Myths of World War I

Myths of World War I

German Soil

No Allied soldier ever set foot on German soil. Alsace-Lorraine was part of Germany, and French troops did mount an invasion of the area, capturing the town of Mulhausen briefly in 1914. For the duration of the war, they held positions in the Vosges Mountains that were on the German side of the pre-war border.

Stab in the back

Myth that Germany could have kept fighting through November 1918 if not betrayed by communists and Jews at home.

Reality was that every other Central power had quit the war by then, Germany was scraping the bottom of the barrel in manpower, economy in shambles, and facing the combined might of the USA, UK, France, Belgium, Italy, and many other countries. The army was giving ground nearly every day with no way to counter the Allies' methodical advance.

In late October 1918, the navy, though still powerful, refused to go to sea, believing it to be a suicide mission, which it likely would have been. The mutiny was part of the widespread social unrest that led to the abdication of the Kaiser.

Treaty of Versailles was unfair

Myth that Germany was treated more harshly than necessary.

Other central powers lost much more land. Austria-Hungary was dismembered and both Austria and Hungary dramatically reduced. Ottoman Empire also dissolved.

Reparations paid by Germany were to make up for the devastation they caused in northern France. It would have been unfair to make France assume the entire burden of reconstruction. At any rate Germany borrowed from the Allies to make the payments and then defaulted or was forgiven for most of the loans.

Treaty was not harsh enough because it failed to prevent Germany from starting another war.