Abstract
The paper argues that the treaty of Versailles, a compromise between the wishes of US President Woodrow Wilson (the Fourteen Points) and the wishes of the major allied powers, was ultimately little more than a twenty-year armistice because of the onerous burdens it imposed upon Germany. In particular, the paper discusses how the Treaty of Versailles wrested from Germany German-speaking Alsace-Lorraine and stripped that nation of its overseas territories and its title to Shantung province, Germany's military forces de-mobilized and were limited in size and scope and finally, Germany was saddled with war guilt and with heavy reparations that threatened to cripple it.

From the Paper
"The following paper will argue that the treaty of Versailles, a compromise between the wishes of US President Woodrow Wilson (the Fourteen Points) and the wishes of the major allied powers, was ultimately little more than a twenty-year armistice because of the onerous burdens it imposed upon Germany. In particular, the Treaty of Versailles wrested from Germany German-speaking Alsace-Lorraine and stripped that nation of its overseas territories and its title to Shantung province. Likewise, even with a hostile France on its borders, Germany was the one combatant which witnessed its military forces de-mobilized and limited in size and scope..."

Tags:glorious, failure, versailles

Abstract
This paper argues that World War One, in the final analysis, was inevitable from the moment Germany (Prussia) vanquished France in the Franco-Prussian war and promptly took from the French their cherished holdings in Alsace-Lorraine. The writer maintains that the road to war was further smoothed by the refusal of the Germans to renew the Reinsurance Treaty and by the fact that France and Russia signed a formal alliance treaty in 1894 that effectively turned continental Europe into a sort of armed stand-off, with Germany and Austro-Hungary on one side and France and Russia on the other.

From the Paper
"Last of all, the ouster of Bismarck and the failure to find an adequate replacement meant that none of the deft handling of Russia (and Great Britain) that was needed was available as things built steadily towards a crisis. In the final analysis, the peace was lost the instant German forces overran France; it just took a couple of generations for the inevitable to occur."

Tags:war

Abstract
The paper looks at how Fay discusses how Germany had remained politically and socially weak from the time of the Thirty Years War in the seventeenth century, and was subject to French policy, which was determined to keep Germany weak and divided. The paper discusses how Germany dealt with the problem directly and expelled Austria from its rule by the Prussian victory at Sadowa, and established the North German Federation, although under Prussian rule. The paper describes how France was now the underling and Germany was the strong enemy. The paper shows how Bismarck was highly criticized by the French for the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine, however, Fay's view is that Bismarck was just doing what is common during war and after victory.

From the Paper
"In this section, Fay discusses how Germany had remained politically and socially weak from the time of the Thirty Years War in the seventeenth..."

Tags:world, war, origins

Abstract
World War One is considered by many to be the greatest war the world has seen. World War One was the first war of worldwide magnitude and its effects on the world are still reverberating today. This paper explores whether the foreign policies of European governments before 1914 contributed to outbreak of the war. The investigation covers the foreign policies of all major European powers, including Germany, Austria-Hungry, Russia, France and Britain.

From the Paper
"Rivalry between Austria-Hungry and Russia was very evident, and could escalate into conflict easily. The breakup of the Ottoman Empire led to both Russia and Austria-Hungry seeking to profit through the expansion. The Balkan Wars of 1912-1913 was not only a disaster for the Ottomans but for the Austrians as well because enemies such as Serbia had raised an army of 200,000. 4 Serbia desired to unite all Serbs including the 7.3 million Serbs who lived in Austria-Hungry with the 3.3 million who lived within the boundaries of Serbia. Serbia had the support of Russia in freeing the Serbs from oppressive empires such as Austria-Hungry. In 1908 the Austrian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina ended Austro-Russian collaboration and opened an era of suspicion and antagonism."

Tags:Bismarck, Balkan, Alsace, Lorraine