World War I: The End of the Great War

Black and white photograph of a person giving a speech to a large crowd on a raised platform — Lenin was sent back into Russia by Germany with the intention of overthrowing the government and pulling Russia out of the war.

Two major events heralded the conclusion of World War I: The Russian Revolution and the Treaty of Versailles.

The Russian Revolution

Vladimir Lenin, the leader of Russia’s Bolshevik party, had been exiled in Switzerland, and the Germans met with him and agreed to secretly send him back to Russia and give him financing. Lenin arrived in Petersburg and began to rally the Bolsheviks, the Russian Communists. In 1917, the city was known as Petrograd (it was renamed from St. Petersburg at the start of the war to sound less German).

A full-scale revolution broke out in October 1917, and Russia became the first communist nation. Lenin quickly pulled out of the war, allowing Germany to transfer many troops to the western front in France. Although Russia’s withdrawal allowed Germany to fight on a single front, the United States entered the war and helped the Allies break the stalemate. The fighting ended with an armistice in November 1918.

The Treaty of Versailles

The peace treaty that ended the war, the Treaty of Versailles, was almost as important as the war itself because it set up the conditions for World War II. It was a diplomatic disaster that kept in place the developments that brought about the war it sought to resolve.

Black and white photo of a large room with many people sitting at a table working on documents — Diplomats negotiating the end of World War I at Versailles, France.

Wilson's Plan

Despite U.S. President Wilson wanting to rebuild the empires that fought the war with democracies, the European allies were not willing to consider a plan that would rehabilitate Germany so quickly. Wilson’s plan, called the Fourteen Points, was based on two ideas:

Self-determination – Countries should be organized so that people with the same nationality, language, or culture could form their own governments. This meant dismantling empires.
An international peace organization – Wilson wanted a worldwide group that would work to prevent future wars.

Britain and France had different priorities. They had suffered far greater losses than the United States. Much of the fighting took place in France, destroying land and cities. As a result, their leaders were less idealistic than Wilson and more focused on punishing and controlling Germany.

Terms of the Treaty

The Treaty of Versailles included these major terms:

New countries were created or recreated, taking land from Germany.
Germany’s military was greatly reduced to a token force ill-equipped for war, and a demilitarized zone was created to separate Germany from France.
Germany had to pay large war reparations to the Allies.
An international organization called the League of Nations was created.
Colonies were taken from Germany and placed under League control as temporary mandates.
The Ottoman Empire was cut apart, but many of its former lands became mandates rather than fully independent countries. (The Mandate System was a compromise between the Allies' wish to retain former German and Turkish colonies and their pledge of self-determination; in practice, it functioned much like traditional colonialism.)
The map of Eastern Europe was redrawn. Poland was recreated, and new countries such as Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia were formed. Austria-Hungary was broken apart.
The most hated part of the treaty was the 'War Guilt Clause' (Article 231), which forced Germany to accept total moral responsibility for starting the war.

Select the highlighted areas of the map for more information.

Interactive Map of Europe after the Treaty of Versailles

Consequences of the Treaty

The treaty angered many people. Germans felt they were unfairly blamed and punished. People in the former Ottoman Empire and people in German colonies questioned why some regions received independence while they did not. The League of Nations had little credibility because Germany and Russia were excluded at first, and the U.S. Senate refused to approve the treaty, so the United States never joined.

The terms of the treaty were particularly hard on Germany. France got the right to raise the limit of Germany’s war reparations at will, ensuring it would never economically recover. With all the humiliations of the treaty and the loss of its national pride, Germany was fertile ground for a powerful leader promising to return it to its rightful glory.

Reflection: World War I Review

The point of this lesson was to understand the causes and dramatic changes brought about by the First World War. You should be able to describe the empires that did not survive the war as well as the flaws of the peace settlement after the war.

Practice Activity: The End of the Great War Review

Complete the following practice activity by selecting the correct answer based on what you've learned in this lesson.

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