Paris Peace Conference 1919

At the termination of the catastrophic First World War in 1918, the victorious powers convened in Paris to find a pathway towards peace and stability. The Paris Peace Conference aimed to foster a durable peace by holding the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey) responsible for the war and establishing a new international order to prevent another catastrophic conflict. It was a theatre dominated by prominent characters, a meeting place of the world community, and the arena for diplomatic struggles. The results of the Paris Peace Conference were suboptimal. Ideals were confronted with the reality on the ground, and the results bore the seed of failure.

The "Big 4" actually were "3+1"

Undoubtedly, the central characters in this assembly were the leaders of the so-called "Big Four": American President Woodrow Wilson, George Clemenceau, Prime Minister of France, and Prime Minister David Lloyd George of the United Kingdom. Italy, initially allied with Germany and Austria-Hungary in the Triple Alliance but neutralized by secret Treaties with powers of the Entente Cordiale (France, Britain, Russia), sent Vittorio Emanuele Orlando. Their personalities, desires, and visions dominated the negotiations, showcasing different perspectives and interests concerning the post-war world. And what they pushed for was not always harmonious with the zeitgeist at home.

Wilson, both politician and academic, was a mastermind of idealism, convinced of his mission to guide the world toward peace through his Fourteen Points, promoting national self-determination and the creation of a League of Nations. Clemenceau, nicknamed "The Tiger," embodied French revenge and determination to ensure German incapacitation, reflecting France's deep scars from the war. Clemenceau cynically responded to Wilson's Fourteen Points, mentioning that God gave us the Ten Commandments. Wilson enlarged that to 14.

"Fourteen Points? The good Lord himself had only ten." (Georges Clemenceau, French prime minister)

Lloyd George navigated a middle route, balancing between the punitive approach of Clemenceau and the idealistic avenues proposed by Wilson and already seeing Britain returning to its foreign policy doctrine of splendid isolation. Britain saw France as a future contender, more than Germany, as London might clash with Paris over colonial issues. Orlando saw his country mistreated and often mentioned that it did not feel like Italy was part of the winning side. This narrative was captured by Mussolini when he shattered the foundations of Italian democracy.

The Structure of the Conference

The conference was hosted in various luxurious locations, including the Quai d'Orsay and the Palace of Versailles, and stretched over a year (January 1919-January 1920). The conference was organized into commissions, each entrusted with formulating policies on matters such as reparations, armaments, and war crimes. Working groups and committees did work on the ground, and the council of the Big Four tumbled through negotiations, often landing in heated debates. Belgium and Japan were part of this superstructure, but they did not really have a say. Neither did Italy.

Many private meetings and back-door discussions resembled a bit the spirit of the Congress of Vienna. The conference bloomed with whispers of agreements, influencing the shaping of borders and the fates of nations. During one such meeting, a young Ho Chi Minh, who later became a significant figure in Vietnamese history, attempted unsuccessfully to gain an audience with the powerful men, seeking self-determination for his people. Later, he did it his way. Lawrence of Arabia was there, too, promoting the interests of Arabs.

The Treaties as an Outcome

As a result of the conference, a series of treaties emerged, the cornerstone of which was the Treaty of Versailles. It officially ended the war between Germany and the Allied Powers, but without Germany being able to really negotiate the outcome. The treaty imposed severe territorial and economic penalties on Germany. The other treaties, including the Treaty of Saint-Germain with Austria and Trianon with Hungary, mirrored the Versailles terms in redefining borders and imposing sanctions on the Central Powers.

During the treaty signing, a notable incident was the Chinese delegation's refusal to sign the Treaty of Versailles, protesting Japan's gaining control over German territories in China. This event hinted at the nationalist movements and further conflicts brewing. The Treaty of Trianon with Hungary was signed only after a Communist Coup d'Etat in Budapest and a short-lived communist rule. Until today, the Treaty of Trianon is a source of Hungarian right-wing revanchism and nationalism.

Provisions on the League of Nations

Besides the Peace Treaties with the Central Powers and the development of a mandating system for former colonies, the conference was developing and establishing the League of Nations, an embodiment of Wilson's 14th point. It was envisioned as a forum where nations could peacefully settle their disputes and promote collective security, quite a novelty at that time, where external security was seen as the exclusive competence of each state. The League Covenant, incorporated in the Treaty of Versailles, outlined the establishment of an Assembly, a Council, and a Permanent Secretariat to maintain global peace.

For many, the League symbolized a beacon of hope, a global body that would prevent future conflicts through dialogue and diplomacy. It introduced novel concepts such as economic sanctions against aggressor nations. It promoted disarmament, aiming to foster a cooperative international environment, but it crashed over antidemocratic movements (Hitler, Mussolini) and missing contributions of nations. Out of those, the American absence following the Senate's rejection to ratify the treaty was the most severe. That the beaten powers were not invited to join the League at the very beginning may have been very shortsighted, too.

A Critical Evaluation

Looking back, the Paris Peace Conference was a pivotal moment where victors carved up the world map with a blend of idealism and punitive realpolitik. The conference succeeded in ending the war, and it set an important precedent for multilateral diplomacy and cooperation through the League of Nations, even if the League was a failure in the end. At the same time, it sowed seeds of resentment, particularly in Germany and Hungary. The unbalanced outcome of the conference paved the way for the rise of extreme nationalism in countries like Italy and Germany. This contributed to the turmoil that led to the Second World War.

"This is not a peace. It is an armistice for 20 years." Ferdinand Foch, French marshal, on the 1919 Treaty of Versailles

The conference was a potpourri of grand visions and tragic flaws. Wilson's idealistic program met with the harsh realities of European politics, resulting in compromises that watered down many of his proposals. Furthermore, excluding Germany and Russia from the negotiations undermined the spirit of collective security that the League of Nations sought to promote. And the Japanese complained about the racism of the US and Britain. The French Marshall Ferdinand Foch got it right when he declared that the Treaties would lead to a 20-year armistice but not peace. The later economist John Maynard Keynes, member of the British delegation in Paris, warned, too. In his evaluation "The Economic Consequences of the Peace," published in December 1919, Keynes warned of economic chaos originating from the system of reparations.