Treaty of VersaillesThankfully, all things must come to an end. Germany faces extreme punishment in that Germany had to:
- Give up territory to Belgium, Czechoslovakia and Poland, return Alsace and Lorraine to France and cede all of its overseas colonies in China, Pacific and Africa to the Allied nations. - Germany was no longer allowed to have a large military, and they also had to give up an unbelievably large amount of weapons. - Most importantly, Article 231 of the treaty placed all blame for inciting the war squarely on Germany, and forced it to pay several billion in reparations to the Allied nations. Germany didn't pay off their World War 1 debt until 2010. It took 91 years! * This led to a huge economic problem for Germany. Many historians believe that this treaty was a HUGE contributor in allowing Hitler to come to power, and ultimately, World War II a possibility. * |
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