Treaty of varsailles - p3ip

The Treaty of Versailles The German people understand the anger and dissatisfaction of the Western powers following the Great War but we humbly protest the unfair and inherently inegalitarian provisions of the document presently being compiled in Versailles. Contrary to a commonly held perception in the West, the German people wholeheartedly regret the conflict which embroiled our great nations and descended our continent, in fact much of the world, into violent and economically disastrous warfare. It must be remembered however that the German people are victims themselves and any attempt at reconciliation must take into the account the tremendous losses suffered by the nation of German during the World War. Accordingly, more than two million young German men lost their lives during the Great War and our cities remain deserted and destroyed following this unfortunate war. We, the German people, take issue with many of the conditions of the Treaty of Versailles and respectfully submit our challenges to a document which we believe does not but punish the suffering German people and lay the groundwork for future conflict on this great continent we share. We turn to the American delegation and plead for a just and amicable resolution to the Great War. We do not seek to provoke further animosity with our neighbors and believe that a peaceful settlement can be reached, provided that the understanding that we have all suffered in this dreadful conflict, is brought to the fore (Boemeke et al., 2009).
First and foremost Germany takes issue with the “ War Guilt” clause which stipulates that we alone are guilty of this War. We cannot forget the more than two million young German men lost their lives during the Great War and it would be dishonorable to tarnish their legacy by declaring exclusive guilt for the travesty which befell all of our people. With respect to land and the seemingly unilateral desire to take German land away from our people including Alsace-Lorraine, Eupen and Malmedy, Northern Schleswig, Hultschin West Prussia, Posen and Upper Silesia, we must object. The annexation of this land by foreign powers will do more to sow disharmony between the Western Powers and Germany and we seriously hope that the division of Germany by the victors in this terrible conflict will be reconsidered. Furthermore, we believe that a “ League of Nations” which excludes the great nation of Germany will be unrepresentative of the civilized people of this earth and for it to work in the manner in which it is presently being designed it must be inclusive in character as well as in scope. Finally, we believe that any nation has the right to maintain a standing army and restrictions on the size as well as the weaponry available to it to defend itself make Germany a vulnerable and unviable political entity in the future to come. We wholeheartedly believe that reconciliation and a peaceful resolution of this terrible War will only be brought to fruition if there is an understanding and appreciation that we have all lost as a result of this conflict and that the rights of the German people are recognized in their legitimacy (Brezina, 2006; Primary 2009).
References
Boemeke, G et al. (2009). The Treaty of Versailles: A Reassessment after 75 Years. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Primary Documents: Treaty of Versailles, 28 June 1919. (2009). FirstWorldWar. com. Last Accessed July 27 2009, http://www. firstworldwar. com/source/versailles. htm
Brezina, C. (2006). The Treaty of Versailles, 1919: A Primary Source Examination of the Treaty that Ended World War I. New York: The Rosen Publishing Group.