The conference was to have been opened on July 5, and a preliminary sitting was in fact held on that day, but owing to the non-arrival of Otto Gessler, the German minister of defense, it was not possible to proceed with the serious consideration of the first subject on the agenda, which was the question of German disarmament. The conference was held under the presidency of the Belgian prime minister, Léon Delacroix, and the Belgian foreign minister, Paul Hymans, also attended. The British representatives, in addition to Lloyd George himself, were Lord Curzon and Sir Laming Worthington-Evans. The chief Italian representative was Count Sforza, the distinguished and successful foreign minister. The German chancellor was accompanied by Simons and Wirth.