Effects of the Treaty
War Guilt Clause:The War Guilt Clause has two significant outcomes. One significance is that in assuming responsibility for the war, Germany assumed responsibility for all of the damages that needed to be paid. The other significance of the War Guilt Clause is that it simply angered many Germans. Prior to World War I, many other nations had provoked diplomatic controversy and the Germans knew this. Forcing all of the blame onto Germany made many Germans resentful towards the Allied powers (The Americans 606).
Damages:Upon reading the list of "damages" it becomes clear that many of the Allies were seeking to punish the Central Powers. As Margaret MacMillan says, "Everyone agreed that Germany, and the Germans, deserved punishment" (161). The damages paid by Germany are arguably the largest contributing factor to the crash of the German economy. The German economic crash led to so many widespread problems ,such as hyperinflation and starvation, the German government was driven into the ground until Germany was in a state of chaos (World History 762).
Territorial Losses: Germany's loss of its colonies and acquired territories contributed further to Germany's economic turmoil. German's colonies and territories played primary roles in Germany's economy. Many of Germany's colonies provided a significant number of resources which could have been used to pay damages to the Allies. Besides resources, many of Germany's territories had significant manufacturing capabilities, another thing that could have helped to pay off Germany's war debts and damages. In the end the loss of territories forced Germany to use its gold reserves to pay for all of its debts. This is just another factor in the collapse of the German economy. (HistoryLearningSite).
Military: The military restrictions of the treaty made Germany weak. The most obvious example of this is that the German navy was reduced to a whopping 6 ships after the treaty. Germany's massive fleet of submarines was completely wiped out. England in contrast to Germany had over 250 ships at the end of WWI. Germany was outnumbered and badly too.
Much of Europe was still in turmoil after the war and Germany was largely defenseless. Many Germans blamed the Allies for the lack of national security and the Allies were largely to blame. "A smaller Germany, and a poorer Germany, would be less of a threat to its neighbors" (MacMillan 162). While a smaller and poorer Germany was less of a threat, many Germans now felt unsafe due to the lack of a military.
Damages:Upon reading the list of "damages" it becomes clear that many of the Allies were seeking to punish the Central Powers. As Margaret MacMillan says, "Everyone agreed that Germany, and the Germans, deserved punishment" (161). The damages paid by Germany are arguably the largest contributing factor to the crash of the German economy. The German economic crash led to so many widespread problems ,such as hyperinflation and starvation, the German government was driven into the ground until Germany was in a state of chaos (World History 762).
Territorial Losses: Germany's loss of its colonies and acquired territories contributed further to Germany's economic turmoil. German's colonies and territories played primary roles in Germany's economy. Many of Germany's colonies provided a significant number of resources which could have been used to pay damages to the Allies. Besides resources, many of Germany's territories had significant manufacturing capabilities, another thing that could have helped to pay off Germany's war debts and damages. In the end the loss of territories forced Germany to use its gold reserves to pay for all of its debts. This is just another factor in the collapse of the German economy. (HistoryLearningSite).
Military: The military restrictions of the treaty made Germany weak. The most obvious example of this is that the German navy was reduced to a whopping 6 ships after the treaty. Germany's massive fleet of submarines was completely wiped out. England in contrast to Germany had over 250 ships at the end of WWI. Germany was outnumbered and badly too.
Much of Europe was still in turmoil after the war and Germany was largely defenseless. Many Germans blamed the Allies for the lack of national security and the Allies were largely to blame. "A smaller Germany, and a poorer Germany, would be less of a threat to its neighbors" (MacMillan 162). While a smaller and poorer Germany was less of a threat, many Germans now felt unsafe due to the lack of a military.