At the end of World War I (1914-1918), the Allied powers occupied parts of Germany to maintain civil society, reconstruct the war-torn region, ensure security for France, and ensure Germany would sign the Treaty of Versailles, which officially ended the war in 1919. The occupation, which centered in the Rhineland region of western Germany, continued until 1930. In November 1918, American, British, French, and Belgian forces, including African-Americans and African soldiers in the French Army, participated in the occupation. After the collapse of the German government and a failed revolution which occurred in the immediate aftermath of the war, the US government’s leadership instructed American occupation forces to be friendly with the German population. Yet, American occupiers and Germans, who had just fought bitterly, did not always treat one another as friends. The war, and the occupation that followed, exacerbated political and social problems. The Germans endured four years of war, including an Allied Blockade that created massive food and fuel shortages. The new Weimar Republic struggled with civil unrest and economic volatility, including hyperinflation until 1924. In 1923, in part over international disagreements about German reparations payments and the repayments of loans to US banks, France expanded its occupation in the Ruhr, an area rich in natural resources, and the US government extracted American troops from the Rhineland, handing its occupation zone to the French.
Barnes, Alexander. In a Strange Land: The American Occupation of Germany, 1918-1923. Atglen: Schiffer, 2011.
Schröder, Joachim, and Alexander Watson. “Occupation During and After the War (Germany).” 1914-1918 Online: International Encyclopedia of the First World War. Accessed August 23, 2019, https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/occupation_during_and_after_the_war_germany.