League of Nations
League of Nations
Société des Nations (French)
Anachronous Worwd map showing member states of de League of Nations during its history.
|Common wanguages||French and Engwish|
|Sir Eric Drummond|
|Historicaw era||Interwar period|
|10 January 1920|
• First meeting
|16 January 1920|
|20 Apriw 1946|
The League of Nations (abbreviated as LN or LoN in Engwish, La Société des Nations [wa sɔsjete de nɑsjɔ̃] abbreviated as SDN or SdN in French) was an intergovernmentaw organisation founded on 10 January 1920 as a resuwt of de Paris Peace Conference dat ended de First Worwd War. It was de first worwdwide intergovernmentaw organisation whose principaw mission was to maintain worwd peace. Its primary goaws, as stated in its Covenant, incwuded preventing wars drough cowwective security and disarmament and settwing internationaw disputes drough negotiation and arbitration. Oder issues in dis and rewated treaties incwuded wabour conditions, just treatment of native inhabitants, human and drug trafficking, de arms trade, gwobaw heawf, prisoners of war, and protection of minorities in Europe. At its greatest extent from 28 September 1934 to 23 February 1935, it had 58 members.
The dipwomatic phiwosophy behind de League represented a fundamentaw shift from de preceding hundred years. The League wacked its own armed force and depended on de victorious Great Powers of Worwd War I (France, de United Kingdom, Itawy and Japan were de permanent members of de executive Counciw) to enforce its resowutions, keep to its economic sanctions, or provide an army when needed. The Great Powers were often rewuctant to do so. Sanctions couwd hurt League members, so dey were rewuctant to compwy wif dem. During de Second Itawo-Abyssinian War, when de League accused Itawian sowdiers of targeting Red Cross medicaw tents, Benito Mussowini responded dat "de League is very weww when sparrows shout, but no good at aww when eagwes faww out."
After some notabwe successes and some earwy faiwures in de 1920s, de League uwtimatewy proved incapabwe of preventing aggression by de Axis powers in de 1930s. The credibiwity of de organization was weakened by de fact dat de United States never officiawwy joined de League and de Soviet Union joined wate and onwy briefwy. Germany widdrew from de League, as did Japan, Itawy, Spain and oders. The onset of de Second Worwd War showed dat de League had faiwed its primary purpose, which was to prevent any future worwd war. The League wasted for 26 years; de United Nations (UN) repwaced it after de end of de Second Worwd War and inherited severaw agencies and organisations founded by de League.
- 1 Origins
- 2 Languages and symbows
- 3 Principaw organs
- 4 Members
- 5 Mandates
- 6 Resowving territoriaw disputes
- 7 Oder confwicts
- 8 Faiwure of disarmament
- 9 Generaw weaknesses
- 10 Demise and wegacy
- 11 See awso
- 12 References
- 13 League topics
- 14 Externaw winks
The concept of a peacefuw community of nations had been proposed as far back as 1795, when Immanuew Kant's Perpetuaw Peace: A Phiwosophicaw Sketch outwined de idea of a weague of nations to controw confwict and promote peace between states. Kant argued for de estabwishment of a peacefuw worwd community, not in a sense of a gwobaw government, but in de hope dat each state wouwd decware itsewf a free state dat respects its citizens and wewcomes foreign visitors as fewwow rationaw beings, dus promoting peacefuw society worwdwide. Internationaw co-operation to promote cowwective security originated in de Concert of Europe dat devewoped after de Napoweonic Wars in de 19f century in an attempt to maintain de status qwo between European states and so avoid war. This period awso saw de devewopment of internationaw waw, wif de first Geneva Conventions estabwishing waws deawing wif humanitarian rewief during wartime, and de internationaw Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 governing ruwes of war and de peacefuw settwement of internationaw disputes. As historians Wiwwiam H. Harbaugh and Ronawd E. Powaski point out, Theodore Roosevewt was de first American President to caww for an internationaw weague. At de acceptance for his Nobew Prize, Roosevewt said: "it wouwd be a masterstroke if dose great powers honestwy bent on peace wouwd form a League of Peace."
The forerunner of de League of Nations, de Inter-Parwiamentary Union (IPU), was formed by de peace activists Wiwwiam Randaw Cremer and Frédéric Passy in 1889 (and is currentwy stiww in existence as an internationaw body wif a focus on de various ewected wegiswative bodies of de worwd.) The IPU was founded wif an internationaw scope, wif a dird of de members of parwiaments (in de 24 countries dat had parwiaments) serving as members of de IPU by 1914. Its foundationaw aims were to encourage governments to sowve internationaw disputes by peacefuw means. Annuaw conferences were estabwished to hewp governments refine de process of internationaw arbitration, uh-hah-hah-hah. Its structure was designed as a counciw headed by a president, which wouwd water be refwected in de structure of de League.
At de start of de First Worwd War de first schemes for internationaw organisation to prevent future wars began to gain considerabwe pubwic support, particuwarwy in Great Britain and de United States. Gowdswordy Lowes Dickinson, a British powiticaw scientist, coined de term "League of Nations" in 1914 and drafted a scheme for its organisation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Togeder wif Lord Bryce, he pwayed a weading rowe in de founding of de group of internationawist pacifists known as de Bryce Group, water de League of Nations Union. The group became steadiwy more infwuentiaw among de pubwic and as a pressure group widin de den governing Liberaw Party. In Dickinson's 1915 pamphwet After de War he wrote of his "League of Peace" as being essentiawwy an organisation for arbitration and conciwiation, uh-hah-hah-hah. He fewt dat de secret dipwomacy of de earwy twentief century had brought about war and dus couwd write dat, "de impossibiwity of war, I bewieve, wouwd be increased in proportion as de issues of foreign powicy shouwd be known to and controwwed by pubwic opinion, uh-hah-hah-hah." The ‘Proposaws’ of de Bryce Group were circuwated widewy, bof in Engwand and de US, where dey had a profound infwuence on de nascent internationaw movement.
Widin two weeks of de start of de war, feminists began to mobiwise against de war. Having been barred from participating in prior peace organizations, American women formed a Women's Peace Parade Committee to pwan a siwent protest to de war. Led by chairwoman Fanny Garrison Viwward, women from trade unions, feminist organizations, and sociaw reform organizations, such as Kate Wawwer Barrett, Mary Ritter Beard, Carrie Chapman Catt, Rose Schneiderman, Liwwian Wawd, and oders, organized 1500 women, who marched down Manhattan's Fiff Avenue on August 29, 1914. As a resuwt of de parade, Jane Addams became interested in proposaws by two European suffragists—Hungarian Rosika Schwimmer and British Emmewine Pedick-Lawrence—to howd a peace conference. On 9–10 January 1915, a peace conference directed by Addams was hewd in Washington, D. C., where de dewegates adopted a pwatform cawwing for creation of internationaw bodies wif administrative and wegiswative powers to devewop a "permanent weague of neutraw nations" to work for peace and disarmament.
Widin monds a caww was made for an internationaw women's conference to be hewd in The Hague. Coordinated by Mia Boissevain, Awetta Jacobs and Rosa Manus, de Congress, which opened on Apriw 28, 1915 was attended by 1,136 participants from bof neutraw and non-bewwigerent nations, and resuwted in de estabwishment of an organization which wouwd become de Women's Internationaw League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF). At de cwose of de conference, two dewegations of women were dispatched to meet European heads of state over de next severaw monds. They secured agreement from rewuctant Foreign Ministers, who overaww fewt dat such a body wouwd be ineffective, but agreed to participate or not impede creation of a neutraw mediating body, if oder nations agreed and if President Woodrow Wiwson wouwd initiate a body. In de midst of de War, Wiwson refused.
In 1915, a simiwar body to de Bryce group proposaws was set up in de United States by a group of wike-minded individuaws, incwuding Wiwwiam Howard Taft. It was cawwed de League to Enforce Peace and was substantiawwy based on de proposaws of de Bryce Group. It advocated de use of arbitration in confwict resowution and de imposition of sanctions on aggressive countries. None of dese earwy organisations envisioned a continuouswy functioning body; wif de exception of de Fabian Society in Engwand, dey maintained a wegawistic approach dat wouwd wimit de internationaw body to a court of justice. The Fabians were de first to argue for a "Counciw" of states, necessariwy de Great Powers, who wouwd adjudicate worwd affairs, and for de creation of a permanent secretariat to enhance internationaw co-operation across a range of activities.
In de course of de dipwomatic efforts surrounding Worwd War I, bof sides had to cwarify deir wong-term war aims. By 1916 in Britain, de weader of de Awwies, and in neutraw United States, wong-range dinkers had begun to design a unified internationaw organisation to prevent future wars. Historian Peter Yearwood argues dat when de new coawition government of David Lwoyd George took power in December 1916, dere was widespread discussion among intewwectuaws and dipwomats of de desirabiwity of estabwishing such an organisation, when Lwoyd George was chawwenged by Wiwson to state his position Wif an eye on de postwar situation, he endorsed such an organisation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Wiwson himsewf incwuded in his Fourteen Points in January 1918 a "weague of nations to insure peace and justice." British foreign secretary, Ardur Bawfour, argued dat, as a condition of durabwe peace, "behind internationaw waw, and behind aww treaty arrangements for preventing or wimiting hostiwities, some form of internationaw sanction shouwd be devised which wouwd give pause to de hardiest aggressor."
The war had had a profound impact, affecting de sociaw, powiticaw and economic systems of Europe and infwicting psychowogicaw and physicaw damage. Severaw empires cowwapsed: first de Russian Empire in February 1917, fowwowed by de German Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire and Ottoman Empire. Anti-war sentiment rose across de worwd; de First Worwd War was described as "de war to end aww wars", and its possibwe causes were vigorouswy investigated. The causes identified incwuded arms races, awwiances, miwitaristic nationawism, secret dipwomacy, and de freedom of sovereign states to enter into war for deir own benefit. One proposed remedy was de creation of an internationaw organisation whose aim was to prevent future war drough disarmament, open dipwomacy, internationaw co-operation, restrictions on de right to wage war, and penawties dat made war unattractive.
In London Bawfour commissioned de first officiaw report into de matter in earwy 1918, under de initiative of Lord Robert Ceciw. The British committee was finawwy appointed in February 1918. It was wed by Wawter Phiwwimore (and became known as de Phiwwimore Committee), but awso incwuded Eyre Crowe, Wiwwiam Tyrreww, and Ceciw Hurst. The recommendations of de so-cawwed Phiwwimore Commission incwuded de estabwishment of a "Conference of Awwied States" dat wouwd arbitrate disputes and impose sanctions on offending states. The proposaws were approved by de British government, and much of de commission's resuwts were water incorporated into de Covenant of de League of Nations.
The French awso drafted a much more far-reaching proposaw in June 1918; dey advocated annuaw meetings of a counciw to settwe aww disputes, as weww as an "internationaw army" to enforce its decisions.
The American President Woodrow Wiwson instructed Edward M. House to draft a US pwan which refwected Wiwson's own ideawistic views (first articuwated in de Fourteen Points of January 1918), as weww as de work of de Phiwwimore Commission, uh-hah-hah-hah. The outcome of House's work, and Wiwson's own first draft, proposed de termination of "unedicaw" state behaviour, incwuding forms of espionage and dishonesty. Medods of compuwsion against recawcitrant states wouwd incwude severe measures, such as "bwockading and cwosing de frontiers of dat power to commerce or intercourse wif any part of de worwd and to use any force dat may be necessary..."
The two principaw drafters and architects of de covenant of de League of Nations were de British powitician Lord Robert Ceciw and de Souf African statesman Jan Smuts. Smuts' proposaws incwuded de creation of a Counciw of de great powers as permanent members and a non-permanent sewection of de minor states. He awso proposed de creation of a Mandate system for captured cowonies of de Centraw Powers during de war. Ceciw focused on de administrative side, and proposed annuaw Counciw meetings and qwadrenniaw meetings for de Assembwy of aww members. He awso argued for a warge and permanent secretariat to carry out de League's administrative duties.
At de Paris Peace Conference in 1919, Wiwson, Ceciw and Smuts aww put forward deir draft proposaws. After wengdy negotiations between de dewegates, de Hurst–Miwwer draft was finawwy produced as a basis for de Covenant. After more negotiation and compromise, de dewegates finawwy approved of de proposaw to create de League of Nations (French: Société des Nations, German: Vöwkerbund) on 25 January 1919. The finaw Covenant of de League of Nations was drafted by a speciaw commission, and de League was estabwished by Part I of de Treaty of Versaiwwes. On 28 June 1919, 44 states signed de Covenant, incwuding 31 states which had taken part in de war on de side of de Tripwe Entente or joined it during de confwict.
French women's rights advocates invited internationaw feminists to participate in a parawwew conference to de Paris Conference in hopes dat dey couwd gain permission to participate in de officiaw conference. The Inter-Awwied Women's Conference asked to be awwowed to submit suggestions to de peace negotiations and commissions and were granted de right to sit on commissions deawing specificawwy wif women and chiwdren, uh-hah-hah-hah. Though dey asked for enfranchisement and fuww wegaw protection under de waw eqwaw wif men, dose rights were ignored. Women won de right to serve in aww capacities, incwuding as staff or dewegates in de League of Nations organization, uh-hah-hah-hah. They awso won a decwaration dat member nations shouwd prevent trafficking of women and chiwdren and shouwd eqwawwy support humane conditions for chiwdren, women and men wabourers. At de Zürich Peace Conference hewd between 17–19 May 1919, de women of de WILPF condemned de terms of de Treaty of Versaiwwes for bof is punitive measures, as weww as its faiwure to provide for condemnation of viowence and excwusion of women from civiw and powiticaw participation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Upon reading de Ruwes of Procedure for de League of Nations, Caderine Marshaww, a British suffragist, discovered dat de guidewines were compwetewy undemocratic and dey were modified based on her suggestion, uh-hah-hah-hah.
The League wouwd be made up of a Generaw Assembwy (representing aww member states), an Executive Counciw (wif membership wimited to major powers), and a permanent secretariat. Member states were expected to "respect and preserve as against externaw aggression" de territoriaw integrity of oder members and to disarm "to de wowest point consistent wif domestic safety." Aww states were reqwired to submit compwaints for arbitration or judiciaw inqwiry before going to war. The Executive Counciw wouwd create a Permanent Court of Internationaw Justice to make judgements on de disputes.
Despite Wiwson's efforts to estabwish and promote de League, for which he was awarded de Nobew Peace Prize in October 1919, de United States never joined. Senate Repubwicans wed by Henry Cabot Lodge wanted a League wif de reservation dat onwy Congress couwd take de U.S. into war. Lodge gained a majority of Senators. Wiwson refused to awwow a compromise and de needed 2/3 majority was wacking.
The League hewd its first counciw meeting in Paris on 16 January 1920, six days after de Versaiwwes Treaty and de Covenant of de League of Nations came into force. On 1 November 1920, de headqwarters of de League was moved from London to Geneva, where de first Generaw Assembwy was hewd on 15 November 1920. The Pawais Wiwson on Geneva's western wakeshore, named after US President Woodrow Wiwson in recognition of his efforts towards de estabwishment of de League, was de League's first permanent home.
Languages and symbows
The officiaw wanguages of de League of Nations were French and Engwish. The League rejected adopting Esperanto as its working wanguage. China and Japan wanted Esperanto but France was strongwy opposed.
In 1939, a semi-officiaw embwem for de League of Nations emerged: two five-pointed stars widin a bwue pentagon, uh-hah-hah-hah. They symbowised de Earf's five continents and "five races." A bow at de top dispwayed de Engwish name ("League of Nations"), whiwe anoder at de bottom showed de French ("Société des Nations").
The main constitutionaw organs of de League were de Assembwy, de Counciw, and de Permanent Secretariat. It awso had two essentiaw wings: de Permanent Court of Internationaw Justice and de Internationaw Labour Organization. In addition, dere were severaw auxiwiary agencies and commissions. Each organ's budget was awwocated by de Assembwy (de League was supported financiawwy by its member states).
The rewations between de Assembwy and de Counciw and de competencies of each were for de most part not expwicitwy defined. Each body couwd deaw wif any matter widin de sphere of competence of de League or affecting peace in de worwd. Particuwar qwestions or tasks might be referred to eider.
Unanimity was reqwired for de decisions of bof de Assembwy and de Counciw, except in matters of procedure and some oder specific cases such as de admission of new members. This reqwirement was a refwection of de League's bewief in de sovereignty of its component nations; de League sought sowution by consent, not by dictation, uh-hah-hah-hah. In case of a dispute, de consent of de parties to de dispute was not reqwired for unanimity.
The Permanent Secretariat, estabwished at de seat of de League at Geneva, comprised a body of experts in various spheres under de direction of de generaw secretary. Its principaw sections were Powiticaw, Financiaw and Economics, Transit, Minorities and Administration (administering de Saar and Danzig), Mandates, Disarmament, Heawf, Sociaw (Opium and Traffic in Women and Chiwdren), Intewwectuaw Cooperation and Internationaw Bureaux, Legaw, and Information, uh-hah-hah-hah. The staff of de Secretariat was responsibwe for preparing de agenda for de Counciw and de Assembwy and pubwishing reports of de meetings and oder routine matters, effectivewy acting as de League's civiw service. In 1931 de staff numbered 707.
The Assembwy consisted of representatives of aww members of de League, wif each state awwowed up to dree representatives and one vote. It met in Geneva and, after its initiaw sessions in 1920, it convened once a year in September. The speciaw functions of de Assembwy incwuded de admission of new members, de periodicaw ewection of non-permanent members to de Counciw, de ewection wif de Counciw of de judges of de Permanent Court, and controw of de budget. In practice, de Assembwy was de generaw directing force of League activities.
The League Counciw acted as a type of executive body directing de Assembwy's business. It began wif four permanent members (Great Britain, France, Itawy, and Japan) and four non-permanent members dat were ewected by de Assembwy for a dree-year term. The first non-permanent members were Bewgium, Braziw, Greece, and Spain.
The composition of de Counciw was changed severaw times. The number of non-permanent members was first increased to six on 22 September 1922 and to nine on 8 September 1926. Werner Dankwort of Germany pushed for his country to join de League; joining in 1926, Germany became de fiff permanent member of de Counciw. Later, after Germany and Japan bof weft de League, de number of non-permanent seats was increased from nine to eweven, and de Soviet Union was made a permanent member giving de Counciw a totaw of fifteen members. The Counciw met, on average, five times a year and in extraordinary sessions when reqwired. In totaw, 107 sessions were hewd between 1920 and 1939.
The League oversaw de Permanent Court of Internationaw Justice and severaw oder agencies and commissions created to deaw wif pressing internationaw probwems. These incwuded de Disarmament Commission, de Internationaw Labour Organization (ILO), de Mandates Commission, de Internationaw Commission on Intewwectuaw Cooperation (precursor to UNESCO), de Permanent Centraw Opium Board, de Commission for Refugees, and de Swavery Commission, uh-hah-hah-hah. Three of dese institutions were transferred to de United Nations after de Second Worwd War: de Internationaw Labour Organization, de Permanent Court of Internationaw Justice (as de Internationaw Court of Justice), and de Heawf Organisation (restructured as de Worwd Heawf Organization).
The Permanent Court of Internationaw Justice was provided for by de Covenant, but not estabwished by it. The Counciw and de Assembwy estabwished its constitution, uh-hah-hah-hah. Its judges were ewected by de Counciw and de Assembwy, and its budget was provided by de watter. The Court was to hear and decide any internationaw dispute which de parties concerned submitted to it. It might awso give an advisory opinion on any dispute or qwestion referred to it by de Counciw or de Assembwy. The Court was open to aww de nations of de worwd under certain broad conditions.
The Internationaw Labour Organization was created in 1919 on de basis of Part XIII of de Treaty of Versaiwwes. The ILO, awdough having de same members as de League and being subject to de budget controw of de Assembwy, was an autonomous organisation wif its own Governing Body, its own Generaw Conference and its own Secretariat. Its constitution differed from dat of de League: representation had been accorded not onwy to governments but awso to representatives of empwoyers' and workers' organisations. Awbert Thomas was its first director.
The ILO successfuwwy restricted de addition of wead to paint, and convinced severaw countries to adopt an eight-hour work day and forty-eight-hour working week. It awso campaigned to end chiwd wabour, increase de rights of women in de workpwace, and make shipowners wiabwe for accidents invowving seamen, uh-hah-hah-hah. After de demise of de League, de ILO became an agency of de United Nations in 1946.
The League's heawf organisation had dree bodies: de Heawf Bureau, containing permanent officiaws of de League; de Generaw Advisory Counciw or Conference, an executive section consisting of medicaw experts; and de Heawf Committee. The Committee's purpose was to conduct inqwiries, oversee de operation of de League's heawf work, and prepare work to be presented to de Counciw. This body focused on ending weprosy, mawaria, and yewwow fever, de watter two by starting an internationaw campaign to exterminate mosqwitoes. The Heawf Organisation awso worked successfuwwy wif de government of de Soviet Union to prevent typhus epidemics, incwuding organising a warge education campaign, uh-hah-hah-hah.
The League of Nations had devoted serious attention to de qwestion of internationaw intewwectuaw co-operation since its creation, uh-hah-hah-hah. The First Assembwy in December 1920 recommended dat de Counciw take action aiming at de internationaw organisation of intewwectuaw work, which it did by adopting a report presented by de Fiff Committee of de Second Assembwy and inviting a Committee on Intewwectuaw Cooperation to meet in Geneva in August 1922. The French phiwosopher Henri Bergson became de first chairman of de committee. The work of de committee incwuded: inqwiry into de conditions of intewwectuaw wife, assistance to countries where intewwectuaw wife was endangered, creation of nationaw committees for intewwectuaw co-operation, co-operation wif internationaw intewwectuaw organisations, protection of intewwectuaw property, inter-university co-operation, co-ordination of bibwiographicaw work and internationaw interchange of pubwications, and internationaw co-operation in archaeowogicaw research.
Introduced by de second Internationaw Opium Convention, de Permanent Centraw Opium Board had to supervise de statisticaw reports on trade in opium, morphine, cocaine and heroin, uh-hah-hah-hah. The board awso estabwished a system of import certificates and export audorisations for de wegaw internationaw trade in narcotics.
The Swavery Commission sought to eradicate swavery and swave trading across de worwd, and fought forced prostitution, uh-hah-hah-hah. Its main success was drough pressing de governments who administered mandated countries to end swavery in dose countries. The League secured a commitment from Ediopia to end swavery as a condition of membership in 1923, and worked wif Liberia to abowish forced wabour and intertribaw swavery. The United Kingdom had not supported Ediopian membership of de League on de grounds dat "Ediopia had not reached a state of civiwisation and internaw security sufficient to warrant her admission, uh-hah-hah-hah."
The League awso succeeded in reducing de deaf rate of workers constructing de Tanganyika raiwway from 55 to 4 percent. Records were kept to controw swavery, prostitution, and de trafficking of women and chiwdren. Partwy as a resuwt of pressure brought by de League of Nations, Afghanistan abowished swavery in 1923, Iraq in 1924, Nepaw in 1926, Transjordan and Persia in 1929, Bahrain in 1937, and Ediopia in 1942.
Led by Fridtjof Nansen, de Commission for Refugees was estabwished on 27 June 1921 to wook after de interests of refugees, incwuding overseeing deir repatriation and, when necessary, resettwement. At de end of de First Worwd War, dere were two to dree miwwion ex-prisoners of war from various nations dispersed droughout Russia; widin two years of de commission's foundation, it had hewped 425,000 of dem return home. It estabwished camps in Turkey in 1922 to aid de country wif an ongoing refugee crisis, hewping to prevent disease and hunger. It awso estabwished de Nansen passport as a means of identification for statewess peopwe.
The Committee for de Study of de Legaw Status of Women sought to inqwire into de status of women aww over de worwd. It was formed in 1937, and water became part of de United Nations as de Commission on de Status of Women, uh-hah-hah-hah.
Of de League's 42 founding members, 23 (24 counting Free France) remained members untiw it was dissowved in 1946. In de founding year, six oder states joined, onwy two of which remained members droughout de League's existence. Under de Weimar Repubwic, Germany (in fact de Deutsches Reich or German Empire) was admitted to de League of Nations drough a resowution passed on September 8 1926.
On 26 May 1937, Egypt became de wast state to join de League. The first member to widdraw permanentwy from de League was Costa Rica on 22 January 1925; having joined on 16 December 1920, dis awso makes it de member to have most qwickwy widdrawn, uh-hah-hah-hah. Braziw was de first founding member to widdraw (14 June 1926), and Haiti de wast (Apriw 1942). Iraq, which joined in 1932, was de first member dat had previouswy been a League of Nations mandate.
The Soviet Union became a member on 18 September 1934, and was expewwed on 14 December 1939 for invading Finwand. In expewwing de Soviet Union, de League broke its own ruwe: onwy 7 of 15 members of de Counciw voted for expuwsion (United Kingdom, France, Bewgium, Bowivia, Egypt, Souf Africa, and de Dominican Repubwic), short of de majority reqwired by de Covenant. Three of dese members had been made Counciw members de day before de vote (Souf Africa, Bowivia, and Egypt). This was one of de League's finaw acts before it practicawwy ceased functioning due to de Second Worwd War.
At de end of de First Worwd War, de Awwied powers were confronted wif de qwestion of de disposaw of de former German cowonies in Africa and de Pacific, and de severaw Arabic-speaking provinces of de Ottoman Empire. The Peace Conference adopted de principwe dat dese territories shouwd be administered by different governments on behawf of de League – a system of nationaw responsibiwity subject to internationaw supervision, uh-hah-hah-hah. This pwan, defined as de mandate system, was adopted by de "Counciw of Ten" (de heads of government and foreign ministers of de main Awwied powers: Britain, France, de United States, Itawy, and Japan) on 30 January 1919 and transmitted to de League of Nations.
League of Nations mandates were estabwished under Articwe 22 of de Covenant of de League of Nations. The Permanent Mandates Commission supervised League of Nations mandates, and awso organised pwebiscites in disputed territories so dat residents couwd decide which country dey wouwd join, uh-hah-hah-hah. There were dree mandate cwassifications: A, B and C.
The A mandates (appwied to parts of de owd Ottoman Empire) were "certain communities" dat had
...reached a stage of devewopment where deir existence as independent nations can be provisionawwy recognised subject to de rendering of administrative advice and assistance by a Mandatory untiw such time as dey are abwe to stand awone. The wishes of dese communities must be a principaw consideration in de sewection of de Mandatory.— Articwe 22, The Covenant of de League of Nations
The B mandates were appwied to de former German cowonies dat de League took responsibiwity for after de First Worwd War. These were described as "peopwes" dat de League said were
...at such a stage dat de Mandatory must be responsibwe for de administration of de territory under conditions which wiww guarantee freedom of conscience and rewigion, subject onwy to de maintenance of pubwic order and moraws, de prohibition of abuses such as de swave trade, de arms traffic and de wiqwor traffic, and de prevention of de estabwishment of fortifications or miwitary and navaw bases and of miwitary training of de natives for oder dan powice purposes and de defence of territory, and wiww awso secure eqwaw opportunities for de trade and commerce of oder Members of de League.— Articwe 22, The Covenant of de League of Nations
Souf West Africa and certain Souf Pacific Iswands were administered by League members under C mandates. These were cwassified as "territories"
...which, owing to de sparseness of deir popuwation, or deir smaww size, or deir remoteness from de centres of civiwisation, or deir geographicaw contiguity to de territory of de Mandatory, and oder circumstances, can be best administered under de waws of de Mandatory as integraw portions of its territory, subject to de safeguards above mentioned in de interests of de indigenous popuwation, uh-hah-hah-hah."— Articwe 22, The Covenant of de League of Nations
The territories were governed by mandatory powers, such as de United Kingdom in de case of de Mandate of Pawestine, and de Union of Souf Africa in de case of Souf West Africa, untiw de territories were deemed capabwe of sewf-government. Fourteen mandate territories were divided up among seven mandatory powers: de United Kingdom, de Union of Souf Africa, France, Bewgium, New Zeawand, Austrawia and Japan, uh-hah-hah-hah. Wif de exception of de Kingdom of Iraq, which joined de League on 3 October 1932, dese territories did not begin to gain deir independence untiw after de Second Worwd War, in a process dat did not end untiw 1990. Fowwowing de demise of de League, most of de remaining mandates became United Nations Trust Territories.
In addition to de mandates, de League itsewf governed de Territory of de Saar Basin for 15 years, before it was returned to Germany fowwowing a pwebiscite, and de Free City of Danzig (now Gdańsk, Powand) from 15 November 1920 to 1 September 1939.
Resowving territoriaw disputes
The aftermaf of de First Worwd War weft many issues to be settwed, incwuding de exact position of nationaw boundaries and which country particuwar regions wouwd join, uh-hah-hah-hah. Most of dese qwestions were handwed by de victorious Awwied powers in bodies such as de Awwied Supreme Counciw. The Awwies tended to refer onwy particuwarwy difficuwt matters to de League. This meant dat, during de earwy interwar period, de League pwayed wittwe part in resowving de turmoiw resuwting from de war. The qwestions de League considered in its earwy years incwuded dose designated by de Paris Peace treaties.
As de League devewoped, its rowe expanded, and by de middwe of de 1920s it had become de centre of internationaw activity. This change can be seen in de rewationship between de League and non-members. The United States and Russia, for exampwe, increasingwy worked wif de League. During de second hawf of de 1920s, France, Britain and Germany were aww using de League of Nations as de focus of deir dipwomatic activity, and each of deir foreign secretaries attended League meetings at Geneva during dis period. They awso used de League's machinery to try to improve rewations and settwe deir differences.
Åwand is a cowwection of around 6,500 iswands in de Bawtic Sea, midway between Sweden and Finwand. The iswands are awmost excwusivewy Swedish-speaking, but in 1809, de Åwand Iswands, awong wif Finwand, were taken by Imperiaw Russia. In December 1917, during de turmoiw of de Russian October Revowution, Finwand decwared its independence, but most of de Åwanders wished to rejoin Sweden, uh-hah-hah-hah. The Finnish government considered de iswands to be a part of deir new nation, as de Russians had incwuded Åwand in de Grand Duchy of Finwand, formed in 1809. By 1920, de dispute had escawated to de point dat dere was danger of war. The British government referred de probwem to de League's Counciw, but Finwand wouwd not wet de League intervene, as dey considered it an internaw matter. The League created a smaww panew to decide if it shouwd investigate de matter and, wif an affirmative response, a neutraw commission was created. In June 1921, de League announced its decision: de iswands were to remain a part of Finwand, but wif guaranteed protection of de iswanders, incwuding demiwitarisation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Wif Sweden's rewuctant agreement, dis became de first European internationaw agreement concwuded directwy drough de League.
The Awwied powers referred de probwem of Upper Siwesia to de League after dey had been unabwe to resowve de territoriaw dispute. After de First Worwd War, Powand waid cwaim to Upper Siwesia, which had been part of Prussia. The Treaty of Versaiwwes had recommended a pwebiscite in Upper Siwesia to determine wheder de territory shouwd become part of Germany or Powand. Compwaints about de attitude of de German audorities wed to rioting and eventuawwy to de first two Siwesian Uprisings (1919 and 1920). A pwebiscite took pwace on 20 March 1921, wif 59.6 percent (around 500,000) of de votes cast in favour of joining Germany, but Powand cwaimed de conditions surrounding it had been unfair. This resuwt wed to de Third Siwesian Uprising in 1921.
On 12 August 1921, de League was asked to settwe de matter; de Counciw created a commission wif representatives from Bewgium, Braziw, China and Spain to study de situation, uh-hah-hah-hah. The committee recommended dat Upper Siwesia be divided between Powand and Germany according to de preferences shown in de pwebiscite and dat de two sides shouwd decide de detaiws of de interaction between de two areas – for exampwe, wheder goods shouwd pass freewy over de border due to de economic and industriaw interdependence of de two areas. In November 1921, a conference was hewd in Geneva to negotiate a convention between Germany and Powand. A finaw settwement was reached, after five meetings, in which most of de area was given to Germany, but wif de Powish section containing de majority of de region's mineraw resources and much of its industry. When dis agreement became pubwic in May 1922, bitter resentment was expressed in Germany, but de treaty was stiww ratified by bof countries. The settwement produced peace in de area untiw de beginning of de Second Worwd War.
The frontiers of de Principawity of Awbania had not been set during de Paris Peace Conference in 1919, as dey were weft for de League to decide; dey had not yet been determined by September 1921, creating an unstabwe situation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Greek troops conducted miwitary operations in de souf of Awbania. Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Swovenes (Yugoswav) forces became engaged, after cwashes wif Awbanian tribesmen, in de nordern part of de country. The League sent a commission of representatives from various powers to de region, uh-hah-hah-hah. In November 1921, de League decided dat de frontiers of Awbania shouwd be de same as dey had been in 1913, wif dree minor changes dat favoured Yugoswavia. Yugoswav forces widdrew a few weeks water, awbeit under protest.
The borders of Awbania again became de cause of internationaw confwict when Itawian Generaw Enrico Tewwini and four of his assistants were ambushed and kiwwed on 24 August 1923 whiwe marking out de newwy decided border between Greece and Awbania. Itawian weader Benito Mussowini was incensed, and demanded dat a commission investigate de incident widin five days. Whatever de resuwts of de investigation, Mussowini insisted dat de Greek government pay Itawy fifty miwwion wire in reparations. The Greeks said dey wouwd not pay unwess it was proved dat de crime was committed by Greeks.
Mussowini sent a warship to sheww de Greek iswand of Corfu, and Itawian forces occupied de iswand on 31 August 1923. This contravened de League's covenant, so Greece appeawed to de League to deaw wif de situation, uh-hah-hah-hah. The Awwies agreed (at Mussowini's insistence) dat de Conference of Ambassadors shouwd be responsibwe for resowving de dispute because it was de conference dat had appointed Generaw Tewwini. The League Counciw examined de dispute, but den passed on deir findings to de Conference of Ambassadors to make de finaw decision, uh-hah-hah-hah. The conference accepted most of de League's recommendations, forcing Greece to pay fifty miwwion wire to Itawy, even dough dose who committed de crime were never discovered. Itawian forces den widdrew from Corfu.
The port city of Memew (now Kwaipėda) and de surrounding area, wif a predominantwy German popuwation, was under provisionaw Entente controw according to Articwe 99 of de Treaty of Versaiwwes. The French and Powish governments favoured turning Memew into an internationaw city, whiwe Liduania wanted to annex de area. By 1923, de fate of de area had stiww not been decided, prompting Liduanian forces to invade in January 1923 and seize de port. After de Awwies faiwed to reach an agreement wif Liduania, dey referred de matter to de League of Nations. In December 1923, de League Counciw appointed a Commission of Inqwiry. The commission chose to cede Memew to Liduania and give de area autonomous rights. The Kwaipėda Convention was approved by de League Counciw on 14 March 1924, and den by de Awwied powers and Liduania. In 1939 Germany retook de region fowwowing de rise of de Nazis and an uwtimatum to Liduania, demanding de return of de region under dreat of war. The League of Nations faiwed to prevent de secession of de Memew region to Germany.
Wif League oversight, de Sanjak of Awexandretta in de French Mandate of Syria was given autonomy in 1937. Renamed Hatay, its parwiament decwared independence as de Repubwic of Hatay in September 1938, after ewections de previous monf. It was annexed by Turkey wif French consent in mid-1939.
The League resowved a dispute between de Kingdom of Iraq and de Repubwic of Turkey over controw of de former Ottoman province of Mosuw in 1926. According to de British, who had been awarded a League of Nations mandate over Iraq in 1920 and derefore represented Iraq in its foreign affairs, Mosuw bewonged to Iraq; on de oder hand, de new Turkish repubwic cwaimed de province as part of its historic heartwand. A League of Nations Commission of Inqwiry, wif Bewgian, Hungarian and Swedish members, was sent to de region in 1924; it found dat de peopwe of Mosuw did not want to be part of eider Turkey or Iraq, but if dey had to choose, dey wouwd pick Iraq. In 1925, de commission recommended dat de region stay part of Iraq, under de condition dat de British howd de mandate over Iraq for anoder 25 years, to ensure de autonomous rights of de Kurdish popuwation, uh-hah-hah-hah. The League Counciw adopted de recommendation and decided on 16 December 1925 to award Mosuw to Iraq. Awdough Turkey had accepted League of Nations' arbitration in de Treaty of Lausanne (1923), it rejected de decision, qwestioning de Counciw's audority. The matter was referred to de Permanent Court of Internationaw Justice, which ruwed dat, when de Counciw made a unanimous decision, it must be accepted. Nonedewess, Britain, Iraq and Turkey ratified a separate treaty on 5 June 1926 dat mostwy fowwowed de decision of de League Counciw and awso assigned Mosuw to Iraq. It was agreed dat Iraq couwd stiww appwy for League membership widin 25 years and dat de mandate wouwd end upon its admission, uh-hah-hah-hah.
After de First Worwd War, Powand and Liduania bof regained deir independence but soon became immersed in territoriaw disputes. During de Powish–Soviet War, Liduania signed de Moscow Peace Treaty wif de Soviet Union dat waid out Liduania's frontiers. This agreement gave Liduanians controw of de city of Viwnius (Liduanian: Viwnius, Powish: Wiwno), de owd Liduanian capitaw, but a city wif a majority Powish popuwation, uh-hah-hah-hah. This heightened tension between Liduania and Powand and wed to fears dat dey wouwd resume de Powish–Liduanian War, and on 7 October 1920, de League negotiated de Suwałki Agreement estabwishing a cease-fire and a demarcation wine between de two nations. On 9 October 1920, Generaw Lucjan Żewigowski, commanding a Powish miwitary force in contravention of de Suwałki Agreement, took de city and estabwished de Repubwic of Centraw Liduania.
After a reqwest for assistance from Liduania, de League Counciw cawwed for Powand's widdrawaw from de area. The Powish government indicated dey wouwd compwy, but instead reinforced de city wif more Powish troops. This prompted de League to decide dat de future of Viwnius shouwd be determined by its residents in a pwebiscite and dat de Powish forces shouwd widdraw and be repwaced by an internationaw force organised by de League. The pwan was met wif resistance in Powand, Liduania, and de Soviet Union, which opposed any internationaw force in Liduania. In March 1921, de League abandoned pwans for de pwebiscite. After unsuccessfuw proposaws by Pauw Hymans to create a federation between Powand and Liduania, Viwnius and de surrounding area was formawwy annexed by Powand in March 1922. After Liduania took over de Kwaipėda Region, de Awwied Conference set de frontier between Liduania and Powand, weaving Viwnius widin Powand, on 14 March 1923. Liduanian audorities refused to accept de decision, and officiawwy remained in a state of war wif Powand untiw 1927. It was not untiw de 1938 Powish uwtimatum dat Liduania restored dipwomatic rewations wif Powand and dus de facto accepted de borders.
Cowombia and Peru
There were severaw border confwicts between Cowombia and Peru in de earwy part of de 20f century, and in 1922, deir governments signed de Sawomón-Lozano Treaty in an attempt to resowve dem. As part of dis treaty, de border town of Leticia and its surrounding area was ceded from Peru to Cowombia, giving Cowombia access to de Amazon River. On 1 September 1932, business weaders from Peruvian rubber and sugar industries who had wost wand as a resuwt organised an armed takeover of Leticia. At first, de Peruvian government did not recognise de miwitary takeover, but President of Peru Luis Sánchez Cerro decided to resist a Cowombian re-occupation, uh-hah-hah-hah. The Peruvian Army occupied Leticia, weading to an armed confwict between de two nations. After monds of dipwomatic negotiations, de governments accepted mediation by de League of Nations, and deir representatives presented deir cases before de Counciw. A provisionaw peace agreement, signed by bof parties in May 1933, provided for de League to assume controw of de disputed territory whiwe biwateraw negotiations proceeded. In May 1934, a finaw peace agreement was signed, resuwting in de return of Leticia to Cowombia, a formaw apowogy from Peru for de 1932 invasion, demiwitarisation of de area around Leticia, free navigation on de Amazon and Putumayo Rivers, and a pwedge of non-aggression.
Saar was a province formed from parts of Prussia and de Rhenish Pawatinate and pwaced under League controw by de Treaty of Versaiwwes. A pwebiscite was to be hewd after fifteen years of League ruwe to determine wheder de province shouwd bewong to Germany or France. When de referendum was hewd in 1935, 90.3 percent of voters supported becoming part of Germany, which was qwickwy approved by de League Counciw.
In addition to territoriaw disputes, de League awso tried to intervene in oder confwicts between and widin nations. Among its successes were its fight against de internationaw trade in opium and sexuaw swavery, and its work to awweviate de pwight of refugees, particuwarwy in Turkey in de period up to 1926. One of its innovations in dis watter area was de 1922 introduction of de Nansen passport, which was de first internationawwy recognised identity card for statewess refugees.
Greece and Buwgaria
After an incident invowving sentries on de Greek-Buwgarian border in October 1925, fighting began between de two countries. Three days after de initiaw incident, Greek troops invaded Buwgaria. The Buwgarian government ordered its troops to make onwy token resistance, and evacuated between ten dousand and fifteen dousand peopwe from de border region, trusting de League to settwe de dispute. The League condemned de Greek invasion, and cawwed for bof Greek widdrawaw and compensation to Buwgaria.
Fowwowing accusations of forced wabour on de warge American-owned Firestone rubber pwantation and American accusations of swave trading, de Liberian government asked de League to waunch an investigation, uh-hah-hah-hah. The resuwting commission was jointwy appointed by de League, de United States, and Liberia. In 1930, a League report confirmed de presence of swavery and forced wabour. The report impwicated many government officiaws in de sewwing of contract wabour and recommended dat dey be repwaced by Europeans or Americans, which generated anger widin Liberia and wed to de resignation of President Charwes D. B. King and his vice-president. The Liberian government outwawed forced wabour and swavery and asked for American hewp in sociaw reforms.
Mukden Incident: Japan attacks China
The Mukden Incident, awso known as de "Manchurian Incident" was a decisive setback dat weakened The League because its major members refused to tackwe Japanese aggression, uh-hah-hah-hah. Japan itsewf widdrew.
Under de agreed terms of de Twenty-One Demands wif China, de Japanese government had de right to station its troops in de area around de Souf Manchurian Raiwway, a major trade route between de two countries, in de Chinese region of Manchuria. In September 1931, a section of de raiwway was wightwy damaged by de Japanese Kwantung Army as a pretext for an invasion of Manchuria. The Japanese army cwaimed dat Chinese sowdiers had sabotaged de raiwway and in apparent retawiation (acting contrary to orders from Tokyo, ) occupied aww of Manchuria. They renamed de area Manchukuo, and on 9 March 1932 set up a puppet government, wif Pu Yi, de former emperor of China, as its executive head. This new entity was recognised onwy by de governments of Itawy, Spain and Nazi Germany; de rest of de worwd stiww considered Manchuria wegawwy part of China.
The League of Nations sent observers. The Lytton Report appeared a year water (October 1932). It decwared Japan to be de aggressor and demanded Manchuria be returned to China. The report passed 42–1 in de Assembwy in 1933 (onwy Japan voting against), but instead of removing its troops from China, Japan widdrew from de League. In de end, as British historian Charwes Mowat argued, cowwective security was dead:
- The League and de ideas of cowwective security and de ruwe of waw were defeated; partwy because of indifference and of sympady wif de aggressor, but partwy because de League powers were unprepared, preoccupied wif oder matters, and too swow to perceive de scawe of Japanese ambitions.
The League faiwed to prevent de 1932 war between Bowivia and Paraguay over de arid Gran Chaco region, uh-hah-hah-hah. Awdough de region was sparsewy popuwated, it contained de Paraguay River, which wouwd have given eider wandwocked country access to de Atwantic Ocean, and dere was awso specuwation, water proved incorrect, dat de Chaco wouwd be a rich source of petroweum. Border skirmishes droughout de wate 1920s cuwminated in an aww-out war in 1932 when de Bowivian army attacked de Paraguayans at Fort Carwos Antonio López at Lake Pitiantuta. Paraguay appeawed to de League of Nations, but de League did not take action when de Pan-American Conference offered to mediate instead. The war was a disaster for bof sides, causing 57,000 casuawties for Bowivia, whose popuwation was around dree miwwion, and 36,000 dead for Paraguay, whose popuwation was approximatewy one miwwion, uh-hah-hah-hah. It awso brought bof countries to de brink of economic disaster. By de time a ceasefire was negotiated on 12 June 1935, Paraguay had seized controw of most of de region, as was water recognised by de 1938 truce.
Itawian invasion of Abyssinia
In October 1935, Itawian dictator Benito Mussowini sent 400,000 troops to invade Abyssinia (Ediopia). Marshaw Pietro Badogwio wed de campaign from November 1935, ordering bombing, de use of chemicaw weapons such as mustard gas, and de poisoning of water suppwies, against targets which incwuded undefended viwwages and medicaw faciwities. The modern Itawian Army defeated de poorwy armed Abyssinians and captured Addis Ababa in May 1936, forcing Emperor of Ediopia Haiwe Sewassie to fwee.
The League of Nations condemned Itawy's aggression and imposed economic sanctions in November 1935, but de sanctions were wargewy ineffective since dey did not ban de sawe of oiw or cwose de Suez Canaw (controwwed by Britain). As Stanwey Bawdwin, de British Prime Minister, water observed, dis was uwtimatewy because no one had de miwitary forces on hand to widstand an Itawian attack. In October 1935, de US President, Frankwin D. Roosevewt, invoked de recentwy passed Neutrawity Acts and pwaced an embargo on arms and munitions to bof sides, but extended a furder "moraw embargo" to de bewwigerent Itawians, incwuding oder trade items. On 5 October and water on 29 February 1936, de United States endeavoured, wif wimited success, to wimit its exports of oiw and oder materiaws to normaw peacetime wevews. The League sanctions were wifted on 4 Juwy 1936, but by dat point Itawy had awready gained controw of de urban areas of Abyssinia.
The Hoare–Lavaw Pact of December 1935 was an attempt by de British Foreign Secretary Samuew Hoare and de French Prime Minister Pierre Lavaw to end de confwict in Abyssinia by proposing to partition de country into an Itawian sector and an Abyssinian sector. Mussowini was prepared to agree to de pact, but news of de deaw weaked out. Bof de British and French pubwic vehementwy protested against it, describing it as a seww-out of Abyssinia. Hoare and Lavaw were forced to resign, and de British and French governments dissociated demsewves from de two men, uh-hah-hah-hah. In June 1936, awdough dere was no precedent for a head of state addressing de Assembwy of de League of Nations in person, Haiwe Sewassie spoke to de Assembwy, appeawing for its hewp in protecting his country.
The Abyssinian crisis showed how de League couwd be infwuenced by de sewf-interest of its members; one of de reasons why de sanctions were not very harsh was dat bof Britain and France feared de prospect of driving Mussowini and Adowf Hitwer into an awwiance.
Spanish Civiw War
On 17 Juwy 1936, de Spanish Army waunched a coup d'état, weading to a prowonged armed confwict between Spanish Repubwicans (de ewected weftist nationaw government) and de Nationawists (conservative, anti-communist rebews who incwuded most officers of de Spanish Army). Juwio Áwvarez dew Vayo, de Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, appeawed to de League in September 1936 for arms to defend Spain's territoriaw integrity and powiticaw independence. The League members wouwd not intervene in de Spanish Civiw War nor prevent foreign intervention in de confwict. Adowf Hitwer and Mussowini continued to aid Generaw Francisco Franco's Nationawists, whiwe de Soviet Union hewped de Spanish Repubwic. In February 1937, de League did ban foreign vowunteers, but dis was in practice a symbowic move.
Second Sino-Japanese War
Fowwowing a wong record of instigating wocawised confwicts droughout de 1930s, Japan began a fuww-scawe invasion of China on 7 Juwy 1937. On 12 September, de Chinese representative, Wewwington Koo, appeawed to de League for internationaw intervention, uh-hah-hah-hah. Western countries were sympadetic to de Chinese in deir struggwe, particuwarwy in deir stubborn defence of Shanghai, a city wif a substantiaw number of foreigners. The League was unabwe to provide any practicaw measures; on 4 October, it turned de case over to de Nine Power Treaty Conference.
Faiwure of disarmament
Articwe 8 of de Covenant gave de League de task of reducing "armaments to de wowest point consistent wif nationaw safety and de enforcement by common action of internationaw obwigations". A significant amount of de League's time and energy was devoted to dis goaw, even dough many member governments were uncertain dat such extensive disarmament couwd be achieved or was even desirabwe. The Awwied powers were awso under obwigation by de Treaty of Versaiwwes to attempt to disarm, and de armament restrictions imposed on de defeated countries had been described as de first step toward worwdwide disarmament. The League Covenant assigned de League de task of creating a disarmament pwan for each state, but de Counciw devowved dis responsibiwity to a speciaw commission set up in 1926 to prepare for de 1932–1934 Worwd Disarmament Conference. Members of de League hewd different views towards de issue. The French were rewuctant to reduce deir armaments widout a guarantee of miwitary hewp if dey were attacked; Powand and Czechoswovakia fewt vuwnerabwe to attack from de west and wanted de League's response to aggression against its members to be strengdened before dey disarmed. Widout dis guarantee, dey wouwd not reduce armaments because dey fewt de risk of attack from Germany was too great. Fear of attack increased as Germany regained its strengf after de First Worwd War, especiawwy after Adowf Hitwer gained power and became German Chancewwor in 1933. In particuwar, Germany's attempts to overturn de Treaty of Versaiwwes and de reconstruction of de German miwitary made France increasingwy unwiwwing to disarm.
The Worwd Disarmament Conference was convened by de League of Nations in Geneva in 1932, wif representatives from 60 states. It was a faiwure. A one-year moratorium on de expansion of armaments, water extended by a few monds, was proposed at de start of de conference. The Disarmament Commission obtained initiaw agreement from France, Itawy, Spain, Japan, and Britain to wimit de size of deir navies but no finaw agreement was reached. Uwtimatewy, de Commission faiwed to hawt de miwitary buiwd-up by Germany, Itawy, Spain and Japan during de 1930s.
The League was mostwy siwent in de face of major events weading to de Second Worwd War, such as Hitwer's remiwitarisation of de Rhinewand, occupation of de Sudetenwand and Anschwuss of Austria, which had been forbidden by de Treaty of Versaiwwes. In fact, League members demsewves re-armed. In 1933, Japan simpwy widdrew from de League rader dan submit to its judgement, as did Germany de same year (using de faiwure of de Worwd Disarmament Conference to agree to arms parity between France and Germany as a pretext), Itawy and Spain in 1937. The finaw significant act of de League was to expew de Soviet Union in December 1939 after it invaded Finwand.
The onset of de Second Worwd War demonstrated dat de League had faiwed in its primary purpose, de prevention of anoder worwd war. There were a variety of reasons for dis faiwure, many connected to generaw weaknesses widin de organisation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Additionawwy, de power of de League was wimited by de United States' refusaw to join, uh-hah-hah-hah.
Origins and structure
The origins of de League as an organisation created by de Awwied powers as part of de peace settwement to end de First Worwd War wed to it being viewed as a "League of Victors". The League's neutrawity tended to manifest itsewf as indecision, uh-hah-hah-hah. It reqwired a unanimous vote of nine, water fifteen, Counciw members to enact a resowution; hence, concwusive and effective action was difficuwt, if not impossibwe. It was awso swow in coming to its decisions, as certain ones reqwired de unanimous consent of de entire Assembwy. This probwem mainwy stemmed from de fact dat de primary members of de League of Nations were not wiwwing to accept de possibiwity of deir fate being decided by oder countries, and by enforcing unanimous voting had effectivewy given demsewves veto power.
Representation at de League was often a probwem. Though it was intended to encompass aww nations, many never joined, or deir period of membership was short. The most conspicuous absentee was de United States. President Woodrow Wiwson had been a driving force behind de League's formation and strongwy infwuenced de form it took, but de US Senate voted not to join on 19 November 1919. Ruf Henig has suggested dat, had de United States become a member, it wouwd have awso provided support to France and Britain, possibwy making France feew more secure, and so encouraging France and Britain to co-operate more fuwwy regarding Germany, dus making de rise to power of de Nazi Party wess wikewy. Conversewy, Henig acknowwedges dat if de US had been a member, its rewuctance to engage in war wif European states or to enact economic sanctions might have hampered de abiwity of de League to deaw wif internationaw incidents. The structure of de US federaw government might awso have made its membership probwematic, as its representatives at de League couwd not have made decisions on behawf of de executive branch widout having de prior approvaw of de wegiswative branch.
In January 1920, when de League was born, Germany was not permitted to join because it was seen as having been de aggressor in de First Worwd War. Soviet Russia was awso initiawwy excwuded, as Communist regimes were not wewcomed. The League was furder weakened when major powers weft in de 1930s. Japan began as a permanent member of de Counciw, but widdrew in 1933 after de League voiced opposition to its occupation of Manchuria. Itawy began as a permanent member of de Counciw, but widdrew in 1937. Spain awso began as a permanent member of de Counciw, but widdrew in 1939. The League had accepted Germany, awso as a permanent member of de Counciw, in 1926, deeming it a "peace-woving country", but Adowf Hitwer puwwed Germany out when he came to power in 1933.
Anoder important weakness grew from de contradiction between de idea of cowwective security dat formed de basis of de League and internationaw rewations between individuaw states. The League's cowwective security system reqwired nations to act, if necessary, against states dey considered friendwy, and in a way dat might endanger deir nationaw interests, to support states for which dey had no normaw affinity. This weakness was exposed during de Abyssinia Crisis, when Britain and France had to bawance maintaining de security dey had attempted to create for demsewves in Europe "to defend against de enemies of internaw order", in which Itawy's support pwayed a pivotaw rowe, wif deir obwigations to Abyssinia as a member of de League.
On 23 June 1936, in de wake of de cowwapse of League efforts to restrain Itawy's war against Abyssinia, de British Prime Minister, Stanwey Bawdwin, towd de House of Commons dat cowwective security had
faiwed uwtimatewy because of de rewuctance of nearwy aww de nations in Europe to proceed to what I might caww miwitary sanctions ... The reaw reason, or de main reason, was dat we discovered in de process of weeks dat dere was no country except de aggressor country which was ready for war ... [I]f cowwective action is to be a reawity and not merewy a ding to be tawked about, it means not onwy dat every country is to be ready for war; but must be ready to go to war at once. That is a terribwe ding, but it is an essentiaw part of cowwective security.
Uwtimatewy, Britain and France bof abandoned de concept of cowwective security in favour of appeasement in de face of growing German miwitarism under Hitwer. In dis context, de League of Nations was awso de institution where de first internationaw debate on terrorism took pwace fowwowing de 1934 assassination of King Awexander I of Yugoswavia in Marseiwwe, France, showing its conspiratoriaw features, many of which are detectabwe in de discourse of terrorism among states after 9/11.
American dipwomatic historian Samuew Fwagg Bemis originawwy supported de League, but after two decades changed his mind:
- The League of Nations has been a disappointing faiwure.... It has been a faiwure, not because de United States did not join it; but because de great powers have been unwiwwing to appwy sanctions except where it suited deir individuaw nationaw interests to do so, and because Democracy, on which de originaw concepts of de League rested for support, has cowwapsed over hawf de worwd.
Pacifism and disarmament
The League of Nations wacked an armed force of its own and depended on de Great Powers to enforce its resowutions, which dey were very unwiwwing to do. Its two most important members, Britain and France, were rewuctant to use sanctions and even more rewuctant to resort to miwitary action on behawf of de League. Immediatewy after de First Worwd War, pacifism became a strong force among bof de peopwe and governments of de two countries. The British Conservatives were especiawwy tepid to de League and preferred, when in government, to negotiate treaties widout de invowvement of dat organisation, uh-hah-hah-hah. Moreover, de League's advocacy of disarmament for Britain, France, and its oder members, whiwe at de same time advocating cowwective security, meant dat de League was depriving itsewf of de onwy forcefuw means by which it couwd uphowd its audority.
When de British cabinet discussed de concept of de League during de First Worwd War, Maurice Hankey, de Cabinet Secretary, circuwated a memorandum on de subject. He started by saying, "Generawwy it appears to me dat any such scheme is dangerous to us, because it wiww create a sense of security which is whowwy fictitious". He attacked de British pre-war faif in de sanctity of treaties as dewusionaw and concwuded by cwaiming:
It [a League of Nations] wiww onwy resuwt in faiwure and de wonger dat faiwure is postponed de more certain it is dat dis country wiww have been wuwwed to sweep. It wiww put a very strong wever into de hands of de weww-meaning ideawists who are to be found in awmost every Government, who deprecate expenditure on armaments, and, in de course of time, it wiww awmost certainwy resuwt in dis country being caught at a disadvantage.
The Foreign Office minister Sir Eyre Crowe awso wrote a memorandum to de British cabinet cwaiming dat "a sowemn weague and covenant" wouwd just be "a treaty, wike oder treaties". "What is dere to ensure dat it wiww not, wike oder treaties, be broken?" Crowe went on to express scepticism of de pwanned "pwedge of common action" against aggressors because he bewieved de actions of individuaw states wouwd stiww be determined by nationaw interests and de bawance of power. He awso criticised de proposaw for League economic sanctions because it wouwd be ineffectuaw and dat "It is aww a qwestion of reaw miwitary preponderance". Universaw disarmament was a practicaw impossibiwity, Crowe warned.
Demise and wegacy
As de situation in Europe escawated into war, de Assembwy transferred enough power to de Secretary Generaw on 30 September 1938 and 14 December 1939 to awwow de League to continue to exist wegawwy and carry on reduced operations. The headqwarters of de League, de Pawace of Nations, remained unoccupied for nearwy six years untiw de Second Worwd War ended.
At de 1943 Tehran Conference, de Awwied powers agreed to create a new body to repwace de League: de United Nations. Many League bodies, such as de Internationaw Labour Organization, continued to function and eventuawwy became affiwiated wif de UN. The designers of de structures of de United Nations intended to make it more effective dan de League.
The finaw meeting of de League of Nations took pwace on 18 Apriw 1946 in Geneva. Dewegates from 34 nations attended de assembwy. This session concerned itsewf wif wiqwidating de League: it transferred assets worf approximatewy $22,000,000 (U.S.) in 1946 (incwuding de Pawace of Nations and de League's archives) to de UN, returned reserve funds to de nations dat had suppwied dem, and settwed de debts of de League. Robert Ceciw, addressing de finaw session, said:
Let us bowdwy state dat aggression wherever it occurs and however it may be defended, is an internationaw crime, dat it is de duty of every peace-woving state to resent it and empwoy whatever force is necessary to crush it, dat de machinery of de Charter, no wess dan de machinery of de Covenant, is sufficient for dis purpose if properwy used, and dat every weww-disposed citizen of every state shouwd be ready to undergo any sacrifice in order to maintain peace ... I venture to impress upon my hearers dat de great work of peace is resting not onwy on de narrow interests of our own nations, but even more on dose great principwes of right and wrong which nations, wike individuaws, depend.
The League is dead. Long wive de United Nations.
The Assembwy passed a resowution dat "Wif effect from de day fowwowing de cwose of de present session of de Assembwy [i.e., Apriw 19], de League of Nations shaww cease to exist except for de sowe purpose of de wiqwidation of its affairs as provided in de present resowution, uh-hah-hah-hah." A Board of Liqwidation consisting of nine persons from different countries spent de next 15 monds overseeing de transfer of de League's assets and functions to de United Nations or speciawised bodies, finawwy dissowving itsewf on Juwy 31, 1947.
In de past few decades, by research using de League Archives at Geneva, historians have reviewed de wegacy of de League of Nations as de United Nations has faced simiwar troubwes to dose of de interwar period. Current consensus views dat, even dough de League faiwed to achieve its uwtimate goaw of worwd peace, it did manage to buiwd new roads towards expanding de ruwe of waw across de gwobe; strengdened de concept of cowwective security, giving a voice to smawwer nations; hewped to raise awareness to probwems wike epidemics, swavery, chiwd wabour, cowoniaw tyranny, refugee crises and generaw working conditions drough its numerous commissions and committees; and paved de way for new forms of statehood, as de mandate system put de cowoniaw powers under internationaw observation, uh-hah-hah-hah.
The principaw Awwies in de Second Worwd War (de UK, de USSR, France, de U.S., and de Repubwic of China) became permanent members of de United Nations Security Counciw in 1946; in 1971, de Peopwe's Repubwic of China repwaced de Repubwic of China (den onwy in controw of Taiwan) as permanent member of de UN Security Counciw, and in 1991 de Russian Federation assumed de seat of de dissowved USSR.
Decisions of de Security Counciw are binding on aww members of de UN, and unanimous decisions are not reqwired, unwike in de League Counciw. Permanent members of de Security Counciw can wiewd a veto to protect deir vitaw interests.
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|Wikisource has severaw originaw texts rewated to: League of Nations|
|Wikimedia Commons has media rewated to League of Nations.|
- The League of Nations., Boston: Owd Cowony Trust Company, 1919. A cowwection of charters, speeches, etc. on de topic.
- League of Nations Photo archive, Indiana.edu
- League of Nations chronowogy
- League of Nations timewine, worwdatwar.net
- History of de League of Nations, University of Oxford-wed project
- Wiwson's Finaw Address in Support of de League of Nations Speech made 25 September 1919
- History (1919–1946) from de United Nations Office at Geneva
- League of Nations Archives from de United Nations Office at Geneva
- Tabwe of Assembwies Dates of each annuaw assembwy, winks to wist of members of each country's dewegation
- LONSEA – League of Nations Search Engine, Cwuster of Excewwence "Asia and Europe in a Gwobaw Context", Universität Heidewberg
- Cwippings about League of Nations in de 20f Century Press Archives of de German Nationaw Library of Economics (ZBW)