Big Four (World War I)
The Big Four or the Four Nations refer to the four top Allied powers of World War I[1] and their leaders who met at the Paris Peace Conference in January 1919. The Big Four is also known as the Council of Four. It was composed of Georges Clemenceau of France, David Lloyd George of the United Kingdom, Vittorio Emanuele Orlando of Italy, and Woodrow Wilson of the United States.
Purpose[edit]
While the Allies at the Paris Peace Conference made up more than twenty nations, the Big Four entered Versailles and were leading architects of the Treaty of Versailles which was signed by Germany;[8] the Treaty of St. Germain, with Austria; the Treaty of Neuilly, with Bulgaria; the Treaty of Trianon, with Hungary; and the Treaty of Sèvres, with the Ottoman Empire.[9] At one point Orlando temporarily[10] pulled out of the conference because Italian demands were not met, leaving the other three countries as the sole major architects of the talk, referred to as the "Big Three".[11] The Italian delegation returned after 11 days.[12] Mr. Maurice Hankey was the council's sole secretary and took minutes.[13]