As of October 3, 2010, Germany paid the final debt they owned as a result of World War 1. In November of 1918, the world, by means of the Versailles Treaty, agreed that Germany was at fault for the first World War and thereby should have to pay for the damages that resulted. In this case, in can’t be said that value of human lives cannot be measured in dollars. A grand total of 94 million dollars was owed for 10 million deaths and over 21 million injuries. This money is to be paid to the private parties, pension accounts, and businesses specified in the treaty. While this treaty seems to satisfy the world, Germany was less than pleased about it. The economy was already suffering after the war, and it continued to decline as a result of the payments. Great Stock Market Crash of 1929 pushed many Germans over the edge, and Hitler and the National Socialist Party, also referred to as Nazis, became icons of freedom from this poor state. Ironically, a contribution to the German endorsement of World War II became the stipulations made in the treaty to end World War I. However, Germany can finally financially put this behind them and move past the wars, working to unite and better their country.
http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i-officially-endsAubrey H. Period 8
1 comment:
It is incredible that Germany is forced to pay this money, because as far as I know, no other war has ended this way. And besides that, you cannot pay for the lives you took. It is also ironic that a Treaty designed to help the world plunged Germany into an economic crisis and fueled another period of death and disrupt, WWII
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