Treaty of Versailles

To what extend was the Treaty of Versailles a fair treaty?

The TOV is a peace treaty that was put into place at the end of World War One and it was largely an unfair treaty, as Germany was not allowed to negotiate the terms of the treaty. The Germans was forced into signing the treaty or risk invasion by the Allied Forces, even though at that time, Germany had to yet surrendered but called for a ceasefire. The act of coercion is unjust towards the Germans as the Germans has not admitted that they have lost and should be given the right to discuss about the terms which involves Germany itself.

The TOV was also largely based upon penalizing Germany as Article 231 effectively blames Germany for the war and states that Germany must accept total responsibility. By forcing Germany to accept total responsibility for the war, the other countries are exempt from penalty. Also, Germany had to shoulder the cost for all the reparations even though the damage was done by both the Allies and the Central Powers. Only Germany will bear the shame and blame which shows that The Big Three negotiated the conditions of the Treaty to increase their personal benefit.

The military clause was the harshest and most damaging clause, and was greatly disapproved of by Germany. The size and power of the German army was one of her greatest assets. By restricting her to an army of only 100,000 volunteers, the Treaty left her defenseless and vulnerable. For such a large country, an army of 100,000 men was just big enough to keep order within Germany at that time of political unrest and instability, but was not large enough to defend Germany from other invading powers. The army was a symbol of German pride and an important political source of nationalism. Having almost half of it taken away ruined Germany's Great Power status, and made her an easy target for other countries. In addition, the Rhineland became a demilitarized zone, meaning that Germany was open to attacks by France.