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World War I -- the Peace Settlement
Known as "The War to End All Wars," World War I and its terms of peace significantly altered the civilized world and sowed the seeds of World War II. While physically devastating to the four major empires that ruled Europe prior to World War I, the terms of peace were also deeply psychologically devastating to the losers of that War, particularly to Germany. The humiliation and resentment resulting from defeat and from those peace terms provided fertile ground for the rise of Adolf Hitler.
Specific Peace Terms of World War I
Prior to World War I, there had been four major European empires: German, also known as the "Weimar Republic"; Russian; Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman. However, defeat completely disassembled the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires while taking great amounts of land from the German and Russian empires: the Treaty of Versailles of 1919 required the Germans to admit responsibility for World War I, pay reparations[footnoteRef:1], accept occupation and total disarmament[footnoteRef:2], and cede large stretches of its territory to the War's winners[footnoteRef:3], essentially accepting "enforced subservience" to the winners[footnoteRef:4]; the Austro-Hungarian Empire...
Finally, the Treaty of Versailles established the League of Nations, which was supposed to prevent another World War.[footnoteRef:5] In sum, the terms of peace significantly redesigned Europe and placed considerable sanctions on the German people. [1: Gerhard L. Weinberg, A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II (New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 1994), 14.] [2: John Keegan, The Battle for History: Re-Fighting World War II (New York, NY: First Vintage Books Edition, 1996), 12.] [3: Ibid.] [4: Richard Overy, Why the Allies Won (New York, NY W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1997), 9.] [5: Weinberg, 12.]
b. Psychological Effects of World War I and Its Peace Terms
Deemed a "leaderless war" won by "a popular readiness to bear suffering" plus American intervention[footnoteRef:6], World War I had deep psychological effects on all parties. First, the War's destructiveness and alteration/dissolution of the prior empires was devastating: "In more than four years of bloodshed and destruction, vast portions of Europe had been wrecked and the domestic institutions of the…
Works Cited
Keegan, John. The Battle for History: Re-Fighting World War II. New York, NY: First Vintage Books Edition, 1996.
Overy, Richard. Why the Allies Won. New York, NY W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1997.
Weinberg, Gerhard L. A World at Arms: A Global History of World War II. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
Japan would be obliged to negotiate with each former enemy in terms of making reparations. It appears therefore that any attempts at creating peaceful solutions to the conflicts arising during the World Wars culminated in much further conflict, particularly as involving the United States, Germany and the U.S.S.R. Furthermore, it also appears that the ideal of taking sufficient time in order to prevent further conflict was somewhat defeated by conflicts
The makers of the peace settlement hoped to reduce the possibility of future conflict by taking away Germany's army and controlling its political system. This proved impossible, and only provoked more violence in the long run, as Germans grew more sympathetic to fascism as a result. Third, why did the United States Senate reject the Treaty of Versailles? What objections did they have to the treaty, especially to the League
In addition, in Congress few voices spoke out against the war, since they wanted to use the war to end the IWW and socialism. Johnson and Tindall/Shi's books were sometimes difficult to get through, because of all the names and facts. I found myself reading and rereading parts of Johnson's book to get the gist of what he was saying. Despite the fact that Tindall's was to be a narrative,
World War II or the Second World War occurred between 1939 and 1945 between the Allied Powers and the Axis Powers (Wikipedia 2006). The Allied Powers were led by the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the U.S. The Axis Powers were led by Germany, Italy and Japan. World War II claimed 12 million lives and began in response to the military aggression of Nazi Germany under Adolph Hitler and
World War I Causes and Consequences of World War I World War 1 (Causes, America's Contribution to the War, Role of President Woodrow Wilson, Treaty of Versailles Failure) The First World War (1914-1918) or the Great War was fought between the Allies and the Central Powers. The Allies included 27 countries of which Russia, the United States of America, France, Japan and Britain are the most prominent. The Central Powers consisted of Turkey, Germany,
World War II drew to a close, and the planet was forced to recalibrate in unprecedented proportions, the United States began its long emergence as the most expansive super-power that had yet been known. Its influence that would compete virulently with the post-war Soviet influence for half a century, has since disseminated into every facet of the geopolitical theatre. As such, American support can operate as the determining factor