Since Woodrow’s fourteen points provided a succinct plan for world peace, they formed part of the Treaty of Versailles. Notably, not all points were encompassed in the treaty, which ultimately resulted in its partial success. Although the Treaty of Versailles was successful, it failed substantially in its enforcement and its inherent human element. Woodrow’s fourteen points invigorated the idealistic notion of peace in the absence of victors. Woodrow’s fourteen points incorporated in the Treaty of Versailles include self determination and the League of Nations augmenting idealistic notions that concluded that the war’s aim was to end all other wars. The treaty reflected European countries’ need to end Germany’s power and affirm their own.
Through the self-determination point, Woodrow points showed that some of the causes of the war, for instance, imperialism and nationalism were avoidable. This was because, theoretically, countries demanding recognition would acquire it through the world ruling countries. the US, France, Italy, France and Britain. Conversely, Woodrow’s point on the League of Nations argued that the influence of the League of Nation would unite the countries of the world and deter the incident of another war. In addition to self determination and the establishment of democracy through the League of Nations, Treaty of Versailles also incorporated Woodrow’s points on free trade, as well as open agreements. Notably, Woodrow’s points 1-13 were not encompassed in the treaty in order to give leeway for the incorporation of the League of Nations in the final treaty (Niall 74). Since the treaty failed to incorporate the first to the thirteenth points, the treaty failed to address the real causes of the war and left an imbalance of power in Europe, thereby paving the way for another war during which Germany claimed that the Treaty of Versailles was unfair.