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The disarmament of Germany after World War I was decided upon by Allied leadership at the Paris Peace Conference. It was viewed, at the time, as a way to prevent further conflict with Germany and as punishment for Germany's role in World War I. The reduction of Germany's significant manufacturing capacity was one of the goals. [1]
German rearmament (Aufrüstung, German pronunciation: [ˈaʊ̯fˌʀʏstʊŋ]) was a policy and practice of rearmament carried out by Germany from 1918 to 1939, in violation of the Treaty of Versailles which required German disarmament after WWI to prevent it from starting another war.
Disarmament is the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing weapons. Disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. Disarmament is often taken to mean total elimination of weapons of mass destruction , such as nuclear arms .
The military superiority of Germany was a defining element of Hitler's ideology and foreign policy, which made the idea of disarmament unacceptable. [17] As soon as Hitler rose to power, he began the process of rearming Germany , clearly defying both the Treaty of Versailles and the objective of the Disarmament Conference. [ 17 ]
This involved, in the earliest stage, the disarmament of all remaining German military personnel. According to military historian Sheldon Goldberg, the process of disbanding the armed forces did not prove an obstacle since "most [remaining soldiers] simply dropped their weapons, raised their arms, and surrendered". [ 5 ]
Germany was not made "primarily agricultural and pastoral in its character". [10] However, some commentators, such as Gareau, extend the term to mean "any postwar program designed to effect and preserve German disarmament by significantly reducing German industrial might". [11]
The vigorous disarmament program in Germany continued by the UK and the US for the first three years of occupation. [6] This dismantling of industry became increasingly unpopular and ran contrary to the 1948 Marshall Plan's mission to encourage industrial growth.
The discussions of disarmament focused on the strength of the German army and the treatment of the Sicherheitspolizei, paramilitary police units. The German side arrived with the negotiation goal of a 200,000-man army and the intent to keep the police units, while possibly making concessions on their equipment.