Lesson 4: A Flawed Peace

Lesson 4: A Flawed Peace

World History

Lesson Objectives:

• Explain events that led to the signing of the Treaty of Versailles.

• Identify the effects of the treaty on European powers.

On January 18, 1919, representatives of 32 countries participated in the Paris Peace Conference.

For one year, this conference would be the scene of vigorous, often bitter debate.

The Big Four: David Lloyd George of Great Britain, Georges Clemenceau of France, Vittorio Orlando of Italy, and Woodrow Wilson of the United States.

Open Ended

Why didn't Russia take part in the Big Four negotiations?

Wilson's Plan for Peace

• He proposed the Fourteen Points, a plan for achieving a just and lasting peace.

• 1st -4th - end to secret treaties, freedom of the seas, free trade, and reduced national armies and navies.

• 5th - adjustment of colonial claims with fairness toward colonial peoples.

Wilson's Plan for Peace

• 6th - 13th - suggestions for changing borders and creating new nations.

• Self-determination - allowing people to decide for themselves under what government they wished to live.

Wilson's Plan for Peace

• 14th - a "general association of nations" that would protect "great and small states alike."

Treaty of Versailles - a compromise between Germany and the Allied powers signed on June 28, 1919.

The treaty also created the League of Nations, an international association whose goal would be to keep peace among nations.

The treaty punished Germany: lost substantial territory and had severe restrictions on its military operations.

Article 231 or the War Guilt Clause: placed sole responsibility for the war on Germany's shoulders where they had to pay reparations to the Allies.

All German territories in Africa and the Pacific were declared mandates, or territories to be administered by the League of Nations.

Treaties negotiated by the Allies created feelings of bitterness and betrayal among both the victors and the defeated.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following accurately describes the Treaty of Versailles negotiations?

• The four leaders agreed that Europeans colonialism was a cause of the war.

• The four leaders agreed that Communist Russia was a threat to world peace.

• The four leaders agreed that Germany ability to make war should be limited.

• The four leaders agreed that Austria-Hungary should pay for the reconstruction of France.

Multiple Choice

Map on page 766: Which Central Power nation appears to have lost the most territory?

• Germany

• Austria

• Bulgaria

• Ottoman Empire

Multiple Choice

Map on page 766: On which nation's former lands were most of the new countries created?

• Germany

• Austria

• Russia

• France

Multiple Choice

How was the Ottoman Empire affected by its treaty with the Allied Powers?

• The Ottoman Empire was carved up into many smaller regions.

• The Ottoman Empire received the mandates for Palestine and Iraq.

• The Ottoman Empire received the mandates for Syria and Lebanon.

• The Ottoman Empire was allowed to keep most of its territory after the war.

Peace treaties signed in 1919 and 1920 altered the map of Europe with the creation of newly independent nations.

League of nations first met in January 1920 and was able to introduce important changes:

- restrictions on lead in paint,

- adoption of standards for workdays and weeks,

- ending slavery around the world, and

- the creation of the Commission for Refugees

"A Peace Built on Quicksand"

• The US rejected the terms of the treaties and stayed out of European affairs.

• The war-guilt clause left a legacy of bitterness and hatred in the hearts of the German people.

• African and Asian colonies were angry at the way the Allies disregarded their desire for independence.

• Japan and Italy gained less territory than they wanted.

Open Ended

Chart on page 767:

In what ways did the treaty punish Germany?

Lacking the support of the US, and other world powers, the League of Nations was in no position to take action on major complaints of nations.

Open Ended

Chart on page 767:

What region was returned to France as a result of the treaty?

Open Ended

In what way was the Treaty of Versailles "a peace built on quiksand"?

Individual Worksheet

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