Crisises in the 1920s Flashcards
What was the Vilna Crisis and when did it happen?
- This was when Poland wanted to take control of Vilna (Lithuanian Capital) from Lithuania as many people in the country wanted to be Polish.
League Action:
France wanted to keep Poland as an ally against Germany, but Britain were not willing to act, so the League of Nations did nothing.
What happened in Upper Silesia and when did it happen?
1921-25.
This was when Germany and Poland both wanted Upper Silesia and decided who would get it by doing a plebiscite.
Germany won 60% of the votes, but Poland claimed many people who voted for Germany no longer lived in Upper Silesia.
League Action:
The League of Nations split Upper Silesia into regions according to how many people voted.
The final settlement didn’t satisy Poland nor Germany.
What happened in the Aaland Islands and when did it happen?
1921.
This was when Both Sweden and FInland claimed the Aaland Island (which was between the 2 countries).
They threatened a war on eachother.
League Action:
The League of Nations decided that the island should go to Finland but they were not allowed to built forts on the island to be used as a base to attack Sweden.
What happened in the Corfu Crisis and when did it happen?
- At the time, Italy was ruled by a dictator, Mussolini, who found out about the murder of a general, Tellini, and his team. He blamed the Greek government, demanding that the murderers get executed and he get paid compensation.
Greece did not know who the murderers were and in August, Mussolini invaded and occupied Corfu, killing 15 people.
League Action:
The League of Nations agreed Greece should pay compensation and they would give it to Italy once the murderers were found.
What happened in the Bulgaria Crisis and when was it?
1925.
Greek soldiers were killed on the Bulgarian border. Greece invaded.
League Action:
The League of Nations condemned the Greek and ordered them to redraw troops and pay compensation.
Greece saw this to be hypocritical.
What happened in the Wall Street Crash and when was it?
1929.
America plunged into a devastating depression.
Other global countries were affected as America traded and lent money with other nations.
Some people lost faith in their government and turned to extremist groups.
League Action:
The League of Nations was powerless to help or control these new group leaders who were willing to resort to violence to get their own way.
