History could repeat itself. Again. Vladimir Putin proposed a peace agreement involving the annexation of two Ukrainian territories, an initiative denounced as unacceptable by kyiv, before the appointment at the White House. This type of treaty, described as “Carthaginian peace” evokes historical agreements where the winner imposes overwhelming conditions in the defeated, like peace concluded between Rome and Carthage after the Second Punic war, which has disarmed and humiliated Carthage. Like the Russian peace agreement proposal, other “shame” treaties had to be signed throughout history. Philippe Foro, associate professor in contemporary history offers some examples to 20 Minutes.
The Treaty of Campo-Formio, in 1797
At the end of the 18th century, Bonaparte and the Austrian government signed the Campo-Formio peace treaty between France and the Austrian government which ended the Franco-Austrian war. “This peace has removed the Republic of Venice with a feather, without being consulted. It has removed a state present for centuries. Under the pretext that the Venetian government is anti-French, it is partly annexed by Austria. The other part of the territory is integrated into the Cisalpine Republic under French influence. We decided on his fate without asking for his opinion ”.
This removal of a “feather” state comes six months after the “Véronaises Easter”, a revolt against the French garrison in Verona. In response, Bonaparte occupies the whole Republic and decrees its dissolution. This decision compensates for Austria for the loss of the Duchy of Milan, won over by France in 1796.
The Treaty of Haiti, in 1825
The Treaty of Haiti, or more precisely the order of Charles X of April 17, 1825, is an agreement imposed by France in Haiti to recognize its independence, proclaimed in 1804 after a revolt of victorious slaves against French colonization. In exchange for this recognition, France required a colossal compensation of 150 million gold francs (reduced to 90 million in 1838) to compensate for the lost properties and trade of the old settlers. This sum was paid under the threat of a French military invasion. “It was a unique situation where the winners compensate the vanquished. Haiti had to go into debt with French and American banks to honor this compensation, allowing France to maintain an economic grip on its former colony. It was not until 1947, more than 140 years after his independence, that Haiti ended up repaying his debt.
The First World War, champion of bad treaties
The Versaille Treaty
Signed after the First World War, this treaty imposed on Germany territorial losses, the deprivation of its colonies, heavy economic repairs and a drastic reduction in its military forces. Nicknamed the “Versailles diktat” by the Germans, it is written without their participation. But is this an agreement of shame? “You have to be very careful about this treaty. Is it really a “diktat”? Keynes talks about a Carthaginian peace but it is today greatly discussed. The winners wrote the treaty, but its excessive character is debated. The German economy was not destroyed, and territorial losses, as in Poland, concerned already ethnically mixed areas, “nuance the historian. This treaty also echoes the Frankfurt Treaty in 1871, where France, humiliated, had sold Alsace-Lorraine and paid 5 billion gold francs to Germany. “It is not for nothing that the two agreements were signed in the Galerie des Glaces,” adds Philippe Foro. A questionable agreement as revenge on an unfair agreement, in a way.
The Treaty of Trianon
At the same time, the Trianon Treaty was signed in 1920. The treaty obliges the parties to recognize the new international borders between Hungary and its neighbors: Czechoslovakia, Romania, Yugoslavia and Austria. He requires Hungary to pay repairs and limit his armed forces. “The Hungarians lived this treaty very badly. The government has continued to request a revision of the treaty. The vanquished 1918 tended to see these treaties as imposed and not negotiated, ”specifies the lecturer.
The Treaty of Sèvres
The Treaty of Sèvres, signed on August 10, 1920 after the First World War, configured the Moudros armistice between the allies and the Ottoman Empire. This treaty dismantles the Ottoman Empire, which loses its Arab and African provinces, sells the eastern Thrace to Greece, recognizes an independent Armenia and an autonomous Kurdish province, while Syria, Lebanon, Mesopotamia and Palestine pass under French and British mandates. “Extremely severe, it was canceled thanks to the resistance of Mustafa Kemal, who overthrew the Empire to found the Republic of Türkiye,” said Philippe Foro. Not ratified, he led to the more favorable Lausanne Treaty.
Unlike Ukraine today, which is not militarily defeated, the signatories of these treaties were often forced by their defeat. These agreements, marked by their unilateral character, have left historical scars, fueling feelings and claims over several decades, sometimes more.