Versailles-Washington System Briefly. Treaty of Versailles

It was created by the victorious states after the 1st World War. Among these states, first of all, were Great Britain, France, the USA and Japan. Its goal was to consolidate the redivision of the world. In fact, it was directed not only against the countries that lost the war, but also against the Soviet Union. The system also sought to maintain dependence and suppress the liberation movement in the colonies.

The basis of the system in Europe was the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, as well as Saint-Germain (1920), Neuilly (1919), Trianon (1920), Sèvres (1920) peace treaties and the agreements that were adopted during the Washington Conference of 1921-22. However, despite the achievements, the Versailles-Washington system turned out to be quite fragile, which led to its fall and the start of an even more bloody war.

The beginning of the system was laid by the decisions of the Paris and Washington conferences. Its creation made it possible to significantly defuse the tension in the world that existed after the war. It was necessary to update the principles of international relations, which was reflected in the main provisions adopted by the powers. The rights to self-determination of all peoples and a categorical rejection of wars as a means of resolving conflicts existing in the world were recognized.

An important event This was the time when the League of Nations was created. A number of European countries gained independence, recognized international level.

The crisis of the Versailles-Washington system was due to the fact that, by decision of the Entente powers, the burden of post-war reconstruction was shifted to the defeated peoples without taking into account the fact that they no longer existed political regimes who were responsible for starting the war. The winners established reparations without taking into account the real capabilities of the countries that had to pay them. Therefore, the wave of nationalism raised by the First World War not only did not subside, but began to rise even more actively.

Soviet Russia found herself outside the system. The Entente powers viewed her as a traitor who had made a deal with their common enemy. In addition, the Bolshevik regime was met with hostility by the Allies, and during the intervention of 1918-19 they attempted to overthrow it. which took place in Russia, formally allowed its leaders not to be invited to the conference. After its end, Russia became the largest state in the world and, in response to being ignored by the Entente, became in opposition to the system.

Another factor that predetermined the collapse of the Versailles-Washington system was that the victorious powers did not take into account the possible economic consequences of the treaties they concluded, which greatly burdened the world economy with payments that were beyond their power. Reparation payments led to the undermining of centuries-old economic ties between countries.

The peoples of the German colonies and Ottoman Empire even after the war they remained in the same position, without receiving the long-awaited independence. They created one for them, which, in fact, was no different from the colonial one.

The mistake that the Versailles-Washington system made was that the powers forced the young German state to sign a peace treaty on conditions that dishonored it.

The stabilization of relations in the world after the creation of the system was observed only at the very beginning of its existence, in the 20s. Recognition of the USSR also contributed to this stabilization. In 1922, Russia was invited to Genoa for the first time to an international conference on economic issues. During its course, the USSR and Germany signed their signatures, agreeing to withdraw mutual claims, thereby establishing diplomatic relations.

The Versailles-Washington system lasted until the mid-20th century - until the outbreak of World War II.

Economic crisis 1929-1933 and the desire it generated for all those affected by it to overcome it as quickly as possible, at any cost, even the most negative consequences, caused a lot of problems. The crisis aggravated to the limit the debate that had been going on throughout the twentieth century about the most promising directions of social progress, and consequently, significantly increased the role of the ideological factor in the process of forming the political course of the great powers, in determining the hierarchy of their interests in the international arena. And this, in turn, inevitably increased the conflict level of the entire set of international relations, intensified destructive tendencies in their development, and aggravated the already numerous disputes.

In February 1923, after a lot of preparatory work and long bickering between the participants, a disarmament conference opened in Geneva. From the very beginning it became clear that there were serious differences between the leading powers in their approach to this problem. Thus, France insisted on creating an international army under the auspices of the League of Nations. Germany demanded the elimination of all discriminatory restrictions imposed on its armed forces by the Treaty of Versailles. England was interested in problems related to the destruction submarine fleet and prohibition of the use of chemical weapons. The United States was concerned about the problem of reducing its ground forces. The USSR sought to raise the issue of universal armament. Italy proposed limiting itself to introducing a one-year moratorium on any buildup of armed forces, and Japan insisted that the great powers recognize it special role in the Pacific Ocean basin. Such different positions predetermined the work of the conference: it ended in nothing.

While lively discussions were taking place at various international forums, powers emerged that were ready to unilaterally scrap the existing status quo. Japan was the first to take this path. Without waiting for other powers to recognize their special role in China and the Pacific, in October 1931 it occupied Manchuria, one of the most developed provinces of China. This action was a gross violation of all norms of international law and Japan's treaty obligations. This behavior of Japan put the League of Nations in a difficult position: in essence, an act of aggression had been committed, and sanctions should have been applied against the aggressor, but organizing them in a crisis when the great powers were busy resolving their internal problems was extremely difficult.

Japan understood this very well and acted more and more aggressively. In the fall of 1932, she announced her withdrawal from the League of Nations, demonstrating her strong disagreement with the rest of the world and her readiness to take any action to implement her programmatic goals in the field of foreign policy. A most dangerous source of international tension has emerged in the Far East.

Tensions also increased in Europe. Key events took place in Germany. In January 1933, Hitler came to power there. The new leader of Germany did not hide that he saw the main task in the field of foreign policy as dismantling the existing system of international relations and establishing a “new world order” in which Germany would play a key role.

In October 1933, Germany withdrew from the League of Nations, thereby showing that it was ready to challenge the world community and was not going to take into account the existing order of things and the norms in force in the sphere of interstate relations. Despite any treaty restrictions, Germany continued to build up its military power, and in 1935, universal conscription was introduced.

The situation in Europe was quickly heating up. The mid-1930s were marked by the struggle of three trends in the field of international relations. The first is that the most sober-minded politicians could not help but see the growing military threat and were looking for opportunities to neutralize this ominous danger. So in May 1935, an agreement on mutual assistance was signed between the USSR and France, and a little later Soviet Union concluded a similar agreement with Czechoslovakia.

The second tendency was personified by England, whose focus was on the question of Hitler’s involvement in the process of modernization of the Versailles system. However, Germany was in no hurry to meet the British plan halfway, preferring bilateral negotiations, and eventually achieved England’s consent in June 1935 to conclude an Anglo-German naval agreement, according to which it officially received the right to build a navy.

The third trend - represented by Germany, Italy and Japan - was aimed at the speedy dismantling of the Versailles-Washington system through the outright destruction of its basic principles. On October 3, 1935, Italian troops invaded the territory of Ethiopia, a sovereign African state that was a member of the League of Nations. At the same time, Italy secured the support of Germany.

In July 1936, a civil war broke out in Spain, which quickly outgrew its internal boundaries. Spain became a kind of testing ground where the first open clash of pro- and anti-fascist forces took place. The fact is that from the very beginning the rebels were almost openly and very actively supported by Germany and Italy, and the republican government was supported by volunteers from many European countries and the USA. The Soviet Union also helped them.

In 1935-1937 It became clear that the three great powers - Germany, Japan and Italy - were heading towards the collapse of the existing system of international relations. The common strategic task dictated the need to combine their efforts. In 1936-1937 The so-called Anti-Comintern Pact is drawn up, which includes Germany, Japan and Italy. The “Axis Powers,” as the new aggressive bloc was often called, actively used anti-communist rhetoric to camouflage their true goals, which were to establish their hegemony in world affairs. In the summer of 1938, Japan, having managed to create a solid bridgehead in Manchuria, began an offensive deep into China. Military operations there captured more and more territory.

Essentially, in 1938, the “Axis powers” ​​seized the strategic initiative and, through their actions, determined the general dynamics of developments in the international arena, bringing closer the collapse of the Versailles-Washington system, which had become completely unnecessary for them. Their main potential opponents - England, France, the USSR, the USA - at this critical moment, when there was still a chance to prevent the world from sliding into a new global war, were unable to show the necessary will, overcome the differences that separated them and present a united front against the “Axis powers”. Each believed that he could better ensure his safety alone.

Taking advantage of this, the Axis powers achieved decisive success in 1938 in the collapse of the Versailles-Washington system and preparing the conditions for the start of a new world war. In March 1938, Hitler carried out the absorption (Anschluss) of England, which, contrary to the terms of the Versailles Peace, became part of the Reich. In March 1939 there came a turning point in civil war in Spain, rebel troops entered Madrid.

In the fall of 1938, Hitler, using the problem of the Sudeten Germans as a pretext to put pressure on Czechoslovakia, demanded that the Czechoslovak government agree to the transfer of the strategically important Sudetenland to Germany. On September 29-30, a meeting of the leaders of four European powers took place in Munich: A. Hitler, B. Mussolini, E. Daladier and M. Chamberlain, at which England and France gave the go-ahead for the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia in exchange for Hitler’s verbal assurances that he no longer has territorial claims against his neighbors, while they have lost an important potential ally. In March 1939, despite assurances, the Germans occupied the Czech Republic and Mordovia, and a formally independent state was created in Slovakia, but in reality it was controlled by Germany. To this we must add that at this time Hungary joined the Anti-Comintern Pact, and in April 1939 Italy captured Albania.

Every day it became more and more obvious that the world was moving towards a new war; in fact, in the spring of 1939 it was already on the very threshold. In the spring of 1939, the Japanese attacked Mongolia, which had a mutual assistance treaty with the USSR. Japan's attempt to expand in a northwestern direction turned out to be a harsh lesson for them. The Soviet Union clearly demonstrated that it is capable of organizing an effective rebuff to any aggressive actions in this region.

By August 1939, Soviet-British-French negotiations had reached a dead end due to obvious distrust of each other. In this situation, the Soviet leadership, in order to ensure the security of the country, decided to dramatically change the orientation of its foreign policy. On August 23, 1939, the world learned sensational news: the USSR and Germany signed a non-aggression pact.

The West had to pay a high price for the short-sighted policy of “appeasement” - the reluctance to conduct constructive negotiations with the USSR on joint actions against a possible aggressor led to the fact that it was left alone with Germany, and Hitler did not fail to take advantage of this. On September 1, 1939, having organized a provocation on the German-Polish border, the Germans attacked Poland, which had mutual assistance agreements with England and France. Thus began the Second World War.

The Versailles-Washington system of international relations represents the world order that was established after the First World War. It was based on the Treaty of Versailles, as well as treaties with Germany's allies and agreements concluded at the Washington Conference. It was divided into two parts - European (Versailles) and American (Washington).

Versailles system

It was mainly formed by England and France, that is, the countries that won the war; the interests of the defeated, as well as the states formed after it, were ignored. The situation was complicated by the Great October Revolution in Russia.

The position of the victors both in relation to the vanquished and in relation to communist Russia predetermined the revanchist policy of Germany and the massive strengthening of the communist parties. At the same time, the United States withdrew itself from this system, as a result of which it found itself in isolation and in a state of crisis.

France and England used new European states simultaneously in two directions - against German revanchism and against communism in the Soviet Union.

Washington system

It, in fact, completely covered the Asia-Pacific region. She, like Versailles, had her own problems and contradictions: first of all, this political position China, which can be called uncertain, Japanese militarism, American isolation, etc.

This system emerged as a result of the Washington Conference (lasted from November 1921 to February 1922). It was convened to consider the problem of the balance of power in the Pacific region after the war and resolve the issue of limiting naval weapons.

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During the conference, three treaties were signed - by four, five and nine states.

The first of them was signed by the USA, Japan, France and England and it established the status quo regarding the ownership of the Pacific islands. Italy joined them in the Five-State Treaty. It consolidated the leadership of Britain and the United States at sea and limited naval weapons.

The last treaty also affected China, Portugal, Belgium and Holland and concerned specifically China, the principles of whose sovereignty other countries were obliged to respect.

Rice. 2. Signing of the Decree on Peace.

Great powers in the Versailles-Washington system

Each of them pursued its own goal, which is clearly reflected in the table “Versailles-Washington System”.

Thus, we can conclude that, as a result, their contradictions brought the entire system into a precarious position.

Despite its expansionism, Japan retained good relationship with everyone who fought for power in the region of interest to her.

Advantages and disadvantages of the Versailles-Washington system

Like any system, it had its pros and cons. Thus, the positive aspects were the creation of conditions to stabilize international relations and the completion of the process of peaceful resolution of the conflict. In addition, world powers temporarily abandoned the idea of ​​using war to resolve contradictions between them, and also created the League of Nations.

But there were also negative aspects. First of all, the inconsistency and fragility of this system was based on the fact that it took into account only the interests of the victorious countries, which intensified their contradictions with the vanquished.

Rice. 3. The Big Three: Clemenceau, Wilson, Lloyd George.

Collapse of the Versailles-Washington system

The official date of its collapse is considered to be the end of 1938. This led to the formation of two great power blocs and ultimately to World War II.

What have we learned?

We talked briefly about the Versailles-Washington system, discussed in 9th grade, learned what influenced its formation, what position the great powers occupied in it, and what ultimately led to its collapse.

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The Treaty of Versailles is an important international document of the beginning of the last century, which marked the end of the First World War and established the order of the post-war world order. Its conclusion took place on June 28, 1919 between the Entente states (France, England and America) and the defeated German Empire. Together with the agreements subsequently signed with the German allies and the documents adopted at the conference in Washington, the treaty became the beginning of the Versailles-Washington system of international relations.

The first world war in human history ended in the fall of 1918 with the signing of the Compiegne Armistice, which provided for a cessation of hostilities. However, in order to finally summarize the bloody events and develop the principles of the post-war world order, representatives of the victorious powers needed several more months. The document that sealed the end of the war was the Treaty of Versailles, signed during the Paris Conference. It was concluded on June 28, 1919 in the former royal estate of Versailles, located near the French capital. The signatories of the treaty were representatives of England, France and America (the Entente states) on the side of the winners and Germany on the side of the losing state.

Russia, which also took part in the war on the side of the Entente bloc and lost millions of its citizens in battles, was not allowed to attend the Paris Peace Conference due to the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with the Germans in 1918 and, accordingly, did not take part in the preparation and signing of the document. .

Thanks to the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, it was established new system post-war world order, the goal of which was to quickly revive the economies of the victorious powers and prevent another global military conflict. The terms of the Treaty of Versailles became the subject of long negotiations and discussions between representatives of the victorious states. Each country sought to extract as much benefit as possible from the signing of the future document, so drafting it general provisions It took the participants at the Paris Conference long weeks. Finally, at the end of June 1919, after long secret meetings, the terms of the Versailles Peace were drawn up and agreed upon between the countries that fought on the side of the Entente.

There are several reasons that made the post-war peace system unstable and ineffective.

1. The Versailles order was not comprehensive. First of all, the USSR and the USA “fell out” of it - two major powers, without which ensuring stability in Europe in the twentieth century was no longer possible. In fact, the multipolar structure of European relations was restored in the spirit of the European balance of the 19th century, when the ideal option seemed to be the absence of countries on the continent that would be too clearly ahead in their geopolitical and other capabilities.

It was these ideas that led to the fact that France's efforts to weaken Germany as much as possible were crowned with success: it was divided into parts, artificially reduced in size and placed in extremely difficult economic situation. But for the same reason, France itself, through the efforts of Britain, did not gain dominance in Europe and was unable to fully implement plans to expand its influence.

But such a European balance was possible only with the participation of Prussia (whose place was now occupied by a united Germany) and Russia. The new European security had to be built, firstly, in the conditions of a united Germany, and, secondly, in the conditions of Russia, which had decreased in size and was isolated from European affairs.

Unfortunately, only the first of these new circumstances was taken into account, which resulted in the fragmentation of Germany, which made it possible to postpone the conflict between the interests of the largest European countries and the natural desire of the Germans for unification. The second, at first, was not taken into account at all - at that moment it seemed that US participation in European affairs was sufficient compensation for Russia’s withdrawal from European politics. In this situation, the failure to cooperate with the United States undermined the foundations of the Versailles order as it was originally conceived.

2. The fundamental weakness of Versailles was the scheme it laid down for the economic interaction of European countries. The fact is that the new state delimitation completely destroyed economic ties in Central and Eastern Europe. Instead of a single market, permeable and fairly open, Europe turned out to be a territory divided into several dozen small markets, fenced off from each other by customs walls. Often new small states competed sharply not only in the political, but also in the economic sphere, completely concentrating on their own economic difficulties and not trying to make joint efforts to overcome them.

The proclaimed principle of self-determination of nations gave rise to an economic split, which could be overcome European countries they couldn't. This created constant instability in the economic situation in the Old World. Europe was not ready to make joint decisions on financial and economic issues. In addition, the economic ruin of Germany, crushed by the weight of the reparation payments imposed on it and therefore unable to emerge from the state of depression with the speed necessary for economic recovery not only in the country, but throughout Europe, had a decisive impact on the negative development of the situation.

The global economic crisis of 1929-1933 led to a sharp deterioration in relations both between the victorious countries and between them and the defeated states, etc. All this, coupled with the intranational crisis of most states, led to the collapse of the Versailles-Washington system and the Second World War.

Consequences of the Treaty of Versailles

· Germany and Soviet Russia were victims, which caused a mutually beneficial rapprochement between the two countries. Germany built on the territory of the USSR prohibited by treaty military equipment and trained its armed forces. The Soviet Union received official recognition of the status of an important European country (1922), as a result of which the Entente countries were also forced to recognize it, otherwise Germany would have a privileged position in trade with Russia.

· Both the USSR and Germany considered the Treaty of Versailles unfair. The Entente countries abdicated all responsibility for world war, although in fact it was a pan-European tragedy, and the blame for it lay with all parties involved.

· Too much large amount reparations exacted from Germany led to inflation and impoverishment large masses population. We can say that thanks to the Treaty of Versailles, the regime of Adolf Hitler arose, who put forward popular slogans of revenge.

· The League of Nations, whose first working meeting took place on January 16, 1920 in Geneva, followed the lead of the Entente. Having failed to limit French aggression against Germany (the occupation of the Ruhr region in 1923), the League of Nations lost its authority and ability to intervene in the more serious conflicts of the 1930s and prevent World War II.

In modern Russian historiography, as a rule, the terms of the Versailles Peace Treaty are considered extremely humiliating and cruel towards Germany. It is believed that this is what led to extreme social instability within the country, the emergence of ultra-right forces and the rise of fascists to power. To make matters worse, the harsh restrictions imposed on Germany were not properly enforced by the European powers (or were deliberately allowed to be violated by Germany). The desire of the European powers to use the Hitler regime to fight the USSR is often cited as an argument in favor of the second. This also explains the Munich Agreement, according to which leading European countries allowed Nazi Germany to annex Czechoslovakia, to which they had promised support yesterday.