The Ruhr Crisis and the Locarno Spring Weimar Republic and the LON

Conditions of Germany(Weimar Republic) The Treaty of Versailles, placed sole blame on Germany for WW1. As a result, they became a democratic nation (Weimar Republic) and had to pay massive reparation payments to France and GB among others. The results of the Treaty of Versailles left the Weimar Republic in terrible conditions.

Ruhr Crisis (1923-24) The Occupation of the Ruhr, by troops from France and Belgium, was a response to the failure of the German Weimar Republic to pay reparations in the aftermath of World War I. By late 1922, the German defaults on payments had grown so serious and regular that French and Belgian delegates were urging the seizure of the Ruhr as a way of encouraging the Germans to make more effort to pay, and the British delegate urging a lowering of the payments. As a consequence of an enormous German default on timber deliveries in December 1922, the Reparations Commission declared Germany in default, which led to the Franco-Belgian occupation of the Ruhr in January 1923.

Ruhr Crisis Cont French Prime Minister Poincaré decided to occupy the Ruhr in 11 January 1923 to extract the reparations himself. Poincaré often argued to the British that if the Germans could get away with defying Versailles in regards to the reparations, then a precedent would be created, and inevitably the Germans would proceed to dismantle the rest of the Versailles treaty. Finally, Poincaré argued that once the chains that had bound Germany in Versailles had been destroyed, then it was inevitable that Germany would once more plunge the world back into another world war. The invasion took place on January 11, 1923, with the aim of occupying the centre of German coal, iron and steel production in the Ruhr area valley, in order to gain the money that Germany owed. France had the iron ore and Germany had the coal.

Invasion of the Ruhr Valley, 1923 Germany could pay reparations in money or in goods at a set value but in 1922 Germany wasn’t able to make pay. The next year, France and Belgium acted, and invaded the industrial heartland of Germany, the Ruhr, despite this being in direct violation of the League's rules. With France being a major League member, and Britain hesitant to oppose its close ally, nothing was done. This set a significant precedent – the League rarely acted against major powers, and occasionally broke its own rules.

Locarno Treaties Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Poland met at Locarno in Switzerland. Signed a number of treaties to settle disputes between themselves France, Belgium and Germany agreed to accept borders as drawn up by Treaty of Versailles Rhineland stayed demilitarised France would protect Poland and Czechoslovakia if attacked by Germany Germany would not use force to settle disputes with neighbours

Locarno and the League of Nations Locarno Pact 1925 Treaties signed with Britain, France, Belgium and Italy Germany accepted their western borders and all sides rejected the use of invasion League of Nations 1926 Germany joined the League and was recognized as a legitimate and stable power Given great power status on the League Council – given the right to veto

The Locarno Treaties were seven agreements negotiated at Locarno, Switzerland on Oct. 5 – 16, 1925 and formally signed in London on Dec. 1, in which the Western European Allied powers and the new states of central and Eastern Europe sought to secure the post-war territorial settlement, normalizing relations with defeated Germany (which was, by this time, the Weimar Republic). Locarno divided borders in Europe into two categories: western, which were guaranteed by Locarno treaties, and eastern borders (of Germany), which were open for revision.

The principal treaty concluded at Locarno was the "Rhineland Pact" between Germany, France, Belgium, Britain, and Italy. The first three signatories undertook not to attack each other, with the latter two acting as guarantors. In the event of aggression by any of the first three states against another, all other parties were to assist the country under attack.

Locarno Spring (1925) The Locarno Treaties were regarded as the keystone of the improved western European diplomatic climate of 1924-1930, introducing a hope for international peace, typically called the "spirit of Locarno". This spirit was seen in Germany's admission to the League of Nations, the international organization established under the Versailles treaty to promote world peace and co-operation, and in the subsequent withdrawal (completed in June 1930) of Allied troops from Germany's western Rhineland.

“Make Germany Pay” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YJfOZkriyk& feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h- 7YCcZUXmw&feature=related