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 Chapter 2: The League of Nations and International Relations in the 1920s 2.4 How successful was the League of Nations during the 1920s? Key Terms Dates...

 Chapter 2: The League of Nations and International Relations in the 1920s 2.4 How successful was the League of Nations during the 1920s? Key Terms Dates Important People Aims of the League of Nations What was the League of Nations(LON)? ○ An idea of American President Woodrow Wilson following the first world war ○ An international police force made up of resentatives of many countries ○ An organisation that would allow disputes to be settled without resorting to war, based in Geneva (neutral). The League of Nations was dependent on its members to enforce its aims(goals). It had no armed forces. Long term strategy was creating a peaceful world. Disputes were to be submitted to some form of arbitration or inquiry by the LON. The LON could intervene between non-members More aims: ○ Discourage aggression from any country ○ Encourage cooperation in business and trade ○ Encourage disarmament ○ Improve working and living conditions for people across the world Membership & Structure of the League of Nations Initial Membership was the 32 Allied States and 13 neutral states. Germany joined in 1926, the USSR in 1934, the USA never joined. Structure: The Assembly, the Council, Permanent Secretariat ○ The Assembly Deliberative chamber- an assembly appointed to debate or discuss issues 3 representatives from each country ○ The Council Executive committee- a committee that can make key decisions Worked out details and the implementation of policies in which the Assembly had endorsed ○ Permanent Secretariat International civil service- a permanent administration made up of officials from all the member states ○ Permanent Court of International Justice Set up by the Hague Conference- task was to advise the council on legal matters and judging cases Structure of the League of Nations The Aaland Island Dispute These islands are between Finland and Sweden. ○ They had traditionally belonged to Finland but most of the islanders wanted to be governed by Sweden. ○ Neither Sweden nor Finland could come to a decision as to who owned the islands and in 1921 they asked LON to settle. ○ LON decision was that they should remain with Finland but that no weapons should ever be kept there. ○ Both countries accepted the decision and it remains in force to this day. Upper Silesia The Treaty of Versailles had given the people of Upper Silesia the right to have a referendum on whether they wanted to be part of Germany or part of Poland. ○ In this referendum, 700,000 voted for Germany and 500,000 for Poland. ○ This close result resulted in rioting between those who expected Silesia to be made part of Germany and those who wanted to be part of Poland. ○ LON was asked to settle this dispute. After a six-week inquiry, the League decided to split Upper Silesia between Germany and Poland. ○ LON decision was accepted by both countries and by the people in Upper Silesia. Greece & Bulgaria Both these nations have a common border. In 1925, patrolling border brigades fired on one another and a Greek soldier was killed. ○ The Greek army invaded Bulgaria as a result. ○ The Bulgarians asked the League for help and the League ordered both armies to stop fighting and that the Greeks should pull out of Bulgaria. ○ The League then sent experts to the area and decided that Greece was to blame and fined her £45,000. ○ Both nations accepted the decision Some Successes of the LON TESCHEN 1920 ○ In 1919, Poland and Czechoslovakia fought over this area, which was rich in coal. ○ In 1920 the League arbitrated on the dispute, splitting the area between the two countries. ○ Although neither country was happy about the decision, they accepted it and stopped the fighting. YUGOSLAVIA AND ALBANIA 1921 ○ In November 1921, Yugoslav troops invaded Albanian territory beyond the areas they were already occupying. ○ The League of Nations dispatched a commission composed of representatives of Britain, France, Italy, and Japan that reaffirmed Albania's 1913 borders. ○ Yugoslavia complained bitterly but had no choice but to withdraw its troops. TURKEY 1923 ○ The League failed to stop a bloody war in Turkey but it did respond to the humanitarian crisis caused by this war. 1,400,000 refugees had been created by this war with 80% of them being women and children. ○ Typhoid and cholera were rampant. The League sent doctors from the Health Organisation to check the spread of disease and it spent £10 million on building farms and homes for the refugees. ○ Money was also invested in seeds, wells and digging tools and by 1926, work was created for 600,000 people. A member of the League called this work “the greatest work of mercy which mankind has undertaken.” MOSUL 1924 ○ The Turks demanded Mosul, a part of Iraq (which was a British mandate). ○ The League supported Iraq and Turkey agreed. ○ In 1992, the people of Mosul, who were being persecuted by Saddam Hussein, went to the United Nations and cited League of Nations documents which guaranteed them minority rights in 1924, when the League gave Mosul to Iraq. ○ The incident may have been a success for the League, but it was a disaster for the Kurds who lived there. Weaknesses of the LON The League was tied into the Peace Agreements following WW1, which were closely associated with the policies of the allies. It suffered from the absence of the USA, Germany( until 1926) and the USSR (until 1934). The Corfu Incident, which we talked about previously, showed the self interest of the major powers and the ability to ignore the League of Nations when they wanted to. ○ This made it extremely difficult to have a unanimous decision made. Members, due to financial difficulties, were unable to give the League any support(whether that be financial or military) in the case of a crisis. There were too many loopholes, the status quo-the state of affairs as it exists at this moment, favored the great powers, and they lacked an army. Role and Impact of the LON The Mandates ○ The powers were forced by moral pressure to consider the interests of the native populations and begin to contemplate the possibility that they would one day become independent Rights of Minorities ○ Aimed at ensuring the various minorities left isolated behind their new frontiers enjoyed full civil rights (places like Austria, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia) Really had no way of enforcing this The League’s Welfare, Medical, and Economic Work ○ The LON was excluded from dealing with the key financial issues of the reparations and war debt, but its financial committees were entrusted with the tasks of repairing Austria and Hungary economies. ○ Wanted to create a free trade-no trade restrictions, but failed due to the climate of the time (Great Depression) The ILO (The International Labour Organization) ○ Regulated the work of workers in the fishing industry, labor conditions on ships, minimum wage fixing machinery, and coal miners. ○ Assisted in improving the working conditions of workers The Health Organization ○ Matters such as treating diseases and the design of hospitals and health education.