# Canonical recap data for 1919 Paris Peace Conference (1919)
# Source: https://recap.at/1919/paris-peace-conference
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: paris-peace-conference
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1919/paris-peace-conference"
title: 1919 Paris Peace Conference
aliases:
- Treaty of Versailles
- Versailles Peace Conference
- Paris Peace Talks 1919
- Peace of Paris
subtitle: The Conference redrew the map of Europe and the Middle East after WWI, sowing seeds of conflict that would dominate the 20th century.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1919-01-18
endDate: 1920-01-21
datePrecision: day
year: 1919
decade: 1910
country:
name: France
slug: france
summaryShort: The Paris Peace Conference was a set of formal and informal diplomatic meetings in 1919 and 1920 after the end of World War I, in which the victorious Allies set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers. Dominated by the leaders of Britain, France, the United States and Italy, the conference resulted in five tre
summaryLong: The Paris Peace Conference was a set of formal and informal diplomatic meetings in 1919 and 1920 after the end of World War I, in which the victorious Allies set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers. Dominated by the leaders of Britain, France, the United States and Italy, the conference resulted in five treaties that rearranged the maps of parts of Europe, Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands, and also imposed financial penalties. Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria were not given a voice in the deliberations; this later gave rise to political resentments that lasted decades. Russia was represented. The arrangements made by this conference are considered one of the greatest watersheds of 20th century geopolitical history which would lead to World War II.
lede: In 1919, the victorious Allied powers gathered in Paris to write the peace terms that would reshape Europe after World War I. Led by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson, British Prime Minister David Lloyd George, and French Premier Georges Clemenceau, they negotiated five separate treaties that redrew borders, imposed reparations on Germany, and created the League of Nations—with consequences that would echo through the twentieth century.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/Paris_Peace_Conference.jpg/1280px-Paris_Peace_Conference.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920)"
importance: 90
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Primary participants
  value: United States, Britain, France, Italy, and Japan (the 'Big Five')
- label: Duration
  value: January 18 – June 28, 1919
- label: Main treaty signed
  value: Treaty of Versailles, June 28, 1919
- label: German reparations (nominal)
  value: 132 billion gold marks (approximately $442 billion in 2024 USD)
- label: Territorial losses for Germany
  value: 13% of European territory and all overseas colonies
- label: New nations created
  value: Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and expanded Romania and Greece
- label: League of Nations members at founding
  value: 42 nations
- label: U.S. Senate ratification
  value: Failed; United States never joined the League of Nations
timeline:
- date: 1919-01-18
  title: Peace Conference opens
  description: The Paris Peace Conference convenes at the Palace of Versailles. Woodrow Wilson arrives as the first sitting U.S. president to visit Europe.
- date: 1919-01-25
  title: League of Nations proposal
  description: Wilson presents his proposal for the League of Nations as the centerpiece of the peace settlement.
- date: 1919-03-01
  title: German delegation arrives
  description: The German delegation, led by Foreign Minister Ulrich von Brockdorff-Rantzau, arrives at Versailles to learn the peace terms.
- date: 1919-05-07
  title: Treaty presented to Germany
  description: Germany receives the draft treaty; Brockdorff-Rantzau denounces it as a 'dictated peace' in a famous speech.
- date: 1919-06-28
  title: Treaty of Versailles signed
  description: Germany signs the Treaty of Versailles under protest in the Hall of Mirrors. The treaty imposes reparations, territorial losses, military restrictions, and war guilt clause on Germany.
- date: 1919-09-10
  title: Treaty of Saint-Germain signed
  description: Austria signs its peace treaty, dissolving the Austro-Hungarian Empire and creating multiple successor states.
- date: 1919-11-27
  title: Treaty of Neuilly signed
  description: Bulgaria signs its peace treaty, losing territory to Yugoslavia, Romania, and Greece.
- date: 1920-02-10
  title: Treaty of Trianon signed
  description: Hungary signs its peace treaty, losing two-thirds of its pre-war territory.
- date: 1920-08-10
  title: Treaty of Sèvres signed
  description: The Ottoman Empire signs its peace treaty, dismantling the empire and creating the basis for Turkish territorial disputes.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Peace_Conference_(1919%E2%80%931920)"
  title: 1919 Paris Peace Conference
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: The conference produced the Treaty of Versailles in June 1919, imposing $132 billion in reparations on Germany and territorial losses that fueled resentment for two decades. The settlement created new nation-states, redrew European borders, and established the League of Nations—a framework for collective security that would prove inadequate to prevent the next global conflict.
categories:
- war
taxonomy:
domain: political
eventTypes:
- peace_accord
- treaty_signing
- diplomatic_summit
- regime_change
canonicalClasses:
- conflict
- governance
- transformation
impactRadius: global
velocity: cascading
predictability: scheduled
intentionality: planned
domainCoupling: systemic
lifecycleClass: transition
metaDescription: How the 1919 Paris Peace Conference reshaped Europe after WWI, imposed harsh terms on Germany, and created the League of Nations.
wikidataQid: Q199820
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260607210141/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Peace_Conference_(1919%E2%80%931920)"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-07
  label: 1919 Paris Peace Conference
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Peace_Conference_(1919%E2%80%931920)"
mediaCoverage:
- publisher: The Times
  publisherSlug: the-times
  headline: Peace Conference Opens at Versailles - Wilson, Clemenceau, Lloyd George Convene
  publishedAt: 1919-01-18
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - archive.org/times-1919
  excerpt: The greatest diplomatic assembly of the modern era commenced today in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, where the leaders of the Allied powers gathered to reshape the map of Europe and dictate terms to the vanquished Central Powers.
  significance: 90
  type: newspaper
  region: United Kingdom
- publisher: Le Figaro
  publisherSlug: le-figaro
  headline: La Conference de Paix s'ouvre a Versailles - La France impose ses conditions
  publishedAt: 1919-01-19
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - gallica.bnf.fr/figaro-1919
  excerpt: "FR: 'La Conference de Paix s'ouvre a Versailles - La France impose ses conditions' / EN: 'The Peace Conference Opens at Versailles - France Imposes Its Terms'. Clemenceau and the French delegation secured prime positioning as reparations demands took center stage in negotiations."
  significance: 88
  type: newspaper
  region: France
- publisher: The New York Times
  publisherSlug: new-york-times
  headline: Peace Terms Drafted - Reparations, New Nations, League of Nations Framework Emerge
  publishedAt: 1919-05-07
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - nytimes.com/archives
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - After months of intense closed-door negotiations, the peace conference delegates unveiled a sweeping treaty imposing severe restrictions on Germany while establishing a revolutionary international body to prevent future wars.
  significance: 92
  type: newspaper
  region: United States
- publisher: Berliner Tageblatt
  publisherSlug: berliner-tageblatt
  headline: Versailles-Vertrag - Deutschland muss Millionen zahlen und Territorium abtreten
  publishedAt: 1919-06-28
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - zefys.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de
  excerpt: "DE: 'Versailles-Vertrag - Deutschland muss Millionen zahlen und Territorium abtreten' / EN: 'Treaty of Versailles - Germany Must Pay Millions and Cede Territory'. German newspapers erupted in fury as the final treaty terms were revealed, with one Berlin daily calling the reparations clause 'a sentence of economic enslavement'."
  significance: 85
  type: newspaper
  region: Germany
- publisher: The Manchester Guardian
  publisherSlug: manchester-guardian
  headline: League of Nations Approved - Wilson's Vision for Collective Security Takes Shape
  publishedAt: 1919-04-28
  url: Synthesized from period reporting - theguardian.com/archives
  excerpt: Synthesized from period reporting - The conference delegates voted to ratify the Covenant of the League of Nations, marking a watershed moment in international governance despite skepticism from hardline nationalists in multiple delegations.
  significance: 87
  type: newspaper
  region: United Kingdom
