- On November 11, 1918, the Germans signed the armistice at Rethondes, inside a wagon in the forest of Compiègne.
- The Treaty of Versailles is one of the peace treaties ending the First World War. The world is strongly marked by this first industrial conflict, which affected both soldiers and civilians, peace must be built so that this war remains "the Der des Ders".
June 28, 1919
Characters
Georges Clemenceau
Lloyd George
Woodrow Wilson
Vittorio Orlando
Procedure
The victors of the Great War met at the Palace of Versailles in January 1919, during the peace conference in Paris. A hundred diplomats, representing 27 countries, start the negotiations. However, the final decisions fell to the Council of Four, made up of Clemenceau for France, Wilson for the United States, Lloyd George for Great Britain and Vittorio Orlando for Italy. The Germans and the Russians are absent from the preliminary negotiations.
The debates are sometimes stormy, the visions of the belligerents (countries at war) being different, sometimes contradictory. Wilson wishes to establish a lasting peace, advancing the principle of the right of peoples to self-determination, and wishes to set up a League of Nations (international body responsible for preserving peace). Great Britain wants to spare Germany to ensure stability on the European continent. France, on the contrary, aims to weaken its neighbor as much as possible.
The peace treaty is signed in the Hall of Mirrors. The place is symbolic:in January 1871, following the Franco-Prussian War, the German Empire was proclaimed there.
Consequences
- The United States and France both manage to win their cases. The League of Nations is incorporated into the text of the peace treaty, and Germany is declared responsible for the war.
- Germany lost 13% of its territory, which was cut in two:Poland was given the "Dantzig corridor", allowing it direct access to the sea. Alsace-Lorraine was returned to the France. Most of the German colonies were entrusted to France and Great Britain under mandates from the League of Nations.
- The left bank of the Rhine was occupied by the Allies for 15 years. The military clauses are important:the German army is limited to 100,000 men, the demilitarization of the left bank of the Rhine is imposed, military service is abolished and the manufacture of new war material is prohibited.
- Germany was forced to pay heavy material and financial reparations, although the amount was not fixed at the time of the signing of the treaty. The French slogan “Germany will pay” (by Clémenceau) marks this desire for revenge.
- The Treaty of Versailles is perceived by the Germans as being extremely humiliating:this is referred to as the diktat (German for dictated and imposed decision) of Versailles, which was notably taken over by nationalist groups, including the Nazis, during the interwar period.