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1. Revolution against the old regime broke out in Germany even before the armistice was signed.
a. Sailors in north Germany mutinied and took over the town of Kiel.
i. This triggered other revolts and socialist uprisings of workers and
soldiers.
i.
In Bavaria, an independent socialist republic was declared.
b. The Kaiser abdicated his throne and fled to Holland on November 9 1918.
2. Germany signed the November armistice because they thought it would be modelled after
Wilsons Fourteen Points.
a. In reality the terms of the armistice were tough, for example: Germans had to evacuate all
occupied territory including Alsace-Lorraine; and they had to lose all their submarines, much of
their surface fleet and their air force.
b. Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg commented as a result, The German Army was stabbed in
the back.
i. Blame was put on internal enemiesJews, socialists, and communists.
This was based on their attempts at revolution before the armistice was signed.
3. Results of Versailles
a. Clause 231, the War Guilt Clause.
i. This clause allowed moral justification for other terms of the treaty.
ii. The Germans hated this clause because they thought all nations should
take some responsibility for outbreak of the war.
b. Versailles was seen as a diktat by the German people.
i. Animosity grew because Germans felt the treaty was too harsh.
Furthermore, they felt cheated because the Treaty did not reflect Wilsons Fourteen Points.
c. The Germany army could not have more than 100 000.
i. Germans thought this was unfair and a small army could not defend
themselves against further invasion. The German Navy sank its own fleet at Scapa Flow in
Scotland in protest.
ii. Traditionally the Germans were very proud of their army so this clause
angered them.
4. By the end of the war, 1.7 million men died and 4.2 million were wounded.
5. Those who signed Treaty became known as the November Criminals
Economic
1. The war effort cost Germany $37 775 000 000.
2. By the end of the war Germany lost 187 000 tons in merchant shipping.
3. Territorial losses by the Treaty of Versailles resulted in loss of industry. The loss of industry
meant that Germany had no means of paying for its huge reparations. It was also a severe blow
to rebuild her economy
a. Alsace-Lorraine was claimed by France.
i. This was an important industrial area.