The Franco-German rivalry can probably be traced back to the partition of Charlemagne's empire (http://www.paulhensel.org/Research/frger98.pdf). The beginning of an interstate rivalry has different definitions, so the exact beginning of the Franco-German enmity cannot really be pinpointed. A working definition, however, is that a true rivalry begins when “each opponent regards the other as a primary rival” (paulhensel). Later examples that contributed to modern Franco-German rivalry include the hostility between France, Prussia, and Austria during the Napoleonic Wars and German unification (paulhensel). Much of the tension was over control of the Rhine and surrounding territories. Treaty of Versailles. of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919. It marked the end of the war between Germany and the Allied powers and meant the end of the First World War. Among many other conditions listed in the treaty, an extraordinary clause (Article 231, otherwise known as the War Guilt Clause) required that “Germany accept the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all losses and damage” that occurred during the war “as a consequence of the war forced upon them by the aggression of Germany and her allies” [ http://www.firstworldwar.com/source/versailles231-247.htm]. Since most of the war's major battles were fought on French territory, France was adamant that Germany be held responsible and punished accordingly. Among the reparations owed to France, Germany was forced to cede control of the Saar coal mines to the League of Nations, which decided that the coal would be sent to France to compensate for the French coal mines destroyed during the war [ATTRIBUTE] . The Treaty of Versailles ordered... half of the sheet...]. French and Belgian officials decided that action was needed to force the Germans to pay reparations. The French were particularly furious because payments for material goods, such as timber and coal, were based on figures produced by the Germans themselves [ATTRIBUTE]. The general consensus among the Allied powers was that Germany intentionally defaulted on payments to test the strength of the treaty and the resolve of the Allies [ATTRIBUTE]. France and Belgium joined forces to occupy a part of Germany called the Ruhr. French Prime Minister Raymond Poincaré expressed the reasons for his decision to join Belgium in the occupation of the Ruhr by saying that Germany “has always tried to escape its obligations… because until now it was not convinced of its defeat. … Germany… resigns itself to keeping its word only in case of necessity.”