Armistices, The Treaty of Versailles, and the Aftermath
In early 1918, Germany was in a very strong position and expected they would win the war. Germany launched an attack in March of 1918 called the "Michael Offensive" where they pushed Britain far back across the Somme battlefield. This offensive attack went well for the Germans until Britain and France counter-attacked. Germany realized then that they would most likely lose the war. On top of that, many of their previous plans had failed, they were currently losing the battle in France, and the United States had joined Britain and France to make their opposing alliance much stronger. Eventually, the German government, Weimar Republic, was told by the leaders of the German army to end the fighting, and signed the armistice created by France and Great Britain in November. The war ended on September 11, 1918.
In 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was created as a peace settlement for World War I. David Lloyd of Britain, Georges Clemenceau of France, and Woodrow Wilson of the United States, known as the "Big Three", drafted the Treaty of Versailles and came up with the League of Nations, an international organization created in order to maintain peace and settle disputes. The terms of the treaty were very harshly directed at Germany and greatly restricted their nation.
The Treaty included the "War Guilt Clause" that demanded that Germany take responsibility for all of the destruction of the war resulting in Germany being forced to pay for all of the damage. Germany also lost a good amount of its land, which then became under control of the League of Nations, distributed to Poland, and was used to create new states. The loss of this land caused Germany to suffer economically as well. The land provided them coal and other industrial advantages, so without it there was no hope for Germany. Finally, the treaty demanded that Germany's army was to be reduced significantly, they were not allowed tanks, or an air force, their navy was limited, and their army had boundaries.
After the war is over, and the Treaty of Versailles is made public, Adolf Hitler joined what will be known as the Nazi Party. They all hate the Treaty of Versailles, don't like the Weimar Republic, are ultra nationalists and therefore try to promote a pan Germanic state. Eventually, Hitler becomes the leader of this party, and decides to try to take over the Weimar Party. In 1929, the Great Depression makes things worse in Germany. Hitler is able to obtain the nation's love by promising the citizens he will improve their lives and their nation. By being the leader of the Nazi Party, Hitler is able to elect his supporters to be members of the Reichstag, and eventually gains control. Hitler is then invited by President Hindenburg to be chancellor of Germany.
As chancellor of Germany, Hitler is able to suspend civil rights, has the power to enact laws, make all other political parties illegal, and choose to only accept his "perfect people" otherwise known as Aryans. This leads to the start of World War II.
External Links:
http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005425
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/treaty_of_versailles.htm
http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005425
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/treaty_of_versailles.htm
"Nazi Party." History.com. History.com, 2009. Web. 23 Feb. 2015.
<http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/nazi-party>.
"Treaty of Versailles: The Full Text." Salem Press. N.p.: Salem Online, n.d. N.
pag. Salem. Web. 1 Feb. 2015. <http://online.salempress.com/
articleDetails.do?bookId=304&articleName=mdwh_96b&searchText=treaty%20of%20versai
lles>.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/0/ww1/25403869
"The League of Nations, 1920." US Department of State Office of the Historian.
Public Affairs, n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2015. <https://history.state.gov/
milestones/1914-1920/league>.
Images:
https://library.sc.edu/blogs/newspaper/2012/11/12/the-eleventh-hour-of-the-eleventh-day-of-the-eleventh-month-remembering-armistice-day/
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