What were Germany's main reason for defeat in WW1?

Question

Economically?
Politically?
Military?

Answer 1

Economically: The Allied blockade was starving the country to death. Most Germans was living off of cabbage. Raw material was in short supply.

Politically: The German political system was in turmoil. The people wanted now a republic without the Kaiser. Political factions rose up to fight other factions in the streets of who was going to take power. A Social (not communist) government took over when the Kaiser abdicated who asked the Allies for an Armistices:

Military: The German Army had reached their limits after the Kaiser Offensive in the Spring of 1918 which the Allies stopped with the help of fresh American troops who was tipping the Allied reserve level in the Allies favor. Slowly the German Army was being pushed back towards the German border. Supply lines was slowly being cut off. The German Army could have fought on maybe for another 6 months but Germany as a whole had enough so it ended 11 November 1918

Answer 2

Military. There was a strong push in Germany to deny this in the 1920's and 30's, and blame the defeat on socialists undermining the government and others sabotaging the economy. It is true that Germany immediately after World War I was a political and economic 'basket case', but it is fairly clear that Germany prior to 1918 was in relatively 'good shape'. Peace had been made with Russia, opening up markets in that direction, and large numbers of German troops had been moved to the Western Front.

The Germans launched a massive, but exhausting, offensive in France in early 1918 with the stated aim to achieve victory before US troops arrived in sufficient numbers to prevent that possibility. French, British and US forces launched a massive counter-offensives against the tired German armies in August 1918, and had had driven the Germans almost completely out of France and Belgium by October 1918. The military collapse then triggered a political collapse within Germany.

Ultimately the cause of the German defeat, however, goes back to two earlier events. Firstly their failure to capture Paris and split the British and French armies in the first offensive of the War and bring the whole matter to a quick conclusion (Germany was looking for trade and political concessions rather than to 'occupy France indefinitely). The second cause was Germany's reckless use of submarine warfare that brought the US into the War.

Answer 3

Economically, the British Royal Navy had successfully blocked any shipping entering German waters.
Militarily, the German Army's plan to "bleed France white" at Verdun had backfired and German losses were almost if not worse than those of the French. American intervention, although important was not an immediate success, there immediate losses were comparable to those of the British losses at the Somme (percentage wise), although Germany realised the Allies were rejuvenated by the Americans and the fresh supply of new soldiers.
Politically Germany was suffering from similar fractious problems as the Russians but not on the same scale, as all countries do that are facing up to the reality of defeat.

Answer 4

The war turned into a stale mate trench warfare until the USA got involved in 1917. This broke the stale mate and with the help of the Americans it gave France and England enough leverage to get Germany to agree to unconditional surrender terms. This is why Hitler blew up the train car in Compeigne, France, where the World War I Armistic was signed at 11 a.m. on November 11th. Also trench warfare was a horror with all the disease, influenza, and muster gas warfare. The main reason, however, was military, the USA army was too much for them to handle along with the French and English armies.

Answer 5

Germany didn't declare defeat in the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty was imposed upon Germany, with very little negotiation, by the Allied Powers (particularly Britain, France, and the US) in 1919. Each of the Big Three had a different dominant agenda. France (under Clemensceu) chiefly wanted to weaken Germany's strategic position in Europe by annexing Alscae-Lorraine and occupying the eastern bank of the Rhine river and its bridges. Reparations were secondary to France. Britain (under Lloyd-George), on the other hand, chiefly wanted reparation because its economy had suffered so heavily (Britain had financed a good portion of the Allied war effort). The US (represented by President Wilson) chiefly wanted to new international order to prevent global war in the future (Wilson advocated his "League of Nations" for this). Reparations were not a major contention for the US. All Allied powers, though, wanted Germany's future war-making potential limited. This is why France insisted on an occupation of the German industrial Saarland territory and a restriction of the Germany army to merely a 100,000 self-defense force. Britain and the US, as naval powers, wanted to German High Seas fleet limited. (Technically the Germans were supposed to surrender their ships to Britain, but the German officers instead scuddled their ships off the coast of Scotland to sink them.)

Answer 6

An Effective Britsh Blockade. A french and British And Australian attack that pushed their trenches back . There was also political unrest at home and an economical problem

So basically all but mainly military

Answer 7

I don't think they were defeated; I always thought Germany and the Allies were in a huge stalemate.

But they were punished heavily by France for the war that they started. They were forced to sign a humiliating Versailles treaty which Hitler figuratively tore up 20something years later.

Answer 8

Economical.

Due to the american involvement in WW1 the Germans ran short of funds to continue. They decided to call it quits before going totally bankrupt. However that was without knowing what peace terms the allies would lay upon them.

Answer 9

the faliure of the schleffin plan. the plan was to avioud a 2 front war. they would ride frances rush into germany and do a right hook through beliguim. they said that russia would take a long time to mobilse there army. in fact russian mobilised there army quickly causeing germany to divert troops from france to the russian bordor.

Answer 10

politicall nad economically

the british blockade meant many people were starving and trade was next to impossible. the army could have fought on but the goverment fell because of the millions of people starving.