Reading · B1 · Text 35
Schloss Versailles
Dann gab es hier eine Feier für den deutschen Kaiser.
Then there was a celebration here for the German Emperor.
Nach dem Ersten Welt-Krieg wurde hier der Friedens-Vertrag geschrieben.
After the First World War, the peace treaty was written here.
Weil Deutschland den Krieg verloren hatte, war der Vertrag für Deutschland schlecht.
Because Germany had lost the war, the treaty was bad for Germany.
12 words above B1
Grammar in this text
Subordinate clause with 'weil' (verb-final)
Weil Deutschland den Krieg verloren hatte, war der Vertrag für Deutschland schlecht.
The conjunction 'weil' introduces a subordinate clause. The conjugated verb moves to the end of the clause. Here, 'hatte' is at the end of the weil-clause.
Past perfect tense (Plusquamperfekt)
Weil Deutschland den Krieg verloren hatte
The past perfect is formed with 'hatte' + past participle. It expresses an action that happened before another past action. Here, 'verloren hatte' indicates the loss happened before the treaty was written.
Passive voice with 'werden' (Präteritum)
wurde hier der Friedens-Vertrag geschrieben
The passive voice is formed with 'werden' + past participle. In the simple past, 'wurde' is used. The subject of the active sentence becomes the agent (often omitted), and the object becomes the subject. Here, 'der Friedens-Vertrag' is the subject, and 'geschrieben' is the past participle.
Prepositional phrase with 'für' + accusative
eine Feier für den deutschen Kaiser
The preposition 'für' always takes the accusative case. Here, 'den deutschen Kaiser' is in the accusative (masculine). This phrase indicates the purpose or beneficiary of the celebration.
Keep going
Text from Schloss Versailles — Klexikon, used under CC BY-SA 4.0. See sources.
Translation, glossary and grammar notes are machine-generated and inherit the same licence.