The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors

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The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors, Versailles, 28 June 1919 (William Orpen)
The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors, Versailles, June 28, 1919
William Orpen , 1919
Oil on canvas
152 × 127 cm
Imperial War Museum

The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors, Versailles, 28 June 1919 (the signing of the peace treaty in the Hall of Mirrors, Versailles, June 28, 1919) is a group portrait of William Orpen (1878-1931) that the occasion of the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 made Has. The moment the peace treaty was signed by the German envoys is shown in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles Palace . With the peace treaty, the First World War between the German Reich and the victorious powers was officially ended. The painting is now in the Imperial War Museum in London .

prehistory

William Orpen was a Irish painter of the Post-Impressionism , which most of the time in London stayed and worked there. In the age of Edward VII he was a sought-after and commercially successful portrait painter . In 1917 Orpen was one of the first artists to be sent by the British Ministry of Information as a martial artist to France on the Western Front in order to capture the events of the war in pictures. Due to the success of his war paintings, William Orpen was promoted to Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1918 . After the war ended, Orpen was appointed the official portrait artist of the Paris Peace Conference in 1919 . He was commissioned to make three paintings to depict special moments in the negotiations. This was the most costly of all public contracts associated with the First World War. Orpen received a total of £ 3,000 for his work, around £ 140,000 today. John Singer Sargent , on the other hand, had only received £ 300 for his much larger painting Gassed .

  • William Orpen (1903)

  • A tank (1917)

  • Dead Germans in a Trench (1918)

Historical background

The Paris Peace Conference from January 18, 1919 to January 21, 1920 had the goal of establishing the peace conditions after the end of the First World War . Those involved in the war had signed an armistice in November 1918. In January 1919, the preliminary conference of the Allied and Associated Victory Powers began its deliberations. A total of 32 states were involved, including the British Dominions and British India . The highest body of the peace negotiations was the Council of Four , which was composed of the heads of government from Great Britain , France , Italy and the United States .

Great Britain had mainly financial interests, while Italy wanted to enlarge its territory and France wanted security from the German Empire and a revenge for the Franco-Prussian War . For the US President Woodrow Wilson , the basis of the negotiations was his 14-point program . a. the right of self-determination of the peoples , the freedom of sea routes and the establishment of a League of Nations . In the first part of the negotiations an agreement was reached on the statutes of the League of Nations, but the subsequent treaties were in part at odds with the right to self-determination. Even with his ideas about the freedom of the seas, Wilson could not prevail. The US Senate refused to ratify the treaties. Therefore the USA was never a member of the League of Nations. In 1921 the USA concluded a separate peace with the Berlin Treaty with the German Reich, which was only allowed to join the League of Nations in 1926.

In May 1919, the peace negotiations with the Central Powers and the successor states of the Danube Monarchy began in parallel and at different times . A total of five peace treaties ( Paris suburb agreements ) were concluded in the course of the following months , regulating the assignment of territories, reparation payments and the establishment of new nation states. The Treaty of Versailles contained the conditions for the conclusion of peace with the German Reich . Germany had to a. cede the realm of Alsace-Lorraine to France, the province of Posen and West Prussia to Poland. The Saar area was subordinated to the administration of the League of Nations for 15 years . In addition to massive arms restrictions, the German Reich and its allies were also guilty of war, with which the Allies justified the demand for reparations payments . The provisions of the Versailles Treaty were not sufficient to permanently eliminate Germany's position as a great power, but they were harsh enough to create the impression of a dictated peace and permanently burden Germany's relationship with the Allies.

The Paris Peace Conference began at the instigation of France on January 18, 1919 the anniversary of the German Empire in the Palace of Versailles in 1871. In the Mirror Hall of the palace was the Prussian King Wilhelm I to the German Emperor proclaimed. The Versailles Treaty, which officially ended the First World War between the German Reich and the victorious powers, was also signed in this room on June 28, 1919.

  • The German delegation

  • Signing of the contract on June 28, 1919

The paintings

The moment the contract was signed is recorded on the group portrait. Allied politicians sit and stand in a row behind a long table, who as representatives of the victorious nations want to demonstrate their determination, unity and political power. In the foreground with their backs to the viewer are the two representatives of the German delegation who, as the losers of the war, stand facing the winners, separated by the plaque. Both of them have to sign the contract on a small uncovered table, which stands some distance in front of the winners' table covered with green cloth.

The scene is not dominated by those present, but by the architecture of the Hall of Mirrors, which the French King Louis XIV had built and designed. The splendor of the wall and ceiling design reduces the politicians to a footnote. The legend Le Roi gouverne par lui-même (The King rules alone) at the top of the picture stands above the assembly and is a pointed reference to the ongoing disputes of the conference over the terms of peace.

The world supposedly reorganized by the peace treaty is shown distorted and broken in the mirrors without the people present being aware of it. Since the mirrors are crooked to each other, one also sees twice the reflection of the artist, who can only be recognized in dark outlines. The bent figure to the right of him is the reflection of the German representative from the foreground. What is remarkable is the complete absence of other observers. Nobody but the artist seems to be following the scene. However, historical photos show that the hall was overcrowded with numerous observers at the time of the signing. Orpen gives the impression that the dignified act is a mere staging, as the personal vanities and rivalries of those involved still appear to be present.

  • William Orpen - The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors - Detail 5.jpg
  • William Orpen - The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors - Detail 1.jpg
  • William Orpen - The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors - Detail 4.jpg

Depicted people

Detail from the group portrait
  1. Johannes Bell (1868–1949) was a politician of the German Center Party , 1919 Reich Colonial Minister and Reich Minister of Transport in the Bauer cabinet . Together with Hermann Müller he signed the Versailles Peace Treaty for the German Empire . The parties of the political right then put him under considerable pressure in the following years.
  2. Hermann Müller (1876–1931) was one of the chairmen of the SPD from 1919 to 1928 and, as Reich Minister for Foreign Affairs, signed the peace treaty. For Müller, the conditions were hardly bearable, but a signature was inevitable depending on the current situation. In the 1920s, Müller was Chancellor of the German Empire twice . The revision of the treaty was one of his foreign policy goals.
  3. General Tasker H. Bliss (1853-1930) was Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1917 to 1918 and from 1917 a permanent representative on the Allied Supreme War Council . He attended the Paris Peace Conference as a major general and diplomat and was one of the signatories of the Versailles Treaty for his nation.
  4. Edward Mandell House (1858–1938) was an American diplomat and the chief foreign policy advisor to President Woodrow Wilson . In 1915 he had tried in vain to bring about a mutual agreement between the warring parties. In 1918 House and Walter Lippmann were instrumental in drafting Wilson's 14-point program .
  5. Henry White (1850-1927) was an American diplomat and, like President Woodrow Wilson, initially advocated the neutrality of the United States. Only after Germany declared total submarine warfare did he abandon this stance. After the armistice in 1918, he was named one of the five US representatives at the Paris Peace Conference.
  6. Robert Lansing (1864-1928) was from 1915 to 1920 US Secretary of State (Secretary of State) and already took early the view that the US must work against Germany in the war, as the German Empire to rule the world aspire. Lansing later became head of the American delegation to the Paris Peace Conference. However , he did not support Wilson's idea of ​​the League of Nations , which is why he had to resign in 1920.
  7. Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924) was the 28th President of the United States from 1913 to 1921 and led the United States in the First World War on the side of the Allied Powers in 1917 . As a basis for the peace negotiations, he proposed a 14-point program . The foundation of the League of Nations to prevent further wars goes back to his initiative . In 1919 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
  8. Georges Clemenceau (1841-1929) was from 1906 to 1909 and from 1917 to 1920 French Prime Minister of the Third Republic and from 1917 to 1920 also Minister of War . At the peace conference he advocated a tough policy towards the German Reich, demanded the cession of Alsace-Lorraine , the Saar region and the Rhineland and insisted on extensive reparation payments .
  9. David Lloyd George (1863-1945), British Prime Minister from 1916 to 1922 , represented a mediating position between Woodrow Wilson and Georges Clemenceau at the Paris Peace Conference. He advocated political punishment for Germany, but did not want to fragment the German Reich territorially or permanently damage it economically.
  10. Andrew Bonar Law (1858-1923) was from 1911 to 1915 opposition leader in the House of Commons , 1915-1916 Colonial Secretary (Secretary of State for the Colonies), from 1916 to 1919 Chancellor of the Exchequer (Chancellor of the Exchequer), and from 1919 to 1921 Lord Privy Seal (Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal). He was a signatory to the Versailles Peace Treaty and was British Prime Minister from 1922 to 1923.
  11. Arthur James Balfour (1848-1930) was British Prime Minister from 1902 to 1905, from 1915 to 1916 First Lord of the Admiralty (First Lord of the Admiralty) and from 1916 to 1919 Foreign Minister (Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs). He wrote the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which guaranteed the Jewish people in Palestine a national home. He was part of the British delegation to the peace negotiations.
  12. Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner (1854–1925) was Secretary of War in the Cabinet of Lloyd George from 1918 to 1919. In 1919 he became Secretary of State for the Colonies. In this capacity he took part in the Paris Peace Conference and was one of the signatories of the Versailles Peace Treaty.
  13. George Nicoll Barnes (1859-1940) was a member of the Cabinet of the Lloyd George Government from 1916 to 1920 , first as Minister of Pensions, later as Minister without Portfolio. He was part of the British delegation to the peace negotiations and signed the Versailles Peace Treaty.
  14. Saionji Kimmochi (1849-1940), was a Japanese statesman and until 1912 twice Prime Minister of Japan . After Japan took part in the First World War on the side of the Allies, Japan was one of the victorious powers. Kimmochi was the head of the Japanese delegation at the Paris Peace Conference, at which Japan felt discriminated against and gradually turned away from the West.
  15. Eleftherios Venizelos (1864–1936), multiple Prime Minister in Greece , tried to realize the idea of ​​Greater Greece ( Megali Idea ) alongside the Entente during World War I. In the Treaty of Sèvres of 1920 Venizelos achieved a significant expansion of the Greek national territory, which was again destroyed by the defeat in the Greco-Turkish War (1919-1922).
  16. Afonso Costa (1871–1937), one of the most important politicians of the first Portuguese republic , was Minister of Justice , several times Finance Minister and a total of three times as head of government . In 1916 he led Portugal into the First World War on the side of the Triple Entente and represented his country at the Paris Peace Conference. In 1926 he was President of the League of Nations Assembly.
  17. George Riddell, 1st Baron Riddell (1865-1934), a British lawyer and newspaper editor , was a close associate of David Lloyd George and mediated during the First World War between the British government and the press . He represented the British press in the peace negotiations.
  18. George Eulas Foster (1847–1931), Canadian Minister of Economic Affairs in the cabinet of Prime Minister Robert Borden , represented the Dominion Canada at the Paris Peace Conference. At the first general assembly of the League of Nations from 1920 to 1921 he was chairman of the Canadian delegation.
  19. Nikola Pašić (1845–1926), Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Serbia from 1904 to 1918 with interruptions , led his country successfully through two Balkan Wars and the First World War. He played a significant role in the 1917 Corfu Declaration , in which a common kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was declared the goal. At the Paris conference he led the delegation of this kingdom created in 1918.
  20. Stéphen Pichon (1857-1933), French politician and foreign minister in Clemenceau's cabinet from 1906 to 1911 and from 1917 to 1920, played a key role in the Paris peace negotiations, which resulted in the Versailles peace treaty and the other Paris agreements .
  21. Maurice Hankey (1877-1963) was in government Lloyd George from 1916 secretary of the British War Cabinet (War Cabinet) and the Imperial War Cabinet ( Imperial War Cabinet were represented), in which representatives from the British colonies and dominions. In this capacity he took part in the Paris peace negotiations. Hankey is considered one of the inventors of the armored weapon .
  22. Edwin Samuel Montagu (1879-1924) was Secretary of State for India between 1917 and 1922 and challenged the previous British dogma that Indians were incapable of self-government. Montagu opposed the Balfour Declaration and gave a passionate speech in the Cabinet against the content of the Declaration. He led the Indian delegation at the Paris conference.
  23. Ganga Singh (1880-1943), Maharajah of Bikaner , was major general in the British-Indian Army, fought against the Turks in Egypt and Palestine and was a member of the Imperial War Cabinet. At the Paris Peace Conference he represented the Empire of India and was the only colored participant.
  24. Vittorio Emanuele Orlando (1860–1952) was President of the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of Italy from 1917 to 1919 . He was on the Council of Four , the highest body of the Paris Peace Conference. Due to his weak political position and his inadequate knowledge of English, Orlando only played a subordinate role and was unable to assert Italy's claim to Dalmatia, which was assured in the London Treaty of 1915 .
  25. Paul Hymans (1865-1941), a Belgian politician , was appointed Special Envoy to the British Government in London in 1915 . In 1917 he took over the post of Minister of Economics and in early 1918 that of Foreign Minister in the Belgian government. He led the Belgian delegation to the Paris Peace Conference and became the first chairman of the League of Nations in 1920.
  26. Louis Botha (1862-1919) was the first Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1910 to 1919 . He supported Great Britain by sending troops to German South West Africa , later to East Africa and the Western Front . As a representative of the Dominion South Africa, he was involved in the negotiations on the Versailles Peace Treaty.
  27. Billy Hughes (1862–1952) was Prime Minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923 . He called on the national conference for closer cooperation in the (Imperial conference) 1916 British Empire and thus became a pioneer of the Commonwealth of Nations . He took part in the Paris peace negotiations as a representative of Australia.

More paintings from the series

William Orpen, as the official portrait artist of the Paris Peace Conference, made two more pictures:

Web links

Commons : The Signing of Peace in the Hall of Mirrors  - Collection of images, videos and audio files