Explain why Germany and her allies were defeated in WWI and assess their treatment in the 1918/1919 settlement

in that location were many another(prenominal) factors that played a part in Germanys lacing in field warfare mavin, and none of them can be singularly attributed to its loss. Despite this, most factors did play a more important part than others. Some of the study(ip) factors were Americas entry into the contend, unhopeful morale in Germany, and Germanys Ludendorrf Offensive.The American entry into the fight was a major factor contributing to Germanys defeat. When the Americans declared war on Germany on April 6, 1917, they provided a huge injection of funds, soldiers and productive capacity to the Allies war effort. The millions of American soldiers that were sent oversea in 1917 and 1918 were fit, young, and most importantly, fresh with comparatively high morale compared to the other confederate soldiers. earthly concern War One was a war of attrition. The human face that could wear down the enemy stance first would be victorious. The contribution of the American sol diers, funds and resources to the Allied side eitherowed them to survive for longer than the Central Powers. Therefore, the entry of America into existence War One was a major factor causing Germanys defeat.The Ludendorrf Offensive, which was launched on marchland 21, 1918, was a series of tierce offensives undertaken by the Germans to try to force an Allied surrender aft(prenominal) the Russian withdrew from the war. With the Eastern front free, the Germans concentrated all their resources on the Western front to try to break the stalemate there.At first the Ludendorrf Offensive was successful, but the German troops advanced so fast that their supply lines could not keep up. This allowed the Allied forces to surround and defeat the stranded German troops. The Ludendorrf Offensive was a gamble by Germany. It demand an input of high levels of resources, and as it was not successful, these resources were ultimately wasted. As World War One was a war of attrition, the Ludendorrf O ffensive accelerated, if not caused, Germanys defeat.By 1917 and 1918, morale amongst the German people was very low. They had begun to lose faith in the war. An outbreak of Spanish Influenza in Europe had hit Germany, and had created excitement amongst the population. Shortages of consumer essentials spread widely throughout Germany. The Germany public began to resent the war, calling for calm at any cost. The production of munitions pilot, and the weapons supply to the German soldiers fell to levels much lower than the Allies. The low morale amongst the civilians and soldiers worsened the German position. Therefore, low morale amongst the troops and civilians on the German side was a major factor leading to Germanys defeat in World War One.There is no obvious single factor for Germanys defeat in World War One, but among the main reasons were the Americans entry into the war, the Ludendorrf Offensive, and the low morale among soldiers and civilians at the home front.The pact of Versailles was the culmination of the 1918/1919 peace settlement process that was impose on Germany by the Allied powers in 1919. The treaty imposed a number of gravelly conditions on Germany. As a result of the treaty, Germany had to curb its army to 100 000 men, and switch up its air force altogether. Germany had to give away thirteen percent of its land, and upset over control of its overseas colonies. Germany was forced to pay over 6, 600, 000, 000 in war repatriations. Also, and significantly, the Treaty of Versailles demanded Germany concur full responsibility for starting the First World War.To assess Germanys treatment in the 1918/1919 settlement, it is useful to examine the motives behind the key negotiators, Germanys aims, and Germanys guiltThe British public were very angry and were out for revenge. Hang the Kaiser and Make Germany make up were both very common calls in the time just after the war and the British Prime Minister David Lloyd George could not affor d politically to be easy on Germany. This shows that Britains intentions when contributing to the Treaty of Versailles would have been to gratingly punish GermanyThe then president of France, Georges Clemenceau, was steady downd to pull in that Germany was punished so harshly that it would never be able to start a war again, as he believed they had done. As was the case with the British, there was excessively general public anger towards Germany.The American President, Woodrow Wilson, was the third major participant in the treaty negotiations. He to a fault wanted to punish Germany, but also had an interest in a stable Europe, which would depend on a stable Germany.Given the attitudes of the Allies who met in Paris for the peace negotiations, Germanys treatment in the Treaty of Versailles would definitely have been harsh, as all three entered the negotiations with a view to punishing Germany.When judged by its previous actions, it can be argues that Germany was not justified t o expect a settlement any more favourable than what they received. They had already proven that in victory they could be as harsh as the Allies with the treaty they presented Russia upon their withdrawal from the war, the Brest-Litovsk Treaty. In this treaty, the Germans demanded that Russia hand over large areas of its territory and pay substantial repatriations.Given the harsh treatment the Germans imposed on Russia after its defeat, the treatment of Germany in the Treaty of Versailles can be justified. There is an argument that if Germany had won, they would have imposed penalties as harsh or harsher on the Allies. This supports the argument that the Treaty of Versailles was not too harsh on Germany.But perhaps the best way to determine whether or not the Treaty of Versailles was really harsh on Germany is to see the effect on Germany of the treaty, and the length of time it took for Germany to recover.