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Germany,
recognising that the Treaties of April 19, 1839, which established
the status of Belgium before the war, no longer conform to the
requirements of the situation, consents to the abrogation of the
said Treaties and undertakes immediately to recognise and to observe
whatever conventions may be entered into by the Principal Allied and
Associated Powers, or by any of them, in concert with the
Governments of Belgium and of the Netherlands, to replace the said
Treaties of 1839. If her formal adhesions should be required to such
conventions or to any of their stipulations, Germany undertakes
immediately to give it.
Germany
recognises the full sovereignty of Belgium over the whole of the
contested territory of Moresnet (called Moresnet neutre).
Germany
renounces in favour of Belgium all rights and title over the
territory of Prussian Moresnet situated on the west of the road from
Liege to Aix-la-Chapelle; the road will belong to Belgium where it
bounds this territory.
Germany
renounces in favour of Belgium all rights and title over the
territory comprising the whole of the Kreise of Eupen and of Malmedy.
During the six months after the coming into force of this Treaty,
registers will be opened by the Belgian authority at Eupen and
Malmedy in which the inhabitants of the above territory will be
entitled to record in writing a desire to see the whole or part of
it remain under German sovereignty. The results of this public
expression of opinion will be communicated by the Belgian Government
to the League of Nations, and Belgium undertakes to accept the
decision of the League.
A
Commission of seven persons, five of whom will be appointed by the
Principal Allied and Associated Powers, one by Germany and one by
Belgium, will be set up fifteen days after the coming into force of
the present Treaty to settle on the spot the new frontier line
between Belgium and Germany, taking into account the economic
factors and the means of communication. Decisions will be taken by a
majority and will be binding on the parties concerned.
When
the transfer of the sovereignty over the territories referred to
above has become definite, German nationals habitually resident in
the territories will definitively acquire Belgian nationality ipso
facto, and will lose their German nationality. Nevertheless, German
nationals who became resident in the territories after August 1,
1914, shall not obtain Belgian nationality without a permit from the
Belgian Government.
Within
the two years following the definitive transfer of the sovereignty
over the territories assigned to Belgium under the present Treaty,
German nationals over 18 years of age habitually resident in those
territories will be entitled to opt for German nationality. Option
by a husband will cover his wife, and option by parents will cover
their children under 18 years of age. Persons who have exercised the
above right to opt must within the ensuing twelve months transfer
their place of residence to Germany. They will be entitled to retain
their immovable property in the territories acquired by Belgium.
They may carry with them their movable property of every
description. No export or import duties may be imposed upon them in
connection with the removal of such property.
The
German Government will hand over without delay to the Belgian
Government the archives, registers, plans, title deeds and documents
of every kind concerning the civil, military, financial, judicial or
other administrations in the territory transferred to Belgian
sovereignty. The German Government will likewise restore to the
Belgian Government the archives and documents of every kind carried
off during the war by the German authorities from the Belgian public
administrations, in particular from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
at Brussels.
The
proportion and nature of the financial liabilities of Germany and of
Prussia with Belgium will have to bear on account of the territories
ceded to her shall be fixed in conformity with Articles 254 and 256
of Part IX (Financial Clauses) of the present Treaty.
With
regard to the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, Germany renounces the
benefit of all the provisions inserted in her favour in the Treaties
of February 8, 1842, April 2, 1847, October 20-25, 1865, August 18,
1866, February 21 and May 11, 1867, May 10, 1871, June 11, 1872, and
November 11, 1902, and in all Conventions consequent upon such
Treaties. Germany recognises that the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg
ceased to form part of the German Zollverein as from January 1,
1919, renounces all rights to the exploitation of the railways,
adheres to the termination of the regime of neutrality of the Grand
Duchy, and accepts in advance all international arrangements which
may be concluded by the Allied and Associated Powers relating to the
Grand Duchy.
Germany
undertakes to grant to the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, when a demand
to that effect is made to her by the Principal Allied and Associated
Powers, the rights and advantages stipulated in favour of such
Powers or their nationals in the present Treaty with regard to
economic questions, to questions relative to transport and to aerial
navigation.
Germany
is forbidden to maintain or construct any fortifications either on
the left bank of the Rhine or on the right bank to the west of a
line drawn 50 kilometres to the East of the Rhine.
In
the area defined above the maintenance and the assembly of armed
forces, either permanently or temporarily, and military maneuvers of
any kind, as well as the upkeep of all permanent works for
mobilization, are in the same way forbidden.
In
case Germany violates in any manner whatever the provisions of
Articles 42 and 43, she shall be regarded as committing a hostile
act against the Powers signatory of the present Treaty and as
calculated to disturb the peace of the world.
As
compensation for the destruction of the coal-mines in the north of
France and as part payment towards the total reparation due from
Germany for the damage resulting from the war, Germany cedes to
France in full and absolute possession, with exclusive rights of
exploitation, unencumbered and free from all debts and charges of
any kind, the coal-mines situated in the Saar Basin as defined in
Article 48.
In
order to assure the rights and welfare of the population and to
guarantee to France complete freedom in working the mines, Germany
agrees to the provisions of Chapters I and II of the Annex hereto.
In
order to make in due time permanent provision for the government of
the Saar Basin in accordance with the wishes of the populations,
France and Germany agree to the provisions of Chapter III of the
Annex hereto.
The
boundaries of the territory of the Saar Basin, as dealt with in the
present stipulations, will be fixed as follows: On the south and
south-west: by the frontier of France as fixed by the present
Treaty. On the north-west and north: by a line following the
northern administrative boundary of the Kreis of Merzig from the
point where it leaves the French frontier to the point where it
meets the administrative boundary separating the commune of
Saarholzbach from the commune of Britten; following this communal
boundary southwards and reaching the administrative boundary of the
canton of Merzig so as to include in the territory of the Saar Basin
the canton of Mettlach, with the exception of the commune of Britten;
following successively the northern boundaries of the cantons of
Merzig and Haustedt, which are incorporated in the aforesaid Saar
Basin, then successively the administrative boundaries separating
the Kreise of Sarrelouis, Ottweiler, and Saint-Wendel from the
Kreise of Merzig, Treves (Trier), and the Principality of Birkenfeld
as far as a point situated about 500 metres north of the village of
Furschweiler (viz., the highest point of the Metzelberg). On the
north-east and east: from the last point defined above to a point
about 3 1/2 kilometres east-north-east of Saint-Wendel: a line to be
fixed on the ground passing east of Furschweiler, west of Roschberg,
east of points 418, 329 (south of Roschberg) west of Leitersweiler,
north-east of point 464, and following the line of the crest
southwards to its junction with the administrative boundary of the
Kreis of Kusel
thence
in a southerly direction the boundary of the Kreis of Kusel, then
the boundary of the Kreis of Homburg towards the south-south-east to
a point situated about 1000 metres west of Dunzweiler; thence to a
point about 1 kilometre south of Hornbach- a line to be fixed on the
ground passing through point 424 (about 1000 metres south-east of
Dunzweiler), point 363 (Fuchs-Berg), point 322 (south-west of
Waldmohr), then east of Jagersburg and Erbach, then encircling
Homburg, passing through the points 361 (about 2-1/2 kilometres
north-east by east of that town), 342 (about 2 kilometres south-east
of that town), 347 (Schreiners-Berg), 356, 350 (about 1-1/2
kilometres south-east of Schwarzenbach), then passing east of Einod,
south-east of points 322 and 333, about 2 kilometres east of
Webenheim, about 2 kilometres east of Mimbach, passing east of the
plateau which is traversed by the road from Mimbach to Bockweiler
(so as to include this road in the territory of the Saar Basin),
passing immediately north of the junction of the roads from
Bockweiler and Altheim situated about 2 kilometres north of Altheim,
then passing south of Ringweilerhof and north of point 322,
rejoining the frontier of France at the angle which it makes about 1
kilometre south of Hornbach (see Map No. 2 scale 1/100,000 annexed
to the present treaty). [See Introduction ]
A
Commission composed of five members, one appointed by France, one by
Germany, and three by the Council of the League of Nations, which
will select nationals of other Powers, will be constituted within
fifteen days from the coming into force of the present Treaty, to
trace on the spot the frontier line described above.
In
those parts of the preceding line which do not coincide with
administrative boundaries, the Commission will endeavour to keep to
the line indicated, while taking into consideration, so far as is
possible, local economic interests and existing communal boundaries.
The
decisions of this Commission will be taken by a majority, and will
be binding on the parties concerned.
Germany
renounces in favour of the League of Nations, in the capacity of
trustee, the government of the territory defined above.
At
the end of fifteen years from the coming into force of the present
Treaty the inhabitants of the said territory shall be called upon to
indicate the sovereignty under which they desire to be placed.
The
stipulations under which the cession of the mines in the Saar Basin
shall be carried out, together with the measures intended to
guarantee the rights and the well-being of the inhabitants and the
government of the territory, as well as the conditions in accordance
with which the plebiscite herein before provided for is to be made,
are laid down in the Annex hereto. This Annex shall be considered as
an integral part of the present Treaty, and Germany declares her
adherence to it.
In
accordance with the provisions of Articles 45 to 50 of the present
Treaty, the stipulations under which the cession by Germany to
France of the mines of the Saar Basin will be effected, as well as
the measures intended to ensure respect for the rights and
well-being of the population and the government of the territory,
and the conditions in which the inhabitants will be called upon to
indicate the sovereignty under which they may wish to be placed,
have been laid down as follows:
From
the date of the coming into force of the present Treaty, all the
deposits of coal situated within the Saar Basin as defined in
Article 48 of the said Treaty, become the complete and absolute
property of the French State.
The
French State will have the right of working or not working the said
mines, or of transferring to a third party the right of working
them, without having to obtain any previous authorisation or to
fulfil any formalities.
The
French State may always require that the German mining laws and
regulations referred to below shall be applied in order to ensure
the determination of its rights.
2.
The
right of ownership of the French State will apply not only to the
deposits which are free and for which concessions have not yet been
granted, but also to the deposits for which concessions have already
been granted, whoever may be the present proprietors, irrespective
of whether they belong to the Prussian State, to the Bavarian State,
to other States or bodies, to companies or to individuals, whether
they have been worked or not, or whether a right of exploitation
distinct from the right of the owners of the surface of the soil has
or has not been recognised.
3.
As
far as concerns the mines which are being worked, the transfer of
the ownership to the French State will apply to all the accessories
and subsidiaries of the said mines, in particular to their plant and
equipment both on and below the surface to their extracting
machinery, their plants for transforming coal into electric power,
coke and by-products, their workshops means of communication,
electric lines, plant for catching and distributing water, land,
buildings such as offices, managers, employees, and workmen's
dwellings, schools, hospitals and dispensaries, their stocks and
supplies of every description, their archives and plans, and in
general everything which those who own or exploit the mines possess
or enjoy for the purpose of exploiting the mines and their
accessories and subsidiaries.
The
transfer will apply also to the debts owing for products delivered
before the entry into possession by the French State and after the
signature of the present Treaty, and to deposits of money made by
customers, whose rights will be guaranteed by the French State.
4.
The
French State will acquire the property free and clear of all debts
and charges. Nevertheless, the rights acquired, or in course of
being acquired, by the employees of the mines and their accessories
and subsidiaries at the date of the coming into force of the present
Treaty, in connection with pensions for old age or disability, will
not be affected. In return, Germany must pay over to the French
State a sum representing the actuarial amounts to which the said
employees are entitled.
5.
The
value of the property thus ceded to the French State will be
determined by the Reparation Commission referred to in Article 233
of Part VIII (Reparation) of the present Treaty.
This
value shall be credited to Germany in part payment of the amount due
for reparation. It will be for Germany to indemnify the proprietors
or parties concerned, whoever they may be.
6.
No
tariff shall be established on the German railways and canals which
may directly or indirectly discriminate to the prejudice of the
transport of the personnel or products of the mines and their
accessories or subsidiaries, or of the material necessary to their
exploitation. Such transport shall enjoy all the rights and
privileges which any international railway conventions may .
guarantee to similar products of French origin.
7.
The
equipment and personnel necessary to ensure the despatch and
transport of the products of the mines and their accessories and
subsidiaries, as well as the carriage of workmen and employees, will
be provided by the local railway administration of the Basin.
8.
No
obstacle shall be placed in the way of such improvements of railways
or waterways as the French State may judge necessary to assure the
despatch and the transport of the products of the mines and their
accessories and subsidiaries, such as double trackage, enlargement
of stations, and construction of yards and appurtenances. The
distribution of expenses will, in the event of disagreement, be
submitted to arbitration.
The
French State may also establish any new means of communication, such
as roads, electric lines, and telephone connections which it may
consider necessary for the exploitation of the mines it may exploit
freely and without any restrictions the means of communication of
which it may become the owner, particularly those connecting the
mines and their accessories and subsidiaries with the means of
communication situated in French territory.
9.
The
French State shall always be entitled to demand the application of
the German mining laws and regulations in force on November 11,
1918, excepting provisions adopted exclusively in view of the state
of war, with a view to the acquisition of such land as it may judge
necessary for the exploitation of the mines and their accessories
and subsidiaries.
The
payment for damage caused to immovable property by the working of
the said mines and their accessories and subsidiaries shall be made
in accordance with the German mining laws and regulations above
referred to.
10.
Every
person whom the French State may substitute for itself as regards
the whole or part of its rights to the exploitation of the mines and
their accessories and subsidiaries shall enjoy the benefit of the
privileges provided in this Annex.
11.
The
mines and other immovable property which become the property of the
French State may never be made the subject of measures of
forfeiture, forced sale, expropriation or requisition, nor of any
other measure affecting the right of property.
The
personnel and the plant connected with the exploitation of these
mines or their accessories and subsidiaries, as well as the product
extracted from the mines or manufactured in their accessories and
subsidiaries, may not at any time be made the subject of any
measures of requisition.
12.
The
exploitation of the mines and their accessories and subsidiaries,
which become the property of the French State will continue, subject
to the provisions of paragraph 23 below, to be subject to the regime
established by the German laws and regulations in force on November
11, 1918, excepting provisions adopted exclusively in view of the
state of war.
The
rights of the workmen shall similarly be maintained, subject to the
provisions of the said paragraph 23, as established on November 11,
1918, by the German laws and regulations above referred to.
No
impediment shall be placed in the way of the introduction or
employment in the mines and their accessories and subsidiaries of
workmen from without the Basin.
The
employees and workmen of French nationality shall have the right to
belong to French labour unions.
13.
The
amount contributed by the mines and their accessories and
subsidiaries, either to the local budget of the territory of the
Saar Basin or to the communal funds, shall be fixed with due regard
to the ratio of the value of the mines to the total taxable wealth
of the Basin.
14.
The
French State shall always have the right of establishing and
maintaining, as incidental to the mines, primary or technical
schools for its employees and their children, and of causing
instruction therein to be given in the French language, in
accordance with such curriculum and by such teachers as it may
select.
It
shall also have the right to establish and maintain hospitals,
dispensaries, workmen's houses and gardens, and other charitable and
social institutions.
15.
The
French State shall enjoy complete liberty with respect to the
distribution, dispatch and sale prices of-the products of the mines
and their accessories and subsidiaries.
Nevertheless,
whatever may be the total product of the mines, the French
Government undertakes that the requirements of local consumption for
industrial and domestic purposes shall always be satisfied in the
proportion existing in 1913 between the amount consumed locally and
the total output of the Saar Basin.
16.
The
Government of the territory of the Saar Basin shall be entrusted to
a Commission representing the League of Nations. This Commission
shall sit in the territory of the Saar Basin.
17.
The
Governing Commission provided for by paragraph 16 shall consist of
five members chosen by the Council of the League of Nations, and
will include one citizen of France, one native inhabitant of the
Saar Basin, not a citizen of France, and three members belonging to
three countries other than France or Germany.
The
members of the Governing Commission shall be appointed for one year
and may be re-appointed. They can be removed by the Council of the
League of Nations, which will provide for their replacement.
The
members of the Governing Commission will be entitled to a salary
which will be fixed by the Council of the League of Nations, and
charged on the local revenues.
18.
The
Chairman of the Governing Commission shall be appointed for one year
from among the members of the Commission by the Council of the
League of Nations and may be re-appointed. The Chairman will act as
the executive of the Commission.
19.
Within
the territory of the Saar Basin the Governing Commission shall have
all-the powers of government hitherto belonging to the German
Empire, Prussia, or Bavaria, including the appointment and dismissal
of officials, and the creation of such administrative and
representative bodies as it may deem necessary.
It
shall have full powers to administer and operate the railways,
canals, and the different public services. Its decisions shall be
taken by a majority.
20.
Germany
will place at the disposal of the Governing Commission all official
documents and archives under the control of Germany, of any German
State, or of any local authority, which relate to the territory of
the Saar Basin or to the rights of the inhabitants thereof.
21.
It
will be the duty of the Governing Commission to ensure, by such
means and under such conditions as it may deem suitable, the
protection abroad of the interests of the inhabitants of the
territory of the Saar Basin.
22.
The
Governing Commission shall have the full right of user of all
property, other than mines, belonging, either in public or in
private domain, to the Government of the German Empire, or the
Government of any German State, in the territory of the Saar Basin.
As
regards the railways an equitable apportionment of rolling stock
shall be made by a mixed Commission on which the Government of the
territory of the Saar Basin and the German railways will be
represented.
Persons,
goods, vessels, carriages, wagons and mails coming from or going to
the Saar Basin shall enjoy all the rights and privileges relating to
transit and transport which are specified in the provisions of Part
XII (Ports, Waterways and Railways) of the present Treaty.
23.
The
laws and regulations in force on November 11, 1918, in the territory
of the Saar Basin (except those enacted in consequence of the state
of war) shall continue to apply.
If,
for general reasons or to bring these laws and regulations into
accord with the provisions of the present Treaty, it is necessary to
introduce modifications, these shall be decided on, and put into
effect by the Governing Commission, after consultation with the
elected representatives of the inhabitants in such a manner as the
Commission may determine.
No
modification may be made in the legal regime for the exploitation of
the mines, provided for in paragraph 12, without the French State
being previously consulted, unless such modification results from a
general regulation respecting labour adopted by the League of
Nations.
In
fixing the conditions and hours of labour for men, women and
children, the Governing Commission is to take into consideration the
wishes expressed by the local labour organisations, as well as the
principles adopted by the League of Nations.
24.
Subject
to the provisions of paragraph 4, no rights of the inhabitants of
the Saar Basin acquired or in process of acquisition at the date of
coming into force of this Treaty, in respect of any insurance system
of Germany or in respect of any pension of any kind, are affected by
any of the provisions of the present Treaty.
Germany
and the Government of the territory of the Saar Basin will preserve
and continue all of the aforesaid rights.
25.
The
civil and criminal courts existing in the territory of the Saar
Basin shall continue.
A
civil and criminal court will be established by the Governing
Commission to hear appeals from the decisions of the said courts and
to decide matters for which these courts are not competent.
The
Governing Commission will be responsible for settling the
organisation and jurisdiction of the said court.
Justice
will be rendered in the name of the Governing Commission.
26.
The
Governing Commission will alone have the power of levying taxes and
dues in the territory of Saar Basin.
These
taxes and dues will be exclusively applied to the needs of the
territory.
The
fiscal system existing on November 11, 1918, will be maintained as
far as possible, and no new tax except customs duties may be imposed
without previously consulting the elected representatives of the
inhabitants.
27.
The
present stipulation will not affect the existing nationality of the
inhabitants of the territory of the Saar Basin.
No
hindrance shall be placed in the way of those who wish to acquire a
different nationality, but in such case the acquisition of the new
nationality will involve the loss of any other.
28.
Under
the control of the Governing Commission the inhabitants will retain
their local assemblies, their religious liberties, their schools and
their language.
The
right of voting will not be exercised for any assemblies other than
the local assemblies, and will belong to every inhabitant over the
age of twenty years, without distinction of sex.
29.
Any
of the inhabitants of the Saar Basin who may desire to leave the
territory will have full liberty to retain in it their immovable
property or to sell it at fair prices, and to remove their movable
property free of any charges.
30.
There
will be no military service, whether compulsory or voluntary, in the
territory of the Saar Basin, and the construction of fortifications
therein is forbidden.
Only
a local gendarmerie for the maintenance of order may be established.
It
will be the duty of the Governing Commission to provide in all cases
for the protection of persons and property in the Saar Basin.
31.
The
territory of the Saar Basin as defined by Article 48 of the present
Treaty shall be subjected to the French customs regime. The receipts
from the customs duties on goods intended for local consumption
shall be included in the budget of the said territory after
deduction of all costs of collection.
No
export tax shall be imposed upon metallurgical products or coal
exported from the said territory to Germany, nor upon the German
exports for the use of the industries of the territory of the Saar
Basin.
Natural
or manufactured products originating in the Basin in transit over
German territory and, similarly, German products in
transit
over the territory of the Basin shall be free of all customs duties.
Products
which both originate in and pass from the Basin into Germany shall
be free of import duties for a period of five years from the date of
the coming into force of the present Treaty, and during the same
period articles imported from Germany into the territory of the
Basin for local consumption, shall likewise be free of import
duties.
During
these five years the French Government reserves to itself the right
of limiting to the annual average of the quantities imported into
Alsace-Lorraine and France in the years 1911 to 1913 the quantities
which may be sent into France of all articles coming from the Basin
which include raw materials and semimanufactured goods imported duty
free from Germany. Such average shall be determined after reference
to all available official information and statistics.
32.
No
prohibition or restriction shall be imposed upon the circulation of
French money in the territory of the Saar Basin.
The
French State shall have the right to use French money in all
purchases, payments, and contracts connected with the exploitation
of the mines or their accessories and subsidiaries.
33.
The
Governing Commission shall have power to decide all questions
arising from the interpretation of the preceding provisions.
France
and Germany agree that any dispute involving a difference of opinion
as to the interpretation of the said provision shall in the same way
be submitted to the Governing Commission and the decision of a
majority of the Commission shall be binding on both countries.
34.
At
the termination of a period of fifteen years from the coming into
force of the present Treaty, the population of the territory of the
Saar Basin will be called upon to indicate their desires in the
following manner: A vote will take place by communes or districts,
on the three following alternatives: (a) maintenance of the regime
established by the present Treaty and by this Annex; (b) union with
France; (c) union with Germany.
All
persons without distinction of sex, more than twenty years old at
the date of the voting, resident in the territory at the date of the
signature of the present Treaty, will have the right to vote.
The
other conditions, methods, and the date of the voting shall be fixed
by the Council of the League of Nations in such a way as to secure
the freedom, secrecy and trustworthiness of the voting
35.
The
League of Nations shall decide on the sovereignty under which the
territory is to be placed, taking into account the wishes of the
inhabitants as expressed by the voting.
(a)
If, for the whole or part of the territory, the League of Nations
decides in favour of the maintenance of the regime established by
the present Treaty and this Annex, Germany hereby agrees to make
such renunciation of her sovereignty in favour of the League of
Nations as the latter shall deem necessary. It will be the duty of
the League of Nations to take appropriate steps to adapt the regime
definitively adopted to the permanent welfare of the territory and
the general interest;
(b)
If, for the whole or part of the territory, the League of Nations
decides in favour of union with France, Germany hereby agrees to
cede to France in accordance with the decision of the League of
Nations, all rights and title over the territory specified by the
League.
(c)
If, for the whole or part of the territory, the League of Nations
decides in favour of union with Germany, it will be the duty of the
League of Nations to cause the German Government to be
re-established in the government of the territory specified by the
League.
36.
If
the League of Nations decides in favour of the union of the whole or
part of the territory of the Saar Basin with Germany, France's
rights of ownership in the mines situated in such part of the
territory will be repurchased by Germany in their entirety at a
price payable in gold. The price to be paid will be fixed by three
experts, one nominated by Germany, one by France, and one, who shall
be neither a Frenchman nor a German, by the Council of the League of
Nations; the decision of the experts will be given by a majority.
The obligation of Germany to make such payment shall be taken into
account by the Reparation Commission, and for the purpose of this
payment Germany may create a prior charge upon her assets or
revenues upon such detailed terms as shall be agreed to by the
Reparation Commission. If, nevertheless, Germany after a period of
one year from the date on which the payment becomes due shall not
have effected the said payment, the Reparation Commission shall do
so in accordance with such instructions as may be given by the
League of Nations, and, if necessary, by liquidating that part of
the mines which is in question.
37.
If,
in consequence of the repurchase provided for in paragraph 36, the
ownership of the mines or any part of them is transferred to
Germany, the French State and French nationals shall have
the
right to purchase such amount of coal of the Saar Basin as their
industrial and domestic needs are found at that time to require. An
equitable arrangement regarding amounts of coal, duration of
contract, and prices will be fixed in due time by the Council of the
League of Nations.
38.
It
is understood that France and Germany may, by special agreements
concluded before the time fixed for the payment of the price for the
repurchase of the mines, modify the provisions of paragraphs 36 and
37.
39.
The
Council of the League of Nations shall make such provisions as may
be necessary for the establishment of the regime which is to take
effect after the decisions of the League of Nations mentioned in
paragraph 35 have become operative, including an equitable
apportionment of any obligations of the Government of the territory
of the Saar Basin arising from loans raised by the Commission or
from other causes.
From
the coming into force of the new regime, the powers of the Governing
Commission will terminate, except in the case provided for in
paragraph 35 (a).
In
all matters dealt with in the present Annex, the decisions of the
Council of the League of Nations will be taken by a majority.
The
HIGH CONTRACTING PARTIES, recognising the moral obligation to
redress the wrong done by Germany in 1871 both to the rights of
France and to the wishes of the population of Alsace and Lorraine,
which were separated from their country in spite of the solemn
protest of their representatives at the Assembly of Bordeaux Agree
upon the following Articles:
The
territories which were ceded to Germany in accordance with the
Preliminaries of Peace signed at Versailles on February 26, 187l,
and the Treaty of Frankfort of May lo, 1871, are restored to French
sovereignty as from the date of the Armistice of November 11, 1918.
The
provisions of the Treaties establishing the delimitation of the
frontiers before 1871 shall be restored.
The
German Government shall hand over without delay to the French
Government all archives, registers, plans, titles and documents of
every kind concerning the civil, military, financial, judicial or
other administrations of the territories restored to French
sovereignty. If any of these documents, archives, registers, titles
or plans nave been misplaced, they will be restored by the German
Government on the demand of the French Government.
Separate
agreements shall be made between France and Germany dealing with the
interests of the inhabitants of the territories referred to in
Article 51, particularly as regards their civil rights, their
business and the exercise of their professions, it being understood
that Germany undertakes as from the present date to recognise and
accept the regulations laid down in the Annex hereto regarding the
nationality of the inhabitants or natives of the said territories,
not to claim at any time or in any place whatsoever as German
nationals those who shall have been declared on any ground to be
French, to receive all others in her territory, and to conform, as
regards the property of German nationals in the territories
indicated in Article 51, with the provisions of Article 297 and the
Annex to Section IV of Part X (Economic Clauses) of the present
Treaty.
Those
German nationals who without acquiring French nationality shall
receive permission from the French Government to reside in the said
territories shall not be subjected to the provisions of the said
Article.
Those
persons who have regained French nationality in virtue of paragraph
1 of the Annex hereto will be held to be Alsace-Lorrainers for the
purposes of the present Section.
The
persons referred to in paragraph 2 of the said Annex will from the
day on which they have claimed French nationality be held to be
Alsace-Lorrainers with retroactive effect as from November 11, 1918.
For those whose application is rejected, the privilege will
terminate at the date of the refusal.
Such
juridical persons will also have the status of AlsaceLorrainers as
shall have been recognised as possessing this quality whether by the
French administrative authorities or by a judicial decision.
The
territories referred to in Article 5l shall return to France free
and quit of all public debts under the conditions laid down in
Article 255 of Part IX (Financial Clauses) of the present Treaty.
In
conformity with the provisions of Article 256 of Part IX (Financial
Clauses) of the present Treaty, France shall enter into
possession
of all property and estate, within the territories referred to in
Article 5l, which belong to the German Empire or German States,
without any payment or credit on this account to any of the States
ceding the territories.
This
provision applies to all movable or immovable property of public or
private domain together with all rights whatsoever belonging to the
German Empire or German States or to their administrative areas.
Crown
property and the property of the former Emperor or other German
sovereigns shall be assimilated to property of the public domain.
Germany
shall not take any action, either by means of stamping or by any
other legal or administrative measures not applying equally to the
rest of her territory, which may be to the detriment of the legal
value or redeemability of Germany monetary instruments or monies
which, at the date of the signature of the present Treaty, are
legally current, and at that date are in the possession of the
French Government.
A
special Convention will determine the conditions for repayment in
marks of the exceptional war expenditure advanced during the course
of the war by Alsace-Lorraine or by the public bodies in
Alsace-Lorraine on account of the Empire in accordance with German
law, such as payment to the families of persons mobilised,
requisitions, billeting of troops, and assistance to persons who
have been evacuated. In fixing the amount of these sums Germany
shall be credited with that portion which Alsace-Lorraine would have
contributed to the Empire to meet the expenses resulting from these
payments, this contribution being calculated according to the
proportion of the Imperial revenues derived from Alsace-Lorraine in
l913.
The
French Government will collect for its own account the Imperial
taxes, duties and dues of every kind leviable in the territories
referred to in Article 5l and not collected at the time of the
Armistice of November 11, 19l8.
The
German Government shall without delay restore to AlsaceLorrainers
(individuals, juridical persons and public institutions) all
property, rights and interests belonging to them on November 11,
1918, in so far as these are situated in German territory.
The
German Government undertakes to continue and complete without delay
the execution of the financial clauses regarding Alsace-Lorraine
contained in the Armistice Conventions.
The
German Government undertakes to bear the expense of all civil and
military pensions which had been earned in Alsace. Lorraine on date
of November 11, 1918, and the maintenance of which was a charge on
the budget of the German Empire.
The
German Government shall furnish each year the funds necessary for
the payment in francs, at the average rate of exchange for that
year, of the sums in marks to which persons resident in
Alsace-Lorraine would have been entitled if Alsace-Lorraine had
remained under German jurisdiction.
For
the purposes of the obligation assumed by Germany in Part VIII
(Reparation) of the present Treaty to give compensation for damages
caused to the civil populations of the Allied and Associated
countries in the form of fines, the inhabitants of the territories
referred to in Article 51 shall be assimilated to the
above-mentioned populations.
The
regulations concerning the control of the Rhine and of the Moselle
are laid down in Part XII (Ports, Waterways and Railways) of the
present Treaty.
Within
a period of three weeks after the coming into force of the present
Treaty, the port of Strasburg and the port of Kehl shall be
constituted, for a period of seven years, a single unit from the
point of view of exploitation.
The
administration of this single unit will be carried on by a manager
named by the Central Rhine Commission, which shall also have power
to remove him.
This
manager shall be of French nationality.
He
will reside in Strasburg and will be subject to the supervision of
the Central Rhine Commission.
There
will be established in the two ports free zones in conformity with
Part XII (Ports, Waterways and Railways) of the present Treaty.
A
special Convention between France and Germany which shall be
submitted to the approval of the Central Rhine Commission, will fix
the details of this organisation, particularly as regards finance.
It
is understood that for the purpose of the present Article the port
of Kehl includes the whole of the area necessary for the movement of
the port and the trains which serve it, including the harbour, quays
and railroads, platforms, cranes, sheds and warehouses, silos,
elevators and hydro-electric plants, which make up the equipment of
the port.
The
German Government undertakes to carry out all measures which shall
be required of it in order to assure that all the making-up and
switching of trains arriving at or departing from Kehl, whether for
the right bank or the left bank of the Rhine, shall be carried on in
the best conditions possible.
All
property rights shall be safeguarded. In particular the
administration of the ports shall not prejudice any property rights
of the French or Baden railroads.
Equality
of treatment as respects traffic shall be assured in both ports to
the nationals, vessels and goods of every country.
In
case at the end of the sixth year France shall consider that the
progress made in the improvement of the port of Strasburg still
requires a prolongation of this temporary regime, she may ask for
such prolongation from the Central Rhine Commission, which may grant
an extension for a period not exceeding three years.
Throughout
the whole period of any such extension the free zones above provided
for shall be maintained.
Pending
appointment of the first manager by the Central Rhine Commission a
provisional manager who shall be of French nationality may be
appointed by the Principal Allied and Associated Powers subject to
the foregoing provisions.
For
all purposes of the present Article the Central Rhine Commission
will decide by a majority of votes.
The
railway and other bridges across the Rhine now existing within the
limits of Alsace-Lorraine shall, as to all their parts and their
whole length, be the property of the French State, which shall
ensure their upkeep.
The
French Government is substituted in all the, rights of the German
Empire over all the railways which were administered by the Imperial
railway administration and which are actually working or under
construction.
The
same shall apply to the rights of the Empire with regard to railway
and tramway concessions within the territories referred to in
Article 51.
This
substitution shall not entail any payment on the part of the French
State.
The
frontier railway stations shall be established by a subsequent
agreement, it being stipulated in advance that on the Rhine frontier
they shall be situated on the right bank.
The
French Government is substituted in all the rights of the German
Empire over all the railways which were administered by the Imperial
railway administration and which are actually working or under
construction.
The
same shall apply to the rights of the Empire with regard to railway
and tramway concessions within the territories referred to in
Article 51.
This
substitution shall not entail any payment on the part of the French
State.
The
frontier railway stations shall be established by a subsequent
agreement, it being stipulated in advance that on the Rhine frontier
they shall be situated on the right bank.
In
accordance with the provisions of Article 268 of Chapter I of
Section I of Part X (Economic Clauses) of the present Treaty, for a
period of five years from the coming into force of the present
Treaty, natural or manufactured products originating in and coming
from the territories referred to in Article 51 shall, on importation
into German customs territory, be exempt from all customs duty.
The
French Government may fix each year, by decree communicated to the
German Government, the nature and amount of the products which shall
enjoy this exemption.
The
amount of each product which may be thus sent annually into Germany
shall not exceed the average of the amounts sent annually in the
years 1911-1913.
Further,
during the period of five years above mentioned, the German
Government shall allow the free export from Germany and the free
reimportation into Germany, exempt from all customs, duties and
other charges (including internal charge |