Why did France push for harsh punishment of Germany?

It was a direct consequence of the harsh reparations asked by the German Empire to France in 1871 after the Franco-Prussian War (5 billions of gold francs in 3 years). France paid in a little more than 2 years. So in their logic, Germany should also pay and should definitely not be treated with any mercy because they did not treat France with mercy. Hence « l’Allemagne paiera !! ». France was literally obsessed with the Franco-Prussian War and this explains the radicalism towards the question of Alsace. There was no compromise possible, France would recuperate it with no conditions at all, because this was a terrible humiliation that French never stopped complaining about for years.

Germany was also imposed harsh reparations to Belgium since they invaded them, thus violating Belgium’s neutrality.

Germany was also considered by the Entente powers the “sole responsible” of the entire war (which is quite unfair really) and so in their eyes, Germany was due nothing, no mercy or anything, because it was all their fault.

There are some obscure and funny clauses in the 1919 Versailles treaty, like the restitution of a cranium of the sultan Makaoua to England (article 246). The Wa-Hebe people in the African Great Lakes region asked to get it back because it was to be worshiped in their customs (I do not know their more modern name nowadays, but it must be one of them). It’s possible they never got the cranium back.

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