Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles (1919) is commonly known as the “Guilt Clause” or the "War Guilt Clause", in which Germany was assigned the responsibility for damages caused by World War I. The United Kingdom and France played the primary role in the inclusion and writing of the article, while the United States played a lesser role, mostly due to President Woodrow Wilson's principle of "peace without victory"[1].
Article 231 is the first article in Part VIII, "Reparations", and serves as a justification for the obligations put upon Germany in the remainder (Articles 233 through 247) of Part VIII.
Apart from "Article 231", there is no title for this article in the treaty itself. The names "Guilt Clause” and "War Guilt Clause" were assigned in later commentaries. The American historian Sally Marks has pointed out that the so-called "war guilt clause" says no such thing, and all that the clause does say is “the responsibility of Germany and her Allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments and their nationals have been subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them by the aggression of Germany and her allies” [2]. The claim that Article 231 implies “war guilt” was the work of various German politicians and apologists who misinterpreted Article 231 as saying that as a way of gaining international sympathy[3]. Moreover, Marks points out that the next article, Article 232 of the Versailles treaty limits German responsibility to pay only for civilian damages, and that when a conference was called in London in 1921 to determine how much Germany should pay, the Allies calculated on the basis of what Germany could pay, not on their needs[3].
The Weimar government was forced to sign this in 1919. The signing of this later led them to be called the 'November Criminals'.
By blaming only Germany for causing the war, Article 231 has been cited as one of the causes that led to the rise of national socialism in Germany[4]. At least one historian, Margaret MacMillan, has outlined that this long held notion is fundamentally erroneous [5].
Germany had to pay £6,600 million as war reparations, which could be paid in either money or goods.
Peace Treaty of Versailles Articles 231-247 and Annexes Reparations
   | The Versailles Treaty June 28, 1919 - The Avalon Project : Documents in Law, History and Diplomacy |
| | Excerpt and reviews of ''Paris 1919: Six Months That Changed The World'' by Margaret MacMillan - BookBrowse.com: More than 20,000 book reviews, reader reviews, critic's reviews, book excerpts and more. |
| | Peace Treaty of Versailles Articles 231-247 and Annexes Reparations - Peace Treaty of Versailles, Articles 231-247 and Annexes, Reparations |
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