Why Germany was So Discontented with The Treaty of Versailles

Why Germany was So Discontented with The Treaty of Versailles

After the WWI, Germany had trouble accepting the unexpected defeat and

was anxiously awaiting a peace treaty. It wasn’t until 1919 that

finally The Treaty of Versailles was formed and signed, however the

Germans were left discontented with it.

There were many accumulative reasons why the Germans disliked the

treaty; one being the first fact of how disappointed they were that

they had lost the war. It was known that the German military officials

believed that they had a large chance of winning throughout the war-

and was surprised of the failure of the Ludendorff Offensive. This

meant that whatever the terms were, it would always feel humiliating

for the Germans.

Another early issue was that of the Germans actually signing the

document. This was done in the Palace of Versailles in France: the

exact place where, after the 1871 war for Alsace-Lorraine was won by

the Germans, the new borderline country of Germany was formed. This

was a very great piece of history for the Germans and to be brought

back to the same area by the smug French was embarrassing for them.

During the time the peace treaty as being deliberated, Great Britain

was still using its naval tactic of blockading as an almost

consequential blackmail if they were to refuse. Germany was also in no

form to begin another war against the victorious and was pushed for

time to stop possible communist gatherings, rebellions or revolts

happening- therefore felt it was forced to sign it (nevertheless, an

example of Germany’s reluctance was of the infamous scuttle, of where

the ships that were set to be given to G...

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...e can see there were no easy solutions and that this controversial

issue could be argued for a long time. There is a quote that I believe

is very true of this situation, it is by W. Carr, a historian who

wrote:

“Severe as the Treaty of Versailles seemed to many Germans, it should

be remembered that Germany might easily have fared worse.” I also

think that at the time it may have seemed irrational and we know –from

the benefit of hindsight- that it was a huge contributor to World War

II. The collection of all terms spurred revenge inside most Germans

but I believe that actions they did just before the end of the war

were severely unjust and require a certain degree of punishment.

Overall, the Treaty of Versailles was fair in itself but the

uncalculated knock-on affects that stemmed from it has weakened its

case.