treaty of versailles
The Treaty of Versailles: Prelude to WWII The Treaty of Versailles was not a justified treaty, which created German feelings of revenge and dislike towards the victorious countries. ... People at the time published reports on the unfairness of the treaty. America never ratified the treaty but Britain and France still enforced it. ... We must examine the background, clauses, and effects of the Treaty of Versailles on Germany and Europe to understand how it helped cause WWII. Then, when you look at the situation the treaty created for Europe, we can see how WWII came about. ... Because Germany had surrendered, her only option was to either sign the treaty, or else go back to war again, which would inevitably result in defeat. The Treaty was unexpectedly harsh, though, despite the fact Germany hadn’t been defeated, she had merely surrendered. ... Furthermore, another clause of the treaty was that the territory of Germany had to be greatly reduced. ... Before Germany had signed the Treaty of Versailles, she had read Wilson’s published Fourteen Points, which had misled her into thinking she would be promised self-determination. ... Germany’s democratic Weimar government, which had been set up by the allies, was thought of badly by its people as it had signed the treaty and was failing to rebuild Germany.