Treaty of VersaillesMilitary clauses

Moustafa, Nick, Sophia, and Suky

Downsizing the Army• After the treaty, the German army

became limited to seven infantry divisions, and three calvary divisions.

• The German military had to be under one hundred thousand men (all ranks included).

• The German military’s only purposes became to maintain order within Germany, and to protect her borders.

• The Allies put these conditions into place because it diminished a fear that Germany would rebuild an army and continue/start another war.

MINIMIZING GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS• Following the treaty, the sections

of German government involved in security matters became the same size they had been in 1913 before the war.

• This included custom officers, forest guards, and coastguards.

• The only time the number of employees could increase was if there was a population increase.

• No government officials or employees could be military trained.

• The Allies put these laws into place because they did not want the government officials to lead a rebellion against the treaty clauses. It also restricted the government’s strength, allowing the Allies to have more power.

Ceasing Weapon Production• A condition of the treaty was that Allied nations had to approve of any German facilities producing weaponry.

• The amounts of weapons manufactured became restricted.

• Any establishments dedicated towards creating munition, that had not been approved by the Allies, was to be shut down immediately.

• Any non-crucial employees of the approved munition factories were to be dismissed.

• The Allies reduced weapon production to stop any chance of militarism happening again. They did not want the German army able to create new technologies, or to build up their armies.

Summary• Overall the Allies wanted to repress

the German military, law enforcement and access to weapons to prevent further conflict, as the Germans had started the war by building up their army and invading Belguim.

• The German military was now not nearly as well equipped. Many factory workers had been laid off, and the German government officials were not properly trained.

• This would upset the German people because they were not in control of their own country. Their own military had significantly downsized, causing them to question whether they could trust their government to protect them.

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