Was the Treatty of Versailles fair?
Edited by Lloyd Yeo
The Treaty of Versailles were fair in terms of its military, territorial and economic terms. But it
was grossly unfair when it came to forcing her to sign the war guilt clause.
The military terms were fair because Germany was still left with 100,000 to defend herself. All
they did was to disarm her and make her less dangerous. This explains why she was not allowed
to have an airforce or submarine fleet. It also explains why the navy was limited to 6 battleshipts
and a smaller fleet. It was however still fair because Germany was still allowed to have a basic
self defence force.
The territorial terms were fair because before the Treaty of Versailles was signed, it should be
remembered that Germany treated Russia very harshly at the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. At the
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Germany had taken away 25% of Russia’s territories. In contrast, at the
Treaty of Versailles, the Allies had taken away only 10% of Germany’s lands. The Rhineland
may have been demilitarized but Germany was still allowed to keep the iron, coal and steel
factories there. The Saar coalfields may have been taken over by France for 15 years but 15 years
later, the residents in the Saar area would still be given a pleblescite (national elections) to decide
if they wanted to remain under French or German control.
Some have claimed that the economic terms were grossly unfair to Germany because Germany
had to pay 6.6 billion pounds. It was beyond what she was able to pay. It was almost impossible
for Gemany to pay this amount to the Allies also because the coal mines in the Saar was lost to
France for ten or so years. Germany also had strikes and demonstrations. The German ports were
also blockaded and 6.6 billion pounds was simply too much! Yet it should also be remembered
that German economy was still able to recover in the late 1920s under the leadership of President
Gustav Stressemann. This shows the economic terms wasn’t as crippling in the long term.
The biggest injustice was the war guilt clause. The war guilt clause was grossly unfair for
Germany because according to article 231 of the Versailles Treaty, Germany was forced to admit
that they were responsible for starting World War I. Yet, in 1914, it was the Archduke Franz
Ferdinand who was assassinated in Bosnia which led to the start of World War I. It was Austrian
insistence that Serbia pay indemnity and surrender their provinces which led to the war. It was
also Serbian terrorists which had assassinated the Archduke. It was also Russia which supported
Serbia and mobilized her army first. These events show that Austria-Hungary, Serbia and Russia
were equally responsible for the war. Yet, at the Treaty of Versailles, Germany was forced to
admit that she, and she alone, was responsible for starting World War I. The war guilt clause was
grossly unfair because the Germans would call it a ‘dictated peace’ and call for ‘vengeance’.
They felt the Weimar politicians had stabled the German nation in the back and felt angered. It
would also ultimately lead to the start of World War Two in 1939.
Therefore, in conclusion, the Treaty of Versailles were fair in terms of territorial, military and
even economic terms. The war guilt clause was however grossly unfair. The moral injustice
would be remembered and eventually enable Hitler to mobilize and use those ill-feelings to start
World War II .