Treaty of Versailles

In the June of 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was signed by Germany. The treaty was created to punish the Germans for World War One, which, the other nations agreed Germany should take complete responsibility for starting the war. Out of the 440 clauses which the treaty consisted of, 414 of them dealt with punishing Germany. 


The Treaty of Versailles was much too harsh on the Germans. Though Germany had a big impact in the war, they were not the only country who participated in it. Countless of other nations have fought, destroyed, and killed many people as well. The treaty caused for the Germans to admit that they were responsible for the entire war but this is not true. Each country had the right to decide to stay neutral like Spain and Sweden did, but instead, many chose to get involved and in result, many died. Germany was also not the only nation who had invaded another country, the Allied Powers did as well. They are just as responsible for the war as the Germans are.

Allied Powers in green, Central Powers in orange, and neutral countries in grey

Clause number 233 of the Treaty of Versailles had Germany pay for all damages done to the civilian population and property of the Allied Governments. In the end, The Allied Powers charged Germany $33 billion, leaving Germany in serious debt. This was unfair as there were many innocent Germans who were greatly impacted by this. There was much hardship for the Germans as many lost their jobs, money, and those who had family members injured also had to pay for the medical fees. Adding to that, the treaty caused Germany to lose a lot of land, resulting in some Germans losing their homes and having to move. The Treaty of Versailles made life in Germany very harsh and unpleasant even though some Germans did not get involved in or support the war.

Land that Germany lost after the treaty

The Treaty of Versailles was incredibly hard on Germany but not on the other defeated nations. Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Turkey all lost some land and money but none of the punishments were as harsh as it was on Germany. This is unfair as all the nations should be sharing the blame instead of just Germany. They all had played a part in the war, including the Allied Powers, so they should all pay the debt together. It was unjust to thrust all the responsibility on Germany alone.




References:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/WWI-re.png/400px-WWI-re.png
http://www.historyonthenet.com/WW1/germanlosses.htm