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Primary Documents - 1919

David Lloyd George, Vittorio Orlando, Georges Clemenceau and Woodrow Wilson This page of the Primary Documents section of the website collects together archive source documents originating in 1919, the year which saw the Treaty of Versailles forced upon a reluctant Germany.

Included among the following documents is the text of the Versailles treaty, plus the text of prominent U.S. opposition to President Wilson's enthusiastic backing for a post-war League of Nations.

The list presented below - with each entry accompanied by a brief summary of its significance -  is sorted by date, with earlier documents listed first.

Document Description
ArticlePoincare's Welcoming Address at Versailles January - French President's welcoming comments
ArticleOne January - U.S. President's initial comments
ArticleLloyd George's Opening Address at Versailles January - British Prime Minister's initial comments
ArticleSonnino's Opening Address at Versailles January - Italian Prime Minister's initial comments
ArticleClemenceau's Opening Address at Versailles January - French Prime Minister's initial comments
ArticleHuddleston on Opening of Peace Conference January - British observer's account of initial session
ArticleU.S. Recognition of Polish Government January - Robert Lansing's announcement
ArticlePresident Ebert's Opening Assembly Address February - New German President's initial address
ArticlePresident Ebert's Second Assembly Address February - New German President's follow-up address
ArticleSaunders on the New German Constitution February - British eye-witness journalist's account
ArticleLudendorff on Being 'Stabbed in the Back' February - Former German leader's allegations
ArticleNewspaper Interview with Josef Pilsudski February - French journalist's interview with Polish leader
ArticleHindenburg on Kaiser Wilhelm's Abdication March - German Army Chief of Staff's account
ArticleDouglas Haig's Final Despatch March - British Commander-in-Chief's final war report
ArticleBulgarian Peace Delegation on Atrocities May - Statement repudiating charges of atrocities
ArticleCommission to Determine War Guilt May - Formal report blaming Central Powers
ArticleGerman Protest at Peace Terms May - Germany's response at proposed terms
ArticleAllied Reply to German Protest on Terms May - Clemenceau's reply to German protests
ArticleDutch Editorial Against Versailles May - Neutral newspaper's stance against peace terms
ArticleIgnace Paderewski on Paris Peace Conference May - Polish Prime Minister's positive assessment
ArticleTreaty of Versailles June - Allies' peace terms with defeated Germany
ArticleAccount of Versailles Signing Ceremony June - Account by U.S. newspaper journalist
ArticlePresident Wilson on League of Nations July - One of Wilson's final speeches in support of League
ArticleHenry Cabot Lodge on League of Nations August - Senate majority leader's opposition
ArticleHerbert Hoover on Polish Reconstruction August - Hoover's pessimistic assessment
ArticlePershing's Despatch of September 1919 September - U.S. AEF Commander-in-Chief's official report
ArticlePershing on Ferdinand Foch as Commander September - U.S. C-in-C's view of Foch's appointment
ArticleIgnace Paderewski on League of Nations September - Polish Prime Minister's lobbying in favour
ArticlePershing on Meuse-Argonne Offensive November - U.S. C-in-C's account of key offensive
ArticleMaurice on Why the Allies Accepted Peace 1919 - Former British Director of Military Ops' account
ArticleLudendorff on Second Battle of the Marne 1919 - German strategist's post-war view of Allied attacks
ArticleCovenant of League of Nations 1919-24 - 26 articles of the covenant

"Toc Emmas" was slang for trench mortars.

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