Upper Mohawk Valley Model United Nations 2015
Historical Simulation
Chairs:
Charlotte Bausch
Isadora Schaller
Mallory Haskins
Topic:
1919 Paris Peace Conference
Chair Biographies
Charlotte Bausch is currently a senior at Hamilton High School. Aside from being involved in
MUN, she plays piano and flute, paints, and volunteers. She is also involved in her school’s
chapters of Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD), National Honor Society (NHS),
Mathletics, band, and chorus. She has participated in MUN as a delegate for four years, and this
will be her second time chairing at UMVMUN. Feel free to contact her at 315-825-5931, or
email [email protected] with any questions you may have.
Isadora Schaller is also a senior at Hamilton Central School. She is very involved in the HCS
community, from being the Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) Treasurer and the
Amnesty International President to being a member of National Honor Society, Mathletics,
Operation Northern Comfort, and Select Choir. She is also an AYSO coach and referee, as well
as a volunteer at the Hamilton Public Library. Isadora has played four years of varsity soccer, six
years for the New York State Olympic Development Program soccer team, and eight for the
Odyssey Soccer Club. She has participated in MUN as a delegate for four years, but this is will
be her second time chairing. Please contact her at [email protected] or 315-8255192 with any questions or concerns.
Mallory Haskins is currently a senior at Hamilton Central High School. She is a member of
multiple groups at Hamilton Central, including Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD),
Mathletics, and is Vice President of the language club. She has participated in MUN for four
years and this will be her second time chairing. Apart from being involved in MUN, she
volunteers at her martial arts dojo where she is a 2nd degree black belt. She enjoys playing
volleyball, tennis, and soccer. You are very welcome to email her at
[email protected] with any questions or concerns you may have. You may also
contact her at 315-559-0552.
Introduction
Although the conference overall is Resolution style, this will be a Harvard style committee. This
means that delegates should write position papers individually and bring them to the conference.
Delegates should submit their position papers to the chairs via email before the conference if
they wish to be eligible for an award. Position papers should describe your nation’s role in the
war and expectations of the conference (much as the chairs have described the situations in
Germany and Russia below). In addition, be sure to research the biography of the head-of-state
or chief delegate that you are portraying. Be sure to find credible sources when creating your
position paper, as there will inevitably be a particularly well-researched person to point out your
mistakes (it may even be one of the chairs).
1919 Paris Peace Conference
The 1919 Paris Peace Conference convened just outside Paris, France, in January 1919. Nearly
thirty participating nations gathered to determine the terms of the peace after World War I, but
the nations of the United Kingdom, the United States, France, and Italy drove much of the
debate, becoming known as the “Big Four.” The proceedings at the Paris Peace Conference led
to the writing of the Treaty of Versailles, which formally ended World War I.
In the year preceding the conference Germany proposed an Armistice. German armies were
defeated. In August of 1918 German troops had been pushed back to their own borders. German
officers reported that they could no longer keep fighting. In a state of hysteria, the High
Command of the German army demanded that their government obtain an armistice
immediately. The German government asked American resident Woodrow Wilson to be the
“deal broker” between it and the European powers in order to create an armistice. Wilson
responded saying that he would assist Germany if they would agree to the Fourteen Points,
becoming the basis of a future peace. In November, the allies agreed to Germany’s request. Both
France and Britain felt dislike towards the armistice feeling as though they had been left out of
the decision. The biggest misconception in the armistice was that Germany believed they would
be treated kindly, and that their share of the war reparations would be insignificant. The
misunderstanding led to many disputes that will appear in the conference.
Germany prior to 1914 looked very different than Germany in 1919. The country was
significantly smaller and its military was very weak. However, in some ways Germany was
better off after the war ended. Poland now separated Germany from Russia, and its other
neighbors were relatively weak states. Furthermore, its infrastructure was remarkably unharmed
since the majority of the fighting took place in France and Belgium. Despite the improvements in
the political boundaries of Europe, the German citizens were far from happy. There was a
shortage of food across the country, and no real central government existed after the Kaiser fled
to Holland.
The effects of the Bolshevik Revolution of November 1917 were still reverberating. In the
spring of 1919, Russia was embroiled in civil war and the outcome was far from clear. Having
left the war and suffered significant loss of territory in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Russia is not
in attendance at the conference despite suffering three long years of war as a member of the
Allies. Mutinies in the trenches during the last years of the war and the popularity of socialist
political parties was a source of concern as the delegates convene. Many wish to insure that
another Bolshevik revolution not occur.
For the ease of discussion, we will be splitting the conference into three sections: territory,
punishment, and preservation of peace. For the first part of the conference, we will debate the
territorial disputes associated with the end of World War I. With the end of the war and
numerous fatalities, every country felt they deserved to be repaid through territory. The second
part of the conference will be focused on punishment and reparations. Many countries desired for
Germany to be severely penalized for its crimes during the war (Clemenceau, time to shine!).
They also wanted to be repaid for the damages and massive human losses that German caused.
The third topic will be dedicated to the preservation of peace (Wilson, this is your time to
shine!).
Many of the issues with the Treaty of Versailles are clear in hindsight, so we are looking for
comprehensive resolutions that can address the problems laid out in this letter better than the
original treaty. Good luck delegates!
Questions:
 What role did the 1919 Paris Peace Conference play in history?
 What were the motivations and desires of the various countries present at the 1919 Paris
Peace Conference?
 What other events were happening at the same time? How did they affect the 1919 Paris
Peace Conference?
Resources:
 The Paris Peace Conference and the Treaty of Versailles
https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/paris-peace
 The Paris Peace Conference and its Consequences http://encyclopedia.1914-1918online.net/article/the_paris_peace_conference_and_its_consequences
 The Paris Peace Conference https://www.boundless.com/u-shistory/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/world-war-i-1914-1919-23/diplomacyand-negotiations-at-the-end-of-the-war-183/the-paris-peace-conference-997-8774/