1. © Boardworks Ltd 2006 1 of 32 International Relations 1918–1939 How the League Dealt with International Conflicts Icons key: For more detailed instructions, see the Getting Started presentation Teacher’s notes included in the Notes Page Accompanying worksheet Flash activity. These activities are not editable. Web addresses Sound

2. An idea of American President Woodrow Wilson following the first world war An international police force made up of representatives of many countries An organization that would allow disputes to be settled without resorting to war, based in Geneva (neutral). What was the League of Nations?

3. © Boardworks Ltd 2006 3 of 32 Differing views on how the League should operate: AmericaBritainFrance A world parliament where representatives would meet regularly to decide on matter which affected all of them A simple organisation that would meet during emergencies A strong League capable of enforcing decisions with its own army

4. Each of these types of League has advantages and disadvantages: Although France’s idea of a strong League would mean it could be an effective force, the League was meant to be centred on peace. Potentially, its own army could provoke another war Britain’s simpler idea would mean that the League would merely dealing with emergencies rather than working on preventing them from of occurring in the first place America’s version of the League would be expensive and a complicated to organise, although it might have been the most effective version in terms of keeping peace

5. © Boardworks Ltd 2006 5 of 32 However, the idea of joining the League was not popular with all Americans … Many Americans did not think the Treaty of Versailles was fair. As the League was linked with the treaty, they did not want to be a part of it Americans wanted to stay out of disputes that might enter their troops into the kind of carnage of the first world war Others wanted to avoid the economic cost of joining the League Many Americans were anti-French or Anti-British. They thought the League would be run by these countries and did not want to get involved with their affairs

6. Wilson’s party lost the election in 1919. His opponents promised to follow a policy of isolationism (staying out of international affairs). And so America did not join the League of Nations…

7. 1.Discourage aggression from any country 2.Encourage co-operation in business and trade 3.Encourage disarmament 4.Improve working and living conditions for people across the world Aims of the League

8. Membership … 42 countries joined at the start, rising to 60 in the 1930s Defeated countries from WW1 could not join immediately (e.g. Germany joined in 1926) Russia was left out – communist revolution in 1917 USA never joined – American Congress refused to the sign the Peace Treaties – Wilson was voted out of office The League was regarded as a ‘winners only club’ Neither Britain nor France gave the League their full support

9. America:- had become isolationist Germany:- As a defeated country who was blamed for staring the Great war, Germany was not invited to join Russia:- Were not invited to join the League, mainly due to their Communist government When it opened, some countries were not members of the League:

10. The Structure of the League of Nations

11. The Successes

12. Aaland Islands, 1921 Austria and Hungary were on the brink of bankruptcy due to reparations and weak economies after the war The league arranged international loans and helped them manage their finances They were able to begin economic recovery Dispute over possession of the Aaland Islands between Sweden and Finland Took it to the league, and they decided Finland should have the islands Both countries accepted the league’s decision Economic Collapse, Austria & Hungary, 1922-3

13. Upper Silesia, 1921 A plebiscite area with large numbers of Germans and Poles living in it Voted to rejoin Germany by 700,000 to 420,000 League split it: –Germany got most of the land & population –Poland got most of the industry –Germany bitter about this, but both countries accepted the decision (messy compromise) The Greek-Bulgarian Dispute 1925 Greek-Bulgarian border the source of dispute After some violent incidents, Greece invaded Bulgaria League condemned Greece’s actions and pressurised them to withdraw They did so

14. The Failures

15. Vilna, 1920 Vilna was part of the state of Lithuania, but had a mainly Polish population. Both countries wanted it. Was occupied by Poland during the Russo-Polish war, and troops later refused to leave. The league was reluctant to get involved as it would require armed forces, and Poland was seen as a useful ally against Germany and the Soviet Union In the end, the League confirmed Poland’s occupation of Vilna Showed League as weak and basically useless

16. Corfu, 1923 Italian surveyors working on the Greek side of the Greek-Albanian border were shot Mussolini demanded compensation When it didn’t come, he bombarded and occupied Corfu League wanted to condemn Italy, but major powers wouldn’t allow it Instead they pressurised Greece to accept Italy’s terms Only when they did, did Mussolini withdraw Showed League’s weakness in the face of a strong member state

17. Learning objectives What we will learn in this presentation: © Boardworks Ltd 2006 17 of 32 Learning objectives How the League was challenged in the 1920s and the successes it achieved. How the Great Depression affected the League. Why the League failed over Manchuria and Abyssinia.

18. League of Nations – reminder activity

19. Successes of the League During the 1920s, the League of Nations appeared to make some progress towards preventing future wars. In the Washington Naval Agreement of 1922, Britain, France, the USA and Japan agreed to limit the size of their navies. In 1925, Germany signed the Treaty of Locarno in which it agreed to accept its western boundaries, as set by the Treaty of Versailles, and also, the demilitarization of the Rhineland. In return, Germany was allowed to join the League of Nations and inspections of the German army ceased.

20. Successes of the League President Coolidge signing the pact for the USA. Do you think this promise would prevent a country going to war? The League also encouraged the signing of the Kellogg-Briand Pact in 1928. In this agreement, 15 major nations (including Germany) promised not to use “war as an instrument of national policy,” and to pursue their goals through peaceful means. By 1933, 60 nations had made this promise.

21. Successes of the League It looked promising for the League, but did these pacts really mean anything? Nations happily signed up to the principles of peace and cooperation, but there was nothing to stop them simply breaking their promises when they were inconvenient. After the First World War, most nations wanted to reduce expenditure on defence anyway. The League would face stiffer tests in the areas of international disputes and border conflicts.

22. Early challenges to the League – the 1920s

23. Humanitarian successes The League of Nations also did a lot of useful humanitarian work in the 1920s. The League of Nations was the first to suggest that the world community should take collective action to tackle this sort of problem. droughts in Africa leprosy child slave labour drugs smuggling refugees. Commissions dealt with many issues, including:

24. The 1920s – success or failure?

25. The depression and the League In 1929, the collapse of the American stock market caused an economic depression (often called the Great Depression). The depression was not just felt in America – it affected the whole world. The USA demanded repayment of the money it had loaned to Germany and other countries. This caused great economic hardship and damaged world trade. The slump in world trade was worsened by the USA putting tariffs (taxes) on imported goods.

26. The depression and the League The depression had a huge social and economic impact on the major world powers. The drop in trade led to massive unemployment and terrible hardship for ordinary people all over the world. The volume of international trade fell by 70% as countries brought in import tariffs – by taxing imports, countries sought to prevent cheaper foreign goods undercutting their domestic industries.

27. The depression and the League How the depression affected the League There was less international cooperation. The USA and other nations looked to take care of themselves instead of worrying about world peace and humanitarian issues. Desperate people suffering terrible economic hardship increasingly turned to leaders offering radical solutions. This led to the rise of militaristic fascist governments. Britain and France no longer wished to sort out international disputes that would cost them money and could further damage their trade.

28. The depression and the League

29. The Manchurian Crisis 1931 The Japanese economy relied on exporting goods to America. This meant that the depression hit Japan very hard. Economic hardship led to the Japanese civilian government becoming unpopular and the military increasing its power. The army decided that the best way for Japan to escape the effects of the depression was to invade Manchuria (part of China). Japan invaded Manchuria in 1931. Japan had conquered Korea in 1905.

30. The Manchurian Crisis 1931

31. The Manchurian Crisis: The spark

32. The League’s reaction to the Manchurian Crisis The League told Japan to leave Manchuria but they refused. A commission under Lord Lytton was sent to investigate the issue. The commission finally reported a year after the invasion, concluding that Japan was in the wrong and should leave Manchuria. Japan’s response was to withdraw from the League. Four years later Japan invaded the rest of China. Lord Lytton Chinese civilian casualties

33. The League’s reaction to the Manchurian Crisis Why did the League not take action against Japan? The main reason was that the great powers were not prepared to commit troops and ships to punishing Japan. The only two nations with the capacity to act were Britain and the USA. The British economy was in dire straits. The British navy was on the verge of mutiny after the government was forced to cut wages due to the depression. The USA was still reeling from the depression. President Hoover argued that imposing sanctions on Japan would be to risk war for no real gain.

34. Source analysis How does this cartoon reflect how the League dealt with the Manchurian Crisis?

35. The Abyssinian Crisis 1935 To distract the Italian people from economic problems and to satisfy Italian imperial desires, the Italian leader, Mussolini, suddenly invaded Abyssinia (modern Ethiopia) in October 1935. Italy was also suffering due to the depression.

36. The Abyssinian Crisis 1935 The invasion was very brutal and initiated without declaration of war. Although the Abyssinian army was larger, they were armed with out-of- date rifles, spears and bows. They were no match for the Italian machine guns, artillery and planes. The Italians also used large quantities of mustard gas against Abyssinian troops, civilians and even the Red Cross. This was a clear violation of the Geneva Protocol which Italy had signed in 1925. The Abyssinian army The Italian army

37. The Abyssinian Crisis 1935

38. Italy and Abyssinia were both members of the League of Nations. The League agreed that Italy was in the wrong, but it took months to make a decision about what to do next. In the end they punished Italy with economic sanctions. However, Italy could continue to trade with countries like America that were not in the League. Mussolini

39. The Abyssinian Crisis 1935 Crucially, they did not include oil in the list of embargoed goods. The League knew if their members stopped selling oil to Italy, we’d just get it from the USA instead. How effectively did the League deal with the Abyssinian Crisis? Were the great powers really interested in punishing Italy? Britain continued to let Italian ships use the Suez Canal to reach Abyssinia.

40. The Abyssinian Crisis 1935 How did the Hoare-Laval Plan undermine the League? It is important to consider the Abyssinian Crisis in context. It was part of a wider situation that led to the failure of the League. Whilst this crisis was being played out, Hitler sent German troops into the Rhineland, breaking the Treaty of Versailles. Desperate to get out of the Abyssinian Crisis without either giving in or going to war, Britain and France privately talked to Italy. They agreed to let Italy have two-thirds of Abyssinia (under what was called the Hoare-Laval Plan) in exchange for support against Hitler’s actions! What does it reveal about British and French attitudes?

41. Hoare-Laval Plan The plan was leaked to the newspapers. Hoare had been condemning Italian actions while secretly negotiating to give Abyssinia to Italy. He was forced to resign. The Hoare-Laval Plan in effect ended the power of the League. Italy had shown that the League’s principal powers had no desire to stop an aggressor. At the same time, France and Britain managed to annoy Mussolini to the point where he opened diplomatic talks with Germany. France’s alliance with Italy, against Germany, was over. Sir Hoare

42. Your application to the Foreign Office

43. Source analysis What is this cartoon trying to say about the attitude of Britain and France and the effectiveness of the League? “We don’t want you to fight but, by jingo if you do, we shall probably issue a joint memorandum suggesting a mild disapproval of you.” Text below the cartoon reads: The Awful Warning

44. Anagrams

45. Exam question 1.Describe how the events following the 1935 Italian invasion of Abyssinia led to Italy withdrawing from the League of Nations in 1937. [6] This is a straightforward select and explain question. To get a grade C in this question you need to select one point and explain it in detail. To get a B or an A, you need to explain at least two points in detail.

46. Exam question 1.Describe how the events following the 1935 Italian invasion of Abyssinia led to Italy withdrawing from the League of Nations in 1937. [6] You can look at: details of the attack itself the League’s response the Hoare-Laval Plan the attitudes of the great powers to Mussolini and the crisis Mussolini’s relationship with Hitler.

47. Writing frame Remember, to get a grade A or B (5 to 6 marks) you need to look at a minimum of two aspects in this way. You can use these sentence starters as a guide for all the aspects you look at. The Italian invasion of Abyssinia led to… This was when… This is important because…