Lesson AimLesson Aim
To find out what the successes and failures of the League of Nations were
Success 1: Solving Small Disputes Success 1: Solving Small Disputes Between CountriesBetween Countries
Aaland 1921 - both Finland and Sweden claimed these islands as their own
These islands were traditionally part of Finland but most islanders wanted to be with Sweden
The League of Nations stepped in and awarded the islands to Finland which both countries agreed to
Silesia (1921)Silesia (1921)
Both Germany and Poland claimed this area and a referendum in 1921 was very close but was won by the German side
The Poles were unhappy and went to the League
The League divided Silesia between Germany and Poland which was accepted by both
Bulgaria 1925Bulgaria 1925
Greece invaded Bulgaria in 1925 over a border dispute
Bulgaria appealed to the League and Greece was forced to withdraw
Success 2: Humanitarian WorkSuccess 2: Humanitarian WorkAfter a war in Turkey in 1922
there were 1.4 million refugees The League sent doctors
through the Health Organisation to stop the spread of disease
More than £10 million was spent on rebuilding the country
Work and homes were found for 600,000 people
Humanitarian Work (cont)Humanitarian Work (cont)The League took home half a million First
World War prisoners of war (1920)The League approved the Slavery
convention; altogether, the League freed 200,000 slaves. (1926)
The League worked to prevent malaria and leprosy.
Success (Partial) 3: Success (Partial) 3: Kellogg-Briand Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928 Pact 1928
The League was committed to ending wars and disarming countries
In 1928, 23 countries signed an agreement to no longer go to war. The agreement was supported by a further 65 countries
The agreement wasn’t a long term success as countries ignored it later
Failure 1: Major Countries not Failure 1: Major Countries not Members Members
Even though the League was President Wilson’s idea, the USA never joined the League
The President lost control of congress of Congress and it voted not to join
This was a return to the US policy of ISOLATIONISM from before WW1
Other countries not includedOther countries not includedGermany was excluded from the League until 1926
due to bad feeling over WW1 and left in 1933 when Hitler came to power
The USSR (Russia) was excluded until 1934 as it was a Communist country
Membership of the LeagueMembership of the League
Failure 2: Lack of Military PowerFailure 2: Lack of Military PowerThe League had no standing
army which meant it had no way of enforcing its decisions militarily
On many occasions countries simply ignored the League and did what they wanted including important members such as France
Lack of PowerLack of PowerSanctions were the main method that
the League could use to force countries to obey its decisions. Economic sanctions meant not trading with other countries.
However, the League had no means of organising an army of its own, so if a country ignored the league’s decisions then very little could actually be done.
Vilna 1921 Vilna 1921 Poland invaded the
Lithuanian city Vilna (Vilnius today) in 1921 as most of the population was Polish
Lithuania asked the League for help but Poland ignored the League and kept the city under World War 2
Invasion of Corfu 1923 Invasion of Corfu 1923 Italy invaded the Greek
island of Corfu in 1923 as part of a border dispute over Albania
The League was shown to be weak in this crisis and went along with Italy’s demands that they be paid money by the Greeks to withdraw
Invasion of the Ruhr 1923Invasion of the Ruhr 1923German fell behind in its war
repayments in 1922France demanded they pay
up and used this as an excuse to invade the resource-rich region of Germany called the Ruhr and claim it for France
The League could do nothing and it confirmed that the League was dominated by France and the UK
Invasion of Manchuria 1931 Invasion of Manchuria 1931 Another League member, Japan,
invaded the Chinese region of Manchuria in 1931
The League tried to get Japan to withdraw but it refused and the League couldn’t agree on sanctions / actions to stop Japan
Japan ended up leaving the League in 1933 as did many other countries throughout the 1920s and 1930s
Failure 3: Structural WeaknessesFailure 3: Structural Weaknesses
Many of the big nations never joined or left early so it was dominated by France and Britain
Votes for action had to be UNANIMOUS among nine council members which was difficult to achieve and often paralysed decision making
The Covenant and DisarmamentThe Covenant and DisarmamentThe Covenant consisted of the rules which
members had to agree to obey when they joined. The rules included accepting the League's decisions and not using force to solve disputes.
However many countries ignore this and the League couldn’t agree what to do
The League set to disarm countries but they also ignored this despite agreements being signed to disarm.
Make the following table in your Make the following table in your jotterjotter
Successes
FailuresSuccesses Failures
Work with a partner to think Work with a partner to think of three ways you could have of three ways you could have improved the Leagueimproved the League