How Accurate Is It to Suggest That Treaty of Versailles Was Mainly Responsible for the Political and Economic Instability in Germany in the Years 1919-1923?

The Weimer Republic was established on extremely shaky grounds, with much of the public viewing those responsible for the new government as the ‘November Criminals’, the German signatories of the initial armistice which led to the Treaty of Versailles. The Treaty of Versailles was responsible for the later crushing of much of Germany’s military and economic stability. However, the pre-existing weaknesses of the Weimar government, Weimar’s political opponents as well as the failure of domestic policy. Overall, the most important reason is clearly the long-term effects of the Treaty of Versailles.

The Treaty of Versailles contributed greatly to Germany’s economic destruction. Under the treaty, Germany was forced to pay an exceedingly large amount of reparations, contributing to the Weimer government’s 144 billion debt in gold marks by 1919. As WWI had been fought on loaned money, Germany’s economy desperately needed foreign trade in order to make up for these losses, yet the treaty ensured that Germany would be crippled on the international market; it was prohibited from participating in trade of arms, chemicals as well as military armaments. Without these key exports, the German economy faced extreme stagnation, worsened by the clause that would grant France the entirety of the Ruhr’s coal output, a key resource Germany needed for economic stability. Notably the Treaty of Versailles also resulted in Germany being forced to cede 65 thousand km2 of land, at a loss of 7 million inhabitants in total – land which could be used to power Germany’s industrial capabilities were taken under the treaty, which even Britain and the USA considered to be overly harsh. The political significance of the Treaty of Versailles is also clear; the previous government had refused to sign the treaty, forcing the new government to have no choice but to cede to Allied demands. This caused a huge explosion in social tensions, especially for ex-soldiers and created the opinion that the war...