The real agreement
The Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919 in the Hall of Mirrors. It was the peace treaty with Germany, not a single document resolving every relationship and conflict left by the First World War. The Palace of Versailles explains the signing and its setting.
Choose whose decision you are changing
A German representative considering acceptance, an Allied negotiator proposing terms and a legislator considering ratification face different choices. Select one role and research its authority before beginning your counterfactual.
Then identify a particular provision you would change. Do not assume that rejecting the whole treaty automatically produces a more generous agreement or removes the pressures facing the defeated country.
Build a plausible alternative
Who would agree to your proposal, and why? What does another party lose? What happens if negotiations fail?
Write a fictional exchange in which both sides explain a concrete concern. Label the dialogue as invented and distinguish it from any primary documents you consult.
Avoid an inevitable ending
Do not conclude that a different treaty alone guarantees peace, prevents dictatorship or produces an early European Union. Those outcomes would depend on many later decisions and circumstances.
A stronger ending describes the immediate result and two possible longer-term paths, explaining what additional assumptions each requires.
Participation
This is an evergreen writing prompt, not an active competition. No deadline, prize, judging panel or individual feedback is promised. Include a short source note and credit any collaborators.
Editorial review
Reviewed on 26 September 2026. Replaced deterministic claims about the next war, clarified the treaty’s scope and removed unsupported competition and feedback promises.