On January 18, 1919 - just over two months after the fighting on World War I's Western Front ended - the Paris Peace Conference opened, beginning the five months of debates and discussions that surrounded the drawing up of the Versailles Treaty. Although many diplomats from the Allied Powers participated, the "big three" (Prime Minister David Lloyd George of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau of France, and President Woodrow Wilson of the United States) were the most influential. Germany was not invited. On May 7, 1919, the Versailles Treaty was handed over to Germany, who was told they had only three weeks in which to accept the Treaty. Considering that in many ways the Versailles Treaty was meant to punish Germany, Germany of course found much fault with the Versailles Treaty. The first part of the Versailles Treaty established the League of Nations. Other parts included the terms of military limitations, prisoners of war, finances, access to ports and waterways, and reparations. The most controversial aspect of the Versailles Treaty was that Germany was to take full responsibility for the damage caused during World War I (known as the "war guilt" clause, Article 231). The terms of the Versailles Treaty were so seemingly hostile to Germany that German Chancellor Philipp Scheidemann resigned rather than sign it. However, Germany realized they had to sign it for they had no military power left to resist. On June 28, 1919, exactly five years after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Germany's representatives Hermann Müller and Johannes Bell signed the Versailles Treaty in the Hall of Mirrors in the Palace of Versailles near Paris, France.