and since American ratification was subsequently refused (see
UNITED STATES: History), the British treaty became a dead let-
ter, (b) A protocol defining certain ambiguous conditions in
the German treaty, (c) An agreement between the United
States, Belgium, the British Empire, France and Germany,
which defines the nature of the military occupation of the
Rhineland. (d) The Polish minorities treaty by which Po-
land contracts with the Allies and with Germany to respect
the civil and political rights of racial and religious minorities
within her jurisdiction. The idea of imposing such a treaty
was first laid before the Conference by Jewish associations,
whose fears were excited by the reports of Polish pogroms
in the winter of 1918-9; but it was also of great importance
for the protection of German and other non-Polish minorities.
Similar treaties were afterwards concluded by the principal
Powers with Czechoslovakia, with Rumania and with Yugo-
slavia. The main Treaty of Versailles was ratified by Presi-
dent Ebert, on behalf of Germany, on July 10; by the
King of Italy, by King George V. and by President Poincare
in Oct. 1919. But it was not till Jan. 10 1920, when Germany at
last signed a protocol agreeing to give compensation for the
ships which had been scuttled at Scapa Flow, that the final
exchange of ratifications took place at Paris, and the state of
war between the European Allies (but not the United States)
and Germany was formally terminated.
Treaty of Versailles Territorial Terms. Germany surrenders Alsace and Lorraine to France, free and quit of all public debts (Arts. 51, 55), and accepts the arrangements regarding the Saar basin which have been described above (Art. 45-50). Luxemburg ceases to form part of the German ZoUverein, and Germany renounces all rights over the railways in Luxemburg (Art. 40). Belgium receives Moresnet neutre and part of Prussian Moresnet (Arts. 32, 33); also Eupen and Malmedy (Art. 34) subject to the result of a plebiscite, which was held in Sept. 1920 and resulted in the final reunion of these districts to Bel- gium, by whom they had been continuously claimed since 1815. These acquisitions give Belgium some valuable forests and rail- way stations and a population of about 70,000 souls. The frontier between Germany and Denmark is to be settled in accordance with the wishes of the population (Art. 109); these were ascer- tained by plebiscites held in North Schleswig (Feb. 10 1920) and in Central Schleswig (March 14 1920) when the former district voted for reunion with Denmark and the latter voted for Germany. Under Art. 87 Germany recognizes the complete independence of Poland and surrenders Danzig together with the territories received by Prussia under the partitions of Poland (Posnania, W. Prussia) and part of Middle Silesia; in 1910 these districts had a population of 2,931,000 souls of whom 1,087,000 were Germans. Article 88 provides for the plebiscite in Upper Silesia which had been conceded on June 16 1919; the voting (March 21 1921) seemed to prove that this clause was a concession of substance, and the subsequent award of the League of Nations (Oct. 1921) , in favour of Poland, was correspondingly disappointing to Germany. By Arts. 94 and 96 plebiscites are ordered for the Masurenland region of East Prussia, and the West Prussian Kreise of Stuhm, Marienburg, Marienwerder and Rosenberg; in July 1920 both plebiscites pro- duced substantial majorities for Germany. By Art. 99 Memel with the adjacent territory (total pop. 122,000 souls) is detached from East Prussia and put at the disposal of the principal Powers, who intended that Memel should be the port of Lithu- ania but had not, up to May 1921, given effect to that intention. Article too similarly assigns Danzig (pop. 200,000) to the prin- cipal Powers, who (in accordance with this Article) have recog- nized Danzig as a free city with an elected legislature under a high commissioner appointed by the League of Nations. But Poland will control the Vistula and the main railways within the terri- tory of Danzig, and will be responsible for the foreign rela- tions of the city, which is also to be brought within the Polish customs area (Art. 104).
Under Art. 156 Germany abandons to Japan her rights in the Shantung peninsula; she also renounces her concessions in
Hankow and Tientsin (Art. 132), her privileges in Egypt under the Capitulations (Art. 147) and all her treaty rights in Morocco (Art. 141). By Art. 119 she renounces in favour of the principal Powers all her overseas possessions. These, in accordance with Art. 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations, will be ad- ministered by mandatories of the League. The Supreme Council made, on May 6 1919, a provisional distribution of mandates for the German colonies. German E. Africa was allotted to Great Britain, by whom it was renamed Kenya Colony (July 8 1920); but on May 30 1919, Great Britain resigned the districts of Urundi and Ruanda, which border on the Belgian Congo, to be held by Belgium under a separate mandate. German S.W. Africa went to the Dominion of South Africa. France and Great Britain received a joint mandate for Togoland and Cameroon, with permission to delimit their respective juris- dictions by mutual agreement. German New Guinea was en- trusted to Australia, German Samoa to New Zealand, the island of Nauru (a rich source of phosphates) to Great Britain, the German islands in the North Pacific to Japan. But the United States subsequently announced (Feb. 21 1921) that Mr. Wilson did not agree to the island of Yap, an important cable station, being included in the Japanese mandate, and this question was one of the matters considered at the Washington Conference. (See WASHINGTON CONFERENCE.)
Treaty of Versailles Reparations and Financial and Com- mercial Terms. The articles of the treaty which define the sums to be paid by Germany have been epitomized above. The annexes to the Reparations section specify some of the pay- ments in kind which Germany is to make immediately on account of reparation: (a) She is to surrender all her merchant ships of i, 600 tons gross and upward; one-half of her merchant ships between 1,600 and 1,000 tons gross; also one-quarter of her fishing fleet and a proportion not exceeding one-fifth of her river craft. By Feb. 10 1920 she had surrendered vessels of over 1,000 tons amounting to 1,824,828 tons gross, (b) She is to fur- nish live stock, machinery, equipment, tools and building ma- terials for the reconstruction of devastated areas, (c) During the next 10 years she is to find annually 7,000,000 tons of coal for France, 8,000,000 tons for Belgium, and for Italy deliveries amounting on the average to 8,000,000 tons per annum. Also she is to make good the difference between the actual output of the French pits in the Nord and Pas de Calais and their pre- war average output. But, since May 1920, her total liability for coal has been reduced to 2,000,000 tons a month. According to the Conference note of June 16 1919, the Germans might terminate this system of payment in kind as soon as they pleased after May i 1921. " If Germany raises the money required in her own way, the Reparations Commission cannot order that it shall be raised in some other way."
The Reparations Commission is a body appointed, under Art. 233, with the duties of estimating Germany's liabilities and her capacity to pay, of insisting on the due performance of her obligations to pay in gold and in kind, and of seeing that the German scheme of taxation " is fully as heavy proportionately as that of any of the Powers represented on the Commission." The Commission is to consist of seven delegates representing the principal Powers, Belgium and Yugoslavia; but no more than five of these may vote at any meeting. The United States, Great Britain, France and Italy have a vote on every occasion; Japan and Yugoslavia only vote when their special interests are concerned; Belgium votes when neither Japan nor Yugo- slavia is entitled to do so. On certain questions the unanimous vote of the meeting is required to make the decision valid; as, for instance, on the question of cancelling the whole or any part of the debt or obligations of Germany. The powers assigned to the Commission were severely criticised at the Conference by the German delegates, who said that they were greater than those which any German emperor had ever possessed in Ger- many. It remained, however, to be seen how those powers would be utilized afterwards. The Commission has consider- able powers under the other treaties, being made responsible, directly or indirectly, for the execution of the Reparations
