The Imperialist Peace Order in Central Europe:: Saint-Germain and Trianon, 1919–1920

The peace treaties of Saint-Germain and Trianon sealed the disintegration of the Habsburg Monarchy into seven successor states under international law. Due to the ethnically mixed settlement structures of Austria-Hungary the application of the right of self-determination led to multiple demarcation conflicts between the new nation-states. When the Allied Powers started the Paris Peace Conference in January 1919 the negotiations were influenced by the unsettled atmosphere in East Central Europe which was suffering from an acute shortage of food and coal. Applying different political strateg ic and economic principles the peace treaties with Austria and Hungary were more vindictive than the one with Germany.