Treaty of Versailles: Peace or Prelude to War?

Lesson Plan - Get It!

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Congress of Vienna

Imagine a time when the major powers of Europe, fresh from defeating one of history's greatest military minds, gathered to redraw the map of the continent.

In 1814 and 1815, these leaders met in what became known as the Congress of Vienna.

Their goal was to ensure that France, under Napoleon, would never again be able to conquer so much territory. They did this by creating buffer states, shrinking French borders, and redistributing land to create a balance of power across Europe.

This kind of international diplomacy was groundbreaking. European rulers realized that if they wanted to expand their empires abroad, they needed to minimize conflicts at home.

The Congress of Vienna was one of the first successful attempts to limit large-scale war in Europe, and it worked. Peace in Europe lasted nearly 100 years until the outbreak of World War I in 1914.

• How does the treaty that ended that war compare?

The Congress of Vienna secured a century of peace. The Treaty of Versailles, on the other hand, only managed 20 years.

• So, what went wrong?

Global War

World War I wasn’t just a European conflict — it was a global one. While European wars had often spilled into their colonies, World War I marked the first time that countries from every corner of the world were involved.

Look at the map below, showing the nations involved in the conflict. The green represents the Allies, and the orange represents the Central Powers.

Notice how both the green and orange sides include countries from nearly every continent. Many of these were colonized nations, dragged into the war by their European rulers, but others were sovereign states that chose to participate in a conflict that would have lasting consequences worldwide.

Wilson's Fourteen Points

President Woodrow Wilson watched as Europe descended into chaos and knew something needed to change. In response, he crafted a set of 14 points designed to prevent future wars.

Wilson’s vision was bold. He wanted a world where nations could resolve their differences without resorting to violence.

As you watch the video below on Wilson’s Fourteen Points, pay close attention to what the European powers were most concerned about.

• Why didn’t they embrace Wilson’s ideas?

Ultimately, only the fourteenth point, the League of Nations, was adopted.

The League was intended to be a global alliance that would help maintain peace, but there was a catch. The U.S. Congress refused to join. Many in Congress feared that joining the League would mean giving up some of America’s sovereignty, especially the ability to decide when and where to go to war.

This isolationist stance, which had kept the U.S. out of European conflicts for so long, won out.

Punishment

The main focus of the Treaty of Versailles was simple: punish Germany as harshly as possible.

Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were already dissolving into smaller states, so Germany bore the brunt of the blame. Just as at the Congress of Vienna, the victors sought to prevent Germany from ever rising to power again.

Land

One of the first steps in punishing Germany was taking away the land it had gained in the previous decades. France regained the wealthy provinces of Alsace and Lorraine, and Germany’s other neighbors were given pieces of its territory.

New states were even created within the lands confiscated from Germany. And to curb any ambitions of expansion, Germany’s growing network of colonies was dismantled.

Germany went from being a major colonial power to the only major European nation without overseas territories.

The first map below shows the German Empire in 1914, and the second shows its territorial losses after the war.

The Treaty of Versailles also demilitarized the Rhineland, a buffer zone between France and Germany, to prevent any future attacks. This area was to be free of forts, bases, troops, and tanks, making it harder for Germany to launch an offensive.

Military

The military restrictions didn’t stop there. Unlike the Congress of Vienna, where the focus was on balance, the Treaty of Versailles aimed to weaken Germany completely.

The German military was capped at 100,000 men, with a navy of just 15,000. Training soldiers became nearly impossible under these restrictions, ensuring that Germany couldn’t rebuild a strong army.

Imagine living in a country that had just lost a war.

• Would you think these restrictions were too harsh?

Reparations

Reparations are the payments that the losing nations must make to cover the damages they caused during the war.

The Treaty of Versailles demanded that Germany pay an enormous sum — $33 billion — over the following decades. But this proved impossible for a country already struggling after losing its most valuable provinces and colonial holdings.

To try and meet these payments, Germany began printing more of its currency, the German Mark, which led to hyperinflation. Prices skyrocketed, and the German Mark became almost worthless.

By 1920, the once-proud nation was reduced to economic ruin. When Germany failed to make its payments, France occupied part of the country in 1924 to force compliance.

The consequences of these harsh terms bred resentment and anger throughout Germany, setting the stage for further conflict.

Aftermath

The Treaty of Versailles left Germany humiliated, economically devastated, and politically unstable.

For many Germans, it felt like the world was against them, fueling a desire for revenge that would eventually lead to the rise of extremism and the outbreak of World War II.

As you move to the Got It? section, think about how the Treaty of Versailles compares to the Congress of Vienna.

• Where did the victors of World War I go wrong, and what lessons can be learned from these two pivotal moments in history?