This introduction covers Setting the Scene within Treaty of Versailles for GCSE History. Revise Treaty of Versailles in Conflict and Tension 1918-1939 for GCSE History with 8 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 1 of 14 in this topic. Use this introduction to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
📖 Setting the Scene
June 28, 1919 — exactly five years after the assassination that started the war. In the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles (the same room where Germany had humiliated France in 1871), German delegates signed a treaty they called a "Diktat" — a dictated peace. They'd had no say in its terms. Germany lost 13% of its land, 10% of its population, all its colonies, and was blamed for the entire war. The reparations bill? £6.6 billion — a sum so vast Germany wouldn't finish paying until 1984. One economist, John Maynard Keynes, walked out in disgust, predicting the treaty would lead to another war. He was right.
WW1 Part 2 - OverSimplified (Treaty of Versailles in detail)
Practice questions for Treaty of Versailles
What was Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles?
How much were Germany required to pay in reparations under the Treaty of Versailles?
Quick recall flashcards
Army limit?
100,000 soldiers, no tanks, no air force, 6 battleships, no submarines
What does LAMB stand for?
Land, Army, Money, Blame — the 4 key treaty terms