Armistice Signed
The Treaty of Versailles
Lamb
- Germany have had to give up 13% of their land
- All their overseas colonies
- 6 million Germans woke up on Polish territory
Army:
- Germany have have had to reduce their army to 100,000
- They were not allowed any submarines, tanks or planes,
- Their navy has been limited to 6 battleships
Money:
-Germany have had to pay £6,600 million in reparations to France and Belgium
Blame:
-Article 231 of the treaty has stated that Germany have to take all blame for the start of the war
Germany's reaction to the Treaty
After agreeing to the Armistice in November 1918, the Germans had been convinced that they would be consulted by the Allies on the contents of the Treaty. This did not happen and the Germans were in no position to continue the war as her army had all but disintegrated. Though this lack of consultation angered them, there was nothing they could do about it. Therefore, the first time that the German representatives saw the terms of the Treaty was just weeks before they were due to sign it in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles on June 28th 1919.
There was anger throughout Germany when the terms were made public. The Treaty became known as a Diktat - as it was being forced on them and the Germans had no choice but to sign it. Many in Germany did not want the Treaty signed, but the representatives there knew that they had no choice as German was incapable of restarting the war again.
In one last gesture of defiance, the captured German naval force held at Scapa Flow (north of Scotland) scuttled itself i.e. deliberately sank itself.
Germany was given two choices:
1) sign the Treaty or
2) be invaded by the Allies.
They signed the Treaty as in reality they had no choice. When the ceremony was over, Clemenceau went out into the gardens of Versailles and said "It is a beautiful day".