Motives & Aims of the Big Three at Versailles (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE History)

Revision Note

 Who were the Big Three?

  • The armistice only ensured temporary peace

    • There needed to be an official peace document where the Allies agreed on the terms of the Central Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria’s defeat

  • Discussions began in January 1919 at the Palace of Versailles, Paris

    • The meeting is called the Paris Peace Conference

    • The meeting aimed to create five peace treaties called the Versailles Settlement. The biggest treaty was the Treaty of Versailles, which dealt with Germany

  • The ‘Big Three’ negotiated the terms of the treaty. These were:

    • Georges Clemenceau (Prime Minister of France)

    • Woodrow Wilson (President of the USA)

    • David Lloyd George (Prime Minister of Great Britain)

An illustration showing the members of the ‘Big Three’
An illustration showing the members of the ‘Big Three’

Examiner Tip

Students often struggle to spell Clemenceau. His name does not sound the way it is spelt as the French alphabet has different sounds to the English alphabet. Keep practising the spelling of this name until you feel more confident. You could also create a mnemonic for words you find difficult in this topic. This will help you to remember the order of the letters in each word.

Motives of the Big Three

Georges Clemenceau’s Motives

  • Clemenceau saw the Paris Peace Conference as an opportunity to gain territory back

    • France and Germany had fought twice during the 19th century

    • Germany had taken key areas from France including the region of Alsace-Lorraine

  • France feared future invasion from Germany

    • Germany and France shared a border

    • Clemenceau wanted to limit Germany’s military strength

  • Clemenceau was angry and uncompromising

    • The majority of the Western Front was in France

      • The fighting had destroyed many roads, hospitals and factories

    • Clemenceau wanted Germany to pay to repair these damages and take responsibility for starting the war

Woodrow Wilson’s Motives

  • Wilson was an idealist. He wanted to create a lasting peace after the First World War

    • The Versailles Settlement should embody what he called the ‘14 Points’. Some of his 14 Points were that:

      • All national groups should have their own country. This is called self-determination

      • All countries should follow a policy of disarmament to avoid war in the future

      • All countries should discuss their issues openly and not sign secret treaties

      • All countries should remove trade tariffs and cooperate economically

    • Wilson pictured a new organisation called the League of Nations

      • This League encouraged countries to communicate their problems rather than use violence and war

      • Wilson wanted all countries to join the League of Nations

      • It would support the implementation of Wilson’s 14 Points

  • Wilson wanted to trade with Germany

    • Large reparations would make Germany weak and could lead to its collapse as a country

    • A strong, economically secure Germany would help rebuild Europe after the First World War

David Lloyd George’s Motives

  • Lloyd George was realistic and agreed with aspects of France’s and the USA’s motives

  • Britain had experienced high casualties like France

    • The British public hated Germany and wanted revenge

  • Lloyd George understood some of Clemenceau’s personal anger towards Germany

    • Before the start of the First World War, Germany had challenged Britain’s naval power

    • From 1884 onwards, Germany had expanded its empire. Britain wanted to have the strongest and biggest empire in the world

  • Britain also supported Wilson’s point that a strong Germany was better for European economies

    • A prosperous Germany would want to trade with Britain and buy its imperial goods

Worked Example

What were Wilson’s aims for the League of Nations? 

4 marks

Answers:

Wilson wanted the League to keep the peace (1). Disputes between nations would be resolved by the League (1). Wilson intended that all states would join (1). Wilson hoped that the League would encourage countries to follow a policy of disarmament, as stated in his 14 Points (1).

Examiner Tip

This style of question does not require you to explain your answer. The Cambridge IGCSE gives you a point for each relevant piece of information that you write. Therefore, do not spend any additional time trying to describe or explain each reason. 

Aims for the Treaty of Versailles

An illustration showing a summary of the Big Three’s differing aims for the Treaty of Versailles
An illustration showing a summary of the Big Three’s differing aims for the Treaty of Versailles
  • Due to their different motives, the Big Three all had different aims for the Treaty of Versailles:

    • Georges Clemenceau wanted a harsh treaty that included:

      • High reparations

      • The protection of France’s borders

      • The splitting of Germany into states

      • Germany disbanding its armed forces to prevent another invasion

      • The return of Alsace-Lorraine to France

      • Giving France the rich industrial area in Germany known as the Saar Basin to rebuild its economy

      • Germany giving its overseas colonies to France

    • Woodrow Wilson wanted a soft treaty that included:

      • The creation of independent states like Poland that had access to the sea

      • The return of Alsace-Lorraine to France 

      • The end of Germany’s empire and the weakening of all empires

      • Avoiding blaming Germany for the start of the First World War. This included not making Germany pay high reparations

      • The inclusion of all nations, including Germany, in the League of Nations

      • Freedom of the seas. Wilson believed that trading ships should have access to any waters without fear of attack

    • David Lloyd George wanted a fair treaty, somewhere between Wilson's and Clemenceau’s vision. His treaty would include:

      • Retaining a strong trading relationship with Germany

      • Taking Germany’s overseas colonies

      • Harsh enough terms to satisfy the British desire for revenge. Lloyd George had just won an election on the promise that he would ‘make Germany pay’

      • Germany keeping its military strength to prevent communism from Russia spreading into Europe

      • A reduction in Germany’s navy to reinforce Britain’s naval supremacy

How different were the aims of the Big Three for the Treaty of Versailles?

Clemenceau

Wilson

Lloyd George

Military aims

Harsh

Soft

Moderate

Territorial aims

Harsh

Moderate

Moderate

Political and economic aims

Harsh

Soft

Moderate

Worked Example

Describe Clemenceau’s demands at the beginning of the peace negotiations

4 marks

Answers:

Clemenceau wanted to weaken Germany (1). He demanded that Germany’s armed forces be disbanded (1). Clemenceau insisted that Germany should pay reparations for the damage it caused to France in the war (1). Clemenceau wanted Alsace-Lorraine to be returned to France (1)

Examiner Tip

For a ‘Describe’ question, you should aim to complete the question in four minutes, one minute per point. This will give you one minute to read through your answer.

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