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 strategic and economic principles the peace treaties
with Austria and Hungary were more vindictive than the one with Germany.
