THE EXECUTION OF THE TREATY AND THE PLEBISCITES

The Treaty of Versailles was ratified on 10 January 1920, and except in the plebiscite areas its territorial provisions came into force on that date. The Schleswig plebiscite (February and March 1920) awarded the north to Denmark and the south to Germany, in each case by a decisive majority. The East Prussian plebiscite (July 1920) showed an overwhelming vote for Germany. The Upper Silesian plebiscite (March 1921) yielded a majority of nearly two to one in favour of Germany for the province as a whole, but a majority for Poland in certain areas of the south and east. On the basis of this vote, and having regard to the industrial unity of certain disputed areas, the principal Allies, with the exception of France, were of opinion that, apart from the south-eastern districts of Pless and Rybnik which, although they contain undeveloped coalfields of great importance, are at present agricultural in character, nearly the whole of the province should be assigned to Germany. Owing to the inability of France to accept this solution, the whole problem was referred to the League of Nations for final arbitration. This body bisected the industrial area in the interests of racial or nationalistic justice; and introduced at the same time, in the endeavour to avoid the consequences of this bisection, complicated economic provisions of doubtful efficiency in the interests of material prosperity. They limited these provisions to fifteen years, trusting perhaps that something will have occurred to revise their decision before the end of that time.