The Treaty of Versailles was received very badly within Germany. The nation had been blamed entirely for the first world war and had been forced to pay compensation to the allies under the war guilt clause of the treaty. The war guilt clause not only made the Germans accept responsibility for the war but also cost them dearly. 10% of German lands were lost as a result, all of Germany's overseas colonies were taken away and shared between the allies and a massive 12.5% of the German population found itself living outside of the new German borders. These terms had several very dramatic consequences on Germany.

• Initially they refused to sign the treaty and opted to scuttle the fleet in protest.

• The economy was ruined as much of the produce and profit had to be sent to the allies as reparations payments. This meant that the German economy was unable to recover itself.

• The disarmament of the armed forces was viewed as an embarrassment and the Germans felt very insecure about their inability to defend themselves: it also meant a loss of status as military power means that a nation has political clout.

• The German people felt bitter that they were excluded from the league of nations and enforced to live by other peoples rules.

These problems resulted in disillusionment and animosity entering German politics. In 1922 they fell behind with reparations repayments and had to suffer the humiliation of French troops entering the Ruhr to secure payments. The Weimar government was unable to reasons, it hadn't the means to react in any feasible way: a government endorsed strike led to the deaths of 100 workers, shot by the French.

The treaty led, either directly or indirectly, to a situation in Germany where the people felt let down, they wanted to blame someone. It led to economic problems and a lack of food or jobs. These in turn lead to further economic problems, and eventually to the German hyperinflation of the mid twenties.

  Revision Guides - Medicine Through Time and Weimar and Nazi Germany