Why The War Guilt Clause Should Be Left Out

Based on the information provided to me from the text, and the knowledge I have gained from previous classes, I believe that the nation of Germany should have been represented in the Treaty of Versailles and the War Guilt Clause should have been left out. One quote I have always admired was “forgive but not forget.” The allied nations did not forgive at all. The War guilt put all the blame on an already deprived germany. The war left land destroyed, families torn, and the economy in europe devastated. The pressure of chaos and anarchy was on all European countries backs. The War Guilt relieved the pressure off of the allies, but made the life of the citizens in the central powers absolute hell. This quickly created resentment from the citizens of Germany. Because of the many miserable years that germans faced after the war, they wanted a strong leader that voiced their anger. They wanted someone, or in this case people to blame. And then comes the Fascist, Adolf Hitler and World War Two. Having the War Guilt and not allowing germany to participate in the peace talks is a direct causation to World War Two in the near future.
Even though the peace conference was set to state the terms of peace and find a way to maintain it, it quickly turned into a feast of
revenge. They never really cared about Germany and how their people would be affected. Nevertheless, if Germany apart of the treaty of Versailles, I believe germany would have fought for a much fairer treatment. I believe that there still would be some sort of war guilt, but it would be reasonable and small compared to what really happened. This would allow the people of Germany to recover from the war, and fix their homes.
This honorable treatment by the allied nations to their enemies would have led to much less if not any resentment towards them. The german people would not search for a race of people to blame for their problems and Adolf hitler might not have risen to power. I believe if Germany was present in Versailles, more of the 14 points would have been negotiated and accepted. If the allied nations forgave instead of seek revenge, diplomacy might have been able to stop World War Two almost two decades before it started.
The idea that every nation went into the conference stating an ultimatum is very cynical. Wilson was naive to think that all of his 14 points would be agreed upon. Diplomacy must have compromises and negotiations. Having Germany in the conference would have stimulated more compromises and negotiations. This in turn would allow the conference to actually be successful in preventing another war.
Woodrow Wilson’s proposed 14 points would have been a much better alternative then the War Guilt Clause.
I believe that if all the nations including the United States and Germany agreed upon the terms, world war two could have definitely been avoided. The countries would work together in harmony. They would build up their economies together and help fix each other from all the damage that occurred. The whole of Europe and the United States would have been united like no other. Also, all the nations would be transparent due to the point that bans all secret treaties. Trade would have been safe to blossom into what could have one of the most impressive trade systems we have ever seen… all if the seas were
free.
The economy would boom with the rapid acceleration of trade due to the open seas. Then creating smaller trade barriers would have allowed it to maintain an upward trend. Good would be imported and exported everywhere, causing a strong foundation to an even stronger economy. The Great depression of the 20’s might have been able to be avoided if certain points were agreed upon.
Having a reduction in arms of ALL nations would have showed to the whole world that peace was trying to be ensued. Having everyone transparent and reducing armaments would have fuel diplomacy and long lasting peace. Lastly, the much needed revaluation of colonial empires and the privilege for Middle Eastern and Central European countries to elect and determine their own government would have allowed the rest of the world to gain a positive effect from the treaties. The european nations would have most likely lost colonies and each nation might have been entitled to fair colonial resources and territory. Nations would be created anarchy and chaos would have never happened if the press conference took the right steps to ensure the world was ready for all the changes. The idea of the League of Nations was genius, but it was however, to weak. Personally, I believe that the League of Nations should have had much more power to enforce the decisions they made. So if a nation breaks their rule, such as japan invading manchuria, the league could actually do something about it other than complain.
Even though Wilson’s plans had flaws, it would have been a much better option than the War guilt. We could have prevented the loss of over 55 million lives if the conference gave up the War guilt and agree upon all 14 points. The 14 points would have made “The War to end All Wars”,the actual “ War to end All Wars.”