History of Sorts

The title may sound unusual, but it reflects the difficulty of capturing this idea succinctly. One of the most damning aspects surrounding the Holocaust—arguably even more troubling than the staggering number of victims—is how the international community repeatedly stood by as Germany violated the Treaty of Versailles.

At multiple points, Germany’s military expansion could have been challenged or stopped. Instead, these violations were met with inaction or appeasement, allowing rearmament and territorial aggression to continue unchecked. Below is a list of some of the major breaches of the Treaty of Versailles

1️⃣ Treaty Articles Violated
A. Military Restrictions (Part V of the Treaty)
Army Size & Structure

Relevant Articles:

Art. 159 – German armed forces to be demobilized and reduced

Art. 160 – Army limited to 100,000 men, no general staff

Art. 161–163 – Strict limits on recruitment, service length, and prohibition of reserves

Violations:

Period Action Nature of Breach
1919–23 Freikorps & Einwohnerwehr De facto reserve forces
1921–23 Black Reichswehr Secret expansion structures
1935 Conscription reintroduced Total abandonment of manpower limits
Weapons Prohibitions

Relevant Articles:

Art. 164 – Strict limits on weapons production

Art. 168 – Weapons manufacture controlled

Art. 170 – Import/export of arms restricted

Art. 171 – Ban on tanks and heavy artillery

Art. 173 – Conscription forbidden

Violations:

Period Action Article Breached
1922 onward Tank research with USSR (Kazan) 171
1920s Secret weapons stockpiles 164, 168
1935 Reintroduction of conscription 173
Air Power Ban

Relevant Article:

Art. 198 – Germany forbidden to maintain military or naval air forces

Violations:

Period Action
1920s Secret pilot training in Lipetsk (USSR)
March 1935 Public creation of the Luftwaffe
Naval Restrictions

Relevant Articles:

Art. 181–197 – Severe limits on German navy (size, ship types, submarines banned under Art. 191)

Violations:

Period Action
Early 1930s Secret U-boat design work
1935 Naval expansion under Anglo-German Naval Agreement (contradicted Versailles limits)
B. Rhineland Demilitarization

Relevant Articles:

Art. 42 – Germany forbidden to build fortifications west of the Rhine

Art. 43 – No armed forces in the Rhineland

Art. 44 – Violation considered a hostile act against signatories

Violation:
March 7, 1936 – German troops entered and later fortified the Rhineland.

C. Territorial & Political Clauses
Union with Austria

Relevant Article:

Art. 80 – Germany must respect Austria’s independence; union forbidden without League consent

Violation:
March 1938 – Anschluss

Respect for Neighboring States’ Sovereignty

While not always a single-article breach of Versailles itself, Germany’s later expansion violated the post-Versailles territorial settlement and related treaties.

Event Legal Framework Undermined
Sudetenland (1938) Versailles system + League guarantees
Occupation of Czechoslovakia (1939) Munich framework + international law
2️⃣ Why the Allies Failed to Enforce the Treaty
1919–1923: Limited Capacity & Political Instability

Europe was exhausted economically and militarily after WWI

France wanted strict enforcement; Britain preferred German recovery

Fear that crushing Germany would cause Bolshevism to spread westward

Many early violations were covert and deniable

Result: Weak inspection and tolerance of paramilitary activity.

1920s: Illusion of Cooperation

Locarno Treaties (1925) improved diplomatic relations

Germany joined the League of Nations (1926)

Secret rearmament was hard to prove conclusively

Western powers prioritized economic stabilization (Dawes & Young Plans)

Result: Deliberate under-enforcement to preserve political détente.

Early 1930s: Global Crisis

Great Depression crippled Britain and France

Political focus shifted to domestic survival

Rise of pacifism in democratic electorates

Underestimation of Hitler’s long-term goals

Result: Germany’s withdrawal from the League (1933) went unanswered.

1935 Rearmament Announcements

Britain believed some German rearmament was inevitable and even justified

France was politically divided and unwilling to act alone

The Stresa Front (UK–France–Italy) collapsed quickly

Result: No sanctions or military response.

1936 Rhineland Crisis

This was the last realistic chance to stop Hitler early.

Why no action?

French government instability; required British backing

British leaders viewed Germany as moving into “its own backyard”

Intelligence uncertainty exaggerated German strength

Strong anti-war sentiment

Reality: German forces had orders to retreat if opposed.

1938–39 Expansion

Policy of appeasement aimed to avoid another world war

Belief that satisfying “reasonable” German demands would ensure peace

Military unpreparedness in Britain and France

Deep trauma from WWI casualties

Turning Point: Occupation of all Czechoslovakia (March 1939) proved Hitler’s aims were not limited → guarantee to Poland followed.

Key Takeaway

Germany’s breaches evolved in three phases:

Covert circumvention (1920s) – Hard to detect, politically inconvenient to confront

Open rearmament (1935–36) – Could have been stopped, but willpower lacking

Territorial aggression (1938–39) – Appeasement collapsed only when war became unavoidable

Sources

https://guides.loc.gov/treaty-of-versailles

https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/paris-peace

https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/treaty-of-versailles