Research Guides: Treaty of Versailles: Primary Documents in American History: Introduction (2024)

The Treaty of Versailles was signed by Germany and the Allied Nations on June 28, 1919, formally ending World War One. The terms of the treaty required that Germany pay financial reparations, disarm, lose territory, and give up all of its overseas colonies. It also called for the creation of the League of Nations, an institution that President Woodrow Wilson strongly supported and had originally outlined in his Fourteen Points address. Despite Wilson's efforts, including a nationwide speaker tour, the Treaty of Versailles was rejected by the United States Senate twice, in 1919 and 1920. The United States ultimately signed a separate peace treaty with Germany in 1921, although it never joined the League of Nations.