered the Germans because they thought it was an excessive amount of money to pay, (World War Two – Causes) The Germans hatred of the Treaty of Versailles was of significant importance in propelling the Nazis to power. Germany could not pay their reparations and was forced into a depression, (World War II – Causes). The Treaty of Versailles deprived Germany of its economic production and its available employments, (World War II – Causes). The German Depr...
Who started the World War 2?. World war 2 , also known as Second World War is a
In addition, having lost the war, the humiliated Germans were forced by the Allies to sign the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 that officially ended World War I. According to the harsh terms of the treaty, Germany had to hand over many of its richest industrial territories to the victors, and was made to pay reparations to the Allied countries it devastated during the war. Germany lost its pride, prestige, wealth, power, and the status of being one of Europe's greatest nations. (Resnick p. 15)
The Treaty of Versailles, initially created to keep peace in Europe and ensure that another war like World War I wouldn’t happen again, had in fact, backfired and spiraled the world down into a deeper, bloodier battle. The treaty discriminated strongly against Germany, with the loss of territories, military restrictions, economic reparations, and the War Guilt Clause. It caused humiliation and anger within Germany, and led to Hitler and the Nazi Party coming to power. World War II was not only started by Adolf Hitler and Germany, but had a lot to do with the humiliation that Germany felt when the terms for the Treaty of Versailles were laid down. The harsh terms of the Treaty of Versailles may be indirectly related to the cause of World War II, but nonetheless was a huge factor in starting the war.
After the terrible causes of World War I, Germany was stuck in the ruins. They were still trying to rebuild and recover from the war. The Treaty of Versailles, along with the Great Depression severely affected Germany. The unemployment lines increased, and food was scarce. Money was a huge hassle too, the factories were all closed and the savings were completely wiped out. Due to all these economic is what made Hitler’s rise to p...
Finally, the accumulated hatred amongst the people gave birth to the potential for a revolution. The Treaty of Versailles is, therefore, an indirect cause to World War II, because of the alliances it caused, the punishments it enforced, and the hatred it developed. The coalitions brought by the Versailles Treaty contributed greatly to starting WWII. The Treaty was responsible for the formation of the Allies. However, when made, these alliances were based on promises from the superpowers, particularly France.
There were many causes of World War II. Germany wanted to expand in Europe. Italy wanted to expand in Africa. Japan wanted to expand in Asia & the Pacific. Other causes of the War include: the Treaty of Versailles, rise of dictatorship in Italy and Germany, expansionist policy of the Axis Powers, policy of Appeasement, and the weakness of the League of Nations.
World War II was a worldwide conflict that included the majority of the nations on Earth. It was battled ashore, noticeable all around, and on the oceans; fights were battled on three continents and on three oceans. The cause for World War II were seen at the conclusion of World War I. The failure of the First World War, Germany, needed to pay a precarious cost by incapacitating itself and paying a lot of cash to the victors. The overall Great Depression that hit in the 1930s resulted to desperation and outrage in Germany. This air created the man who drove Germany to recuperation and into World War II: Adolf Hitler.