15- Diplomacy in Europe (collective security in the 20s and 30s) Flashcards
How was collective security different in the 1920s and 30s?
While it can be argued that there were definitely some successes for the League in the 1920s, most historians agree that the 1930s saw the idea of collective security failing to maintain peace or to resolve key issues resulting from the Peace Treaties.
Why did collective security fail to maintain peace or resolve key issues in the 1930s?
The situation was complicated by the impact of the Great Depression and indeed it could be argued that this global event made the work of the League impossible given the fact that the economic situation encouraged both extremism and also made the democracies less willing and able to focus on international events.
How successful was collective security in the 1920s?
- The League attempted to solve various political disputes in the 1920s.
- However, the structural weakness of the League were already clear and the actions of the key European powers, such as France continued to undermine the work of the League e.g. through the Ruhr Crisis.
How did the political situation in Europe change after the Ruhr crisis?
- After the Ruhr crisis, the political situation in Europe was improved with the Dawes Plan and also the Locarno Pact of 1925, the Kellogg–Briand Pact of August 1928 and the Young Plan of 1929.
- However, it should be noted that these agreements took place outside the League of Nations.
Describe the military situation in Europe after French forces left the Ruhr
- There were allied troops in other Rhineland cities, as dictated by the terms of Versailles.
- Stresemann wanted to rid Germany of these ‘occupying forces’, and he was also keen to quell any movement in support of an independent Rhineland.
What did Stresemann propose at a conference in Locarno in Switzerland in February 1925 and what would this mean for different countries?
- Stresemann proposed a voluntary German guarantee of its western borders.
- Significantly for the French and Belgians, this meant that Germany was resolved to give up its claims over Alsace-Lorraine, Malmedy and Eupen.
- In return, Germany had some reassurance that France would not invade again, and it removed any potential for an independent Rhineland.
- A series of treaties were signed.
Describe the treaties that were signed at Locarno in 1925
- The major treaty guaranteed the boundaries between France, Belgium and Germany.
- Also present at Locarno were representatives of Italy, Czechoslovakia and Poland.
- Germany signed treaties with Poland and Czechoslovakia, agreeing to change the eastern borders with these countries by arbitration only.
- It was also agreed that Germany should be admitted into the League of Nations.
How did the Locarno agreement impact Europe
- It gave hope for future security.
- It suggested that former enemies could work together to resolve disputes, and to uphold the Versailles settlement.
- The new mood became known the ‘Locarno spirit’. When Locarno was followed up with a series of agreements involving the USA, this ‘spirit’ seemed to be embracing even isolationist nations.
Limitations of Locarno agreement - Germany’s borders
- The Locarno Pact seemed to bode well for the future of collective security.
- However, although this agreement appeared to herald a new era of cooperation between the Western European powers (Britain had been in favour of the agreement, as it expunged French excuses for occupation), what the agreement did not guarantee were Germany’s eastern borders.
- Italy, present at Locarno, had not managed to get similar agreements from Germany on its southern border.
Limitations of Locarno agreement - France’s traties
- The treaties France had with Poland and Czechoslovakia were little comfort to those respective countries, as it would be strategically difficult to offer tangible support following Locarno.
- In addition, France had not changed its view of Germany. Rather, it had just changed its strategy for containing Germany. Instead of confronting the Germans with force, France was now attempting to bring Germany into international agreements that involved the guarantees of other powers.
Limitations of Locarno agreement - undermining the ToV and LoN
- Locarno had undermined both the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations.
- Security for France had been sought outside the League, and only a component of the Versailles Treaty had been guaranteed.
When was the Young Plan introduced?
1929
What was the purpose of the Young Plan?
It attempted to redress some of the problems that remained with the Dawes Plan.
What were some of the aspects of the Young Plan?
- It further reduced the total sum to be repaid by Germany
- A date was set for completion of repayments – 1988
- Continued US involvement in reparation payments.
- As part of the deal, Britain and France agreed to end their occupation of the Rhineland five years ahead of schedule.
What did Keynes write about the Dawes and Young Plans?
- As Keynes had noted in 1926, the foundations for both the Dawes and then the Young Plan, and thus both German and European recovery, was foreign money.
- Two-thirds of investment in Germany during the 1920s came from America.
- Keynes wrote in 1926 that the reparation arrangements were ‘in the hands of the American capitalist’.
When was the Kellog-Briand Pact signed?
August 1928
What was the Kellog Briand Pact?
- It was initiated by American Secretary of State William Kellogg and the French Foreign Minister Aristide Briand.
- The pact renounced ‘war as an instrument of national policy’; 62 of 64 invited states signed the agreement (Brazil and Argentina declined).
What were the contemporary views of the Kellog-Briand Pact?
- They were often positive; it was seen as an important declaration by governments that they would pursue their objectives through peaceful means.
- The pact has been viewed as the high point of ‘Locarno spirit’ era.
- Unfortunately, this perspective would prove to be naive, as the encouraging elements of Europe’s recovery were very fragile.
How could it be argued that there was no major conflict in the 1920s?
- Because the main revisionist power, i.e. Germany, was still recovering from World War I.
- In addition, the 1920s were in the main a period of relative economic boom and prosperity, which decreased international tensions and encouraged cooperation.
- As P.M.H. Bell writes, ‘Europe had survived, but was still on the sick list.’
Give an overview of collective security in the 1930s
- Although the concept of collective security had some degree of success in the 1920s, the League’s failure to resolve key international crises in the 1930s meant that it had completely collapsed by 1939.
- A major factor in undermining the concept of collective security was the impact of The Depression.
Why were the effects the Great Depression so far-reaching and global?
- Because the USA had become the globally dominant economic power, and this meant that the world’s economy was ominously linked to its fortunes.
- The impact of the crisis on the economic, social and ultimately political landscape of the world ushered in a return to a world dominated by national self-interest and the dominance of military forces.
How did the Great Depression affect the US’ economy?
The USA’s national income fell by almost 50 per cent between 1929 and 1932, and its government struggled to cope with unemployment and popular discontent.
What political effects did the Great Depression have?
- Poverty and despair have often fostered the rise of extremist groups, and the fragile liberal governments of the 1920s found resurgent nationalist and aggressive political groups very difficult to restrict.
- The delicate European stability that had been nurtured by the resources of American capitalism was particularly vulnerable to a major economic collapse in the USA.
- This was equally true of the recently democratic and liberal Japan.
Who was blamed for the Great Depression
- Governments were blamed for the crisis.
- In France, a moderate government was replaced by a radical left-wing government in the May 1932 election.
How was Britain affected by the GD- economically and poltiically?
Iron and stille production fell by 50 per cent and politics shifted to right-wing parties.
How was the German economy affected by the GD and why?
- Germany had borrowed £9,000 million between 1924 and 1929.
- When the money stopped, its economy collapsed; German unemployment stood at 1.4 million in 1928 and was over 30% of the population in 1932.
How did the political situation in Germany change as a result of the GD?
The Weimar government and liberal democracy lost credibility and ended when Franz von Papen assumed the role of virtual dictator in May 1932.
How was Japan affected by the Great Depression?
- In 1931, 50 per cent of factories closed and silk prices fell by two-thirds.
- There ensued a radical shift to the right, linked to military factions. By 1932, following a series of assassinations, the era of liberal politics in Japan was over.
