The First World War, which began in 1914, ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles of June 26, 1919. Almost 40 countries took part in the hostilities, which is two-thirds of the world's population. The casualties were enormous - about 36 million dead.
The Treaty of Versailles documented the victory of the Entente countries: France, Great Britain, Russia, etc. After the lost war, Germany and its economy found themselves in the deepest depression. The country lost part of its territory, and also suffered heavy casualties.
Annexed land
It so happened historically that the defeated side always pays for its mistakes. Moreover, the signing of any documents carries with it any sanctions. What are the consequences of the Versailles Peace for Germany for the victorious countries?
According to the document, the lands of Lorraine and Alsace passed to France, Pomerania, Poznan and Upper Silesia - to Poland, Memel - to Lithuania, and Schleswig - to Denmark.
For a long 15 years, Germany was to remain without its Saar coal basin. On this huge annexed territory, the total area of which totaled about 70 thousand square meters. km, and the population was approximately 7 million people, there was a large part of the resources, which were essential for the restoration of the German economy. Significant reserves of coal and iron ore were located on these lands, and zinc and metallurgical plants were located.
Weapon restrictions
Now everyone knows what the consequences of the Versailles Peace are. And no matter how difficult they were for Germany, it somehow managed to maintain its main socio-economic base of militarism, which remained almost untouched. In addition, the Germans left the bulk of their armed forces.
So, the Treaty of Versailles allowed Germany to have a naval fleet consisting of 12 destroyers, 6 armadillos, 12 counter-carriers, 6 light cruisers. As for the ground forces, their number should not exceed 100 thousand people, while the number of officers was sharply reduced. There was a ban on the production of sophisticated military equipment, which included aircraft, tanks and armored cars.
Reparations
Besides the restrictions on armaments and annexed territories, what are the consequences of the Versailles Peace for Germany? According to the document, the party losing the war was obliged to pay a considerable amount to the victorious countries: 132 billion gold marks, which corresponded to 33 billion dollars.
The issue of reparations was discussed at the London conferences more than once, starting in May 1921. The fact is that the German government asked to postpone the payment of debts by 5 years. In this he was supported by the leadership of Great Britain. The British even promised France to write off all military debts to them in return for a simplified decision on the issue of deferring German payments. But Paris refused such an offer. The delegation, led by J.L. Bartoux, stated that the German reparation laid down for his country was much greater than France’s debt to Britain.
Some of the signatories to the Versailles Peace were afraid that payment obligations would only remain on paper. Therefore, the French delegation demanded that it be guaranteed that reparations by the German side would be made. Therefore, as a guarantee, Paris proposed to transfer to him the rights to exploit and temporarily confiscate German mines in the Ruhr. In addition, they also wanted to get dyeing factories located on the left bank of the Rhine, and a number of other enterprises.
The occupation of the Ruhr
I must say that the United States tried to find a compromise on the issue of reparations between Germany and France. They even proposed the creation of a special committee, which would include independent financial experts. These specialists had to make an assessment of the solvency of Germany. But the reparation commission did not wait for the conclusions of the experts. At the end of December 1922, she voted and, following its results, ruled that Germany was not fulfilling its payment obligations, and, as a result, defaulted in Germany. For this decision voted France, Italy and Belgium. Only Great Britain opposed this. In this situation, the conditions of the Versailles peace gave the French the right to occupy the Rhine zone.
In January 1923, Belgian and French troops entered the territory of the Ruhr. Italy also formally supported the occupation, but did not actually take part in it. The Ruhr, as the most developed industrial part of the country, was withdrawn from the jurisdiction of Germany. This zone was cut off from the rest of the German economy and lost all of its contract and production ties with it.
Economic decline
What are the consequences of the Treaty of Versailles resulting in the occupation of the Rhine zone? I must say that this event provoked an unprecedented crisis in Germany. The national German currency collapsed overnight, and debt obligations completely depreciated. The country was in a panic, which gripped both the poorest segments of the population and the middle class.
Here and there, actions of civil disobedience were carried out , which later grew into mass protests against the government and the intervention of foreign states. In the late summer of 1923, the economic crisis led to the resignation of the government, led by Wilhelm Kuno. Politicians began to talk about a new round of the revolutionary movement.
German post-war politics
Former allies, disagreeing over the Rhine zone, began to quarrel among themselves. Imperialist Germany used these feuds to her advantage. She negotiated with one or the other, while deceiving everyone. As a result, the Versailles world itself left almost all the military power of the country, which was considered defeated. And while the Allies were engaged in intrigue, Germany accumulated strength for a new and more powerful strike.
The negative political consequences of the Versailles peace consisted in the fact that the differences between the partners were deepening. This was especially noticeable in relations between England and France, Japan and the United States. In addition, the contradictions between two different systems — socialist and capitalist — were rapidly aggravating. The treaty concluded at Versailles was intended to end the war, and in the end made it a constant threat looming over the whole world.