Versailles #33: We Need To Talk About Germany... (Patreon)

[PATRONS]

In episode 33, we assess the day of 7th February, where the allies attempted to respond to what the Germans had done the previous day of 6th Feb, when the Constituent Assembly gathered in Weimar. The only problem with this allied approach was that no single man knew what exactly was happening in Germany. They were armed only with vague ideas and preconceived notions, and certainly no practical solutions. The French offered venom and wrath, the British caution, the Americans sympathy. It was impossible to decide upon the future either of Germany or the peace conference as a whole when everything seemed to be in flux, but this would not stop the allies from trying their best.

As talk of Germany continued, so did plans for creating the ideal version of the League of Nations. After being presented only the previous week, a commission had gotten to work sorting through the difficulties and disagreements, which were unfortunately legion. The French, much like in the case of the German question, posed the most problems in the League discussion. But was this fair to blame the French? Could we instead be more justified in blaming the American President? Was Woodrow Wilson to blame for failing to delegate, and for viewing the creation of the League as his one truly important purpose? As we will learn here, the consensus is not present on any of these questions, because the truth is far from so simple…