Abstract:

Returning The Last Kaiser from Exile

Andrew Reimann, Nihon University

This paper investigates some of the more controversial events of World War I in an attempt to determine the true extent of the responsibility of Kaiser Wilhelm for instigating and waging War. These events, which were largely obscured by allied glory and propaganda, and compounded by German war guilt, culminating in the strict Treaty of Versailles, set the stage for the brutal dictatorship of Adolf Hitler and the carnage of the Second World War and in no small way determined the balance of power as it is today. In a sense The Great War never ended, rather it was divided in to two main parts (1914 -1918) and (1939-1945) with subsequent skirmishes still being fought in the Balkans now. Was the Kaiser really a ruthless warmonger or just a victim of military plots in a precariously balanced, militaristic Europe and a scapegoat for a humiliating defeat? This paper will examine the facts and attempt to give the Kaiser the fair trial, which he never received.