Why do wars sometimes end with the winning side “settling” for a peace treaty or money instead of simply capturing the opposing country?
An example of this could be the The Treaty of Versailles
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Wars happen when two or more groups of people want conflicting things and are willing to use violence to try to force what they want.
Wars end when one or both groups decide that fighting is no longer worth it. Maybe that’s because one side has been completely wiped out or subjugated. More frequently, it’s because one or both sides decide to concede enough of what the other wants that the cost of continuing to fight outweighs any benefit the other could obtain from doing so.
And ultimately, not every war is about trying to take over another country. The victor is the one who gets all or most of what they want in the end, and what they want varies from war to war. Sometimes it’s taking over more territory. Frequently it’s something else entirely.
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