Alexander Liu
Nimisha Seshadri
Jesse Shen
Laya Vanga
Annotated Bibliography
Primary Sources
Von Brockdorff-Rantzau, Ulrich. “German Delegates' Protest Against Proposed Peace Terms at
the Paris Peace Conference, May 1919.” First World War.com, May 1919, First World
This source is a letter from Count Von Brockdorff-Rantzau, leader of the German Peace
Delegation, to George Clemenceau (who was the president of the Paris Peace
Conference). It shows the dismay of the German people at the harsh terms they would be
subject to under the Treaty of Versailles, and how said terms would likely negatively
affect them (as they did). It proposes counter-proposals for what could be done instead.
This letter showed how the German public was strongly opposed to this treaty, and how
their opinion was that such a treaty would only prolong conflict (as it did). This was used
to show German opinion on the matter and how they were not well received/treated (in
“Dutch Newspaper Editorial Against the Terms of the Paris Peace Conference, May 1919.” First
om/source/parispeaceconf_dutcheditorial.htm.
This expressed the public opinion of an outside party towards this treaty. Many already
considered this treaty to be unfair, and this source was used to display public opinion
towards this treaty. It is used in conjunction with other sources to show the displeasure
many had of the treaty, the idea that it would not make peace but cause future conflict.
Clemenceau, George. “Allied Reply to German Delegates' Protest Against Proposed Peace
Terms at the Paris Peace Conference, May 1919.” First World War.com, First World
This is the letter in response to Count Von Brockdorff-Rantzau letter. It essentially says
that what Germany did was a major crime, and any punishment they received was either
just or not enough. Thus, they should not be complaining as it was an eye for an eye, and
a just punishment. It shows how German public opinion and the many other dissenters of
the treaty were often disregarded, with disastrous consequences (after all, it caused World
War II).
"Treaty of Versailles, 1919." ["Treaty of Versailles, 1919"]. Treaty of Versailles, 1919, 8/1/2017,
p. 1. EBSCOhost,
search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=khh&AN=21212329
This is the Treaty of Versailles, in text format. It was used to give a scope of how long the treaty
was, and for when the precise wording of the terms was desired. After all, it is a transcript
of the original. The articles of interest are the ones detailing war guilt (231), reparations,
“Newspaper Headline Announce the Defeat of the Treaty of Versailles (1919).” American
Government www.americangovernment.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/1956509
This is a primary source, a newspaper headline which announced the American rejection
of the Treaty of Versailles. Many Americans considered this treaty harsh, and that it was
unfair on Germany. It was used, in conjunction with others, to show how public opinion
of the treaty was mixed and that many were doubtful as to the effectivity of its harsh
terms.
Walsh, Ben. “ Extracts from the Illustrated London News Showing German Reactions to the
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/greatwar/g5/cs2/g5cs2s1a.htm.
This extract from a London Newspaper details the unrest in Germany due to the treaty,
and the negative public opinions about it. Already, many were expressing increasingly
negative opinions towards the treaty, being very strongly opposed to it. This not only was
used to show negative public opinion towards the treaty, but also the stiff opposition the
Germans were willing to put up (these sentiments were suppressed and largely silenced
until they ultimately became so intense that the people were willing to follow a party as
media1.britannica.com/eb-media/51/135151-004-0D4D550E.jpg.
A picture showing Russian troops in trenches. Depicts the conditions of the battlefield.
Jackson, Edward N. Council of Four at the WWI Paris Peace Conference, May 27, 1919.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Versailles#/media/File:Big_four.jpg.
This image shows the ‘Big Four’. From left to right: David Lloyd George, Vittorio
Orlando, Georges Clemenceau, and Woodrow Wilson. This image was used to represent
the Paris Peace Conference, and to show who the Big Four were.
A Well-Known Photo Shows Children Playing with Worthless Germany Money. At Inflation's
rarehistoricalphotos.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Children-playing-with-stacks-of-h
yperinflated-currency-during-the-Weimar-Republic-1922-small.jpg.
This picture depicts children playing with stacks of German marks. This shows just how
much Germany’s economy was affected post war; so much, to the point where stacks of
money were worth so little that they could be given to kids by the stacks as toys.
1.bp.blogspot.com/-95RdEpZfwEw/V_lrhOluO9I/AAAAAAAALaY/5xwEUITysw8Nvn
eUuFPd7ElDDa-ZF9RpwCLcB/s1600/german_inflation_5.jpg.
This image is representative of just how badly the German economy was doing post
WWI. In this image, the person is using German marks as wallpaper, it was that abundant
and worthless.
katana17.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/mogv-part-13-2331-line-at-the-unemployment-off
ice-in-hanover-germany-in-1930.gif.
This image is representative of the state of Germany post WWI. The unemployment rates
were skyrocketing, as shown in this picture. The crowd of people form the line to an
unemployment office.
www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/nintchdbpict000365572964.jpg?strip=all
&w=960.
This image was used to represent World War I. It shows tanks lined up before the Battle
of Cambrai.
cdn.thinglink.me/api/image/706492629952495616/1240/10/scaletowidth.
A political cartoon showing Germany being force-fed peace terms by the Big Four,
literally a bitter pill to swallow. Representative of how the treaty was received by some.
An Allied Soldier Showing a German Soldier the Terms of the Treaty on the End of a Sword.
acabrerahistory12.weebly.com/uploads/8/8/0/9/8809455/1630324_orig.jpg.
This cartoon was representative of how some felt the treaty was forced upon the
Germans. In this image, a German soldier is shown the terms of the unfair treaty, with a
Germany Being Crushed by a Giant Bag of Money with "Reparations $55,000,000,000" on It.
cdn.thinglink.me/api/image/887076948801486849/1240/10/scaletowidth.
This image is representative of what many thought the terms of the Treaty of Versailles
would do to Germany, or specifically the reparations in the treaty. This is exactly what
the reparations did; crushed their economy and crippled Germany, who was unable to pay
hti.osu.edu/sites/hti.osu.edu/files/styles/raw-image/public/Versailles_63.jpg?itok=m4kvu
9vG.
This political cartoon is representative of the opinions of some on how Hitler and the
Nazi Party rose to power; from the devastation left by the Treaty of Versailles.
i.pinimg.com/736x/1d/2d/02/1d2d02a3bb929842b42ad91f888de804--nazi-party-nazi-pro
paganda.jpg.
This image shows the members of the Nazi Party participating in a march of banners at
media.gettyimages.com/photos/brockdorffrantzau-ulrich-count-lawyer-diplomat-politicia
n-1919-by-picture-id543838855?k=6&m=543838855&s=612x612&w=0&h=YkNKwH9
_4LblGg4wriMEr-G8iGAproZLUIHy0ATdUnA=.
Used to represent Count Von Brockdorff-Rantzau, who was the leader of the German
3.bp.blogspot.com/-8eiX16MlHYM/V2bV035GfyI/AAAAAAAAYXQ/buVY7qe5An4m
j6MSh8t7907HFqe3X3PPACLcB/s1600/Georges-Clemenceau.jpg.
i2-prod.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article11298704.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/PROD-Adolf-
Hitler-.jpg.
Used to represent Fuhrer Adolf Hitler. He was the leader of the Nazi Party, and the
person who led the party to power in Germany. His actions ultimately sparked World
www.nationalww2museum.org/sites/default/files/styles/wide_large/public/2017-07/grave
.jpg.
Used to show the impact of World War II, and how many were affected by the deaths. Is
an image showing soldiers paying their respects to the graves of fallen comrades.
Gen. John "Black Jack" Pershing Visits Arlington National Cemetery in 1925. Library of
Congress,
media.npr.org/assets/img/2017/03/28/13790v_custom-fbd713787d8781b493f3b94de558e
ac279f3e9dc-s900-c85.jpg.
Shows a general paying his respects to the fallen soldiers of WWI buried there. Used to
Secondary Sources
“Treaty of Versailles, 1919.” United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, United States
This source is from the Website of USA’s Holocaust Memorial Museum. We were able
to learn and apprehend more information on the World War I, such as why and how it
was fought. The article also goes into detail about Wilson's 14 points which played a
large part in America’s role in making the treaty and their viewpoints on the war. When
describing the Treaty of Versailles this source goes in depth on how Germany was very
harshly negatively impacted by the treaty, and why it caused unrest in Germany leading
to World War II. We mainly used this source to gain a higher understanding on the
impact barbarous conditions that were placed on Germany in result of the Treaty.
Costello, Carol. “The Irony of the Treaty of Versailles – Argunners.” Argunners, 15 Jan. 2017,
argunners.com/irony-treaty-versailles/.
Costello bases his article on the irony of the Treaty being projected as a solution to end
World War I, as it goes on to become one of the main reasons World War II began. From this
article we were able to gain some information and facts on how the Treaty of Versailles
propelled World War II. Although its information was rendered basic not different from our
other sources, the website held primary political cartoons and photographs that clearly expressed
and supported the view that the Treaty was ironic as a whole.
Office of the Historian, Bureau of Public Affairs. “The Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of
history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/paris-peace.
This is an article on the Treaty written by the Office of Historian who consist of professional
american historians. From this we know that the information we receive from here is
accurate since it comes from reliable outlets. The article details on the conference in Paris
in which the treaty came to be and how the countries agreed to the terms. It also contains
pictures of the people involved in the process, which we plan to use in our website. This
was a secondary source because it was made by people after the event and was written by
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/nazi-party.
History.com goes into great depth about the Nazi party, and this helps us gain an better
understanding on how the Treaty caused the Party to come into power in Germany. The article
details how the party came to be, how it was managed and run, the horrid feats they
accomplished, and how they went about fighting in the War. Although this source does not
include much on the Treaty of Versaille it was useful because it allowed for us to comprehend
the results that the Treaty supposedly had caused. This was a secondary source because it was
written much after the war and written by people who based their information on other secondary
Turner, Daniel, director. The Treaty of Versailles, What Did the Big Three Want? Performance
This source was the main foundation for our understanding of the Treaty of Versailles. In
addition to understanding how the Treaty came about and what conflicts arose within the Paris
Peace Conference between the Big Three, the source provided a good visual, inorder for us to
better envision the process of creating the Treaty. We also learned the intentions of those who
were involved in the Treaty making process and the debates of how Germany should be
punished. From Woodrow Wilson’s perspective, we learned that the US did not wish for as harsh
a punishment as other countries did, for it was not as involved in the war. Georges Clemenceau,
on behalf of France wished for the harshest punishment out of the Big Three due to the great
physical damage brought upon France, he wished for revenge. David Lloyd George, from Britain
was in between sides and wished to have Germany face consequences but only enough that the
Archives, The National. “Reaction to Treaty of Versailles: Background.” The National Archives,
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/greatwar/g5/cs2/background.htm.
Through this source we learned about the main terms and conditions of the Treaty of Versailles.
The source also included information about how other nations felt about the Treaty and
how they reacted to it. This source helped us gain a better understanding for the harsh
conditions created in the Treaty and had written it in and easy to comprehend fashion.
Unlike other sources, we were able to learn exactly how much Germany had to reduce
their armed forces and how much territory they were to give up. Overall, the source went
into detail about five specific terms including war guilt, Germany’s armed forces,
web.a.ebscohost.com/hrc/detail/detail?vid=12&sid=56a724ac-8556-40b5-ba23-ac7aeaf6
dd81%40sessionmgr4006&bdata=JnNpdGU9aHJjLWxpdmU%3d#AN=340710&db=khh
This is a secondary source, because it explains how the Treaty of Versailles was written,
while talking about the event in past-tense. Kathiann M. Kowalski explains what
compromises were made and what was discussed to create the Treaty of Versailles.
“How Did the Nazis Gain Power?” The Holocaust Explained, The Wiener Library,
www.theholocaustexplained.org/the-nazi-rise-to-power/.
This article explains and analyzes in detail how exactly the Treaty of Versailles affect
Germany as a whole, and why these effects were devastating enough to cause such
exploited by the Nazis. It was especially helpful in explaining the impact and how the
US Department of State. “The Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles.” U.S.
2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/wwi/89875.htm.
From this source we were able to learn about the origins of the Treaty of Versailles and
how it came to be. We learned about what countries took a large part in making the
treaty, and how the treaty became to be so biased against Germany. It also allowed for
some background context on the thought process about the Treaty and how the countries
www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/world-war-ii-history.
From this sources we were able to draw a conclusion for what the Treaty of Versailles
lead to, meaning World War II. We were able to further analyse the consequences of the
Treaty which was thought to bring peace by ending World War I . This source provided
information on what sparked WWII, and provided many details of the individual battles
fought. By using this source, we were able to wrap up our project, in terms of figuring out
Orpen, William. “The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors, Versailles, 28 June 1919.”
cdn.history.com/sites/2/2014/01/treaty-of-versailles-H.jpeg.
This painting was commissioned to commemorate the Paris Peace Conference. It shows
the conference and the delegates. It is representative of how the conference looked.
Painting of the Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles Filled with Delegates at the Paris
Peace Conference.
s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/awm-media/collection/ART16770/screen/3822412.JP
G.
This image is representative of how many delegates were at the Paris Peace Conference.