How successful was the League in 1920s Flashcards
What were the boundary arguments raised by new countries?
After the War countries that lost had colonies taken from them and the newly independent people were encouraged to create their own nations. However there were many arguments throughout the 1920s about where the boundaries of new countries should be and some nations threatened to go to war.
1920 - Vilna
Success or Failure?
Failure of the league.
First time it was asked for help and it failed.
Countries that had been in Austria-Hungary’s empire were given independence after WWI. Lots of new countries were created or re-established including Poland and Lithuania.
Vilna = capital of Lithuania
Majority people wanted to be Polish
Polish army took control of the city and Lithuania asked League for help. league told Poland to remove its army, but was refused.
France saw Poland as a potential ally against Germany and refused to help. Britain would not send troops without the support of other countries.
1921-1925. Upper Silesia
Where is it located?
On the border between Germany and Poland at the end of WWI and both Germans and Poles were living there. Both nations wanted to claim the area, as it was important to iron and steel production.
What is a Plebiscite?
A vote in which the whole country takes part
What was the 1921 Plebiscite?
The Plebiscite was organised to decide who would own Upper Silesia. Britain and France sent troops to police the voting stations and to make sure the vote was fair and calm.
Which country won the Plebiscite vote?
Germany won 60 Per cent of the votes, but Poland claimed that many of the people who voted for Germany no longer lived in upper Silesia. They complained and the League of Nations decided to split Upper Silesia into regions according to how the people had voted.
Germany received most of the rural areas, while Poland received the industrial zones.
Did Germany and Poland accept the decision of the League on Upper Silesia
The outcome was accepted by both Germany and Poland, and the League made sure that the partition went smoothly by ensuring that rail links, water and electricity were still supplied to each side of the Upper Silesia.
Were the Poles satisfied with the decision on Upper Silesia?
The Poles considered the final settlement unfair. They received roughly half the population of Upper Silesia, but only a third of the land. Around half a million Poles were now in confirmed German territory.
Were the Germans satisfied with the decision on Upper Silesia?
The Germans weren’t fully satisfied either. They lost three quarters of the coal mines they had owned prior to the settlement- a valuable source of income.
In 1922 the German government complained to the League and was awarded the right to import coal at a heavily discounted rate. When this agreement ended in 1925 relations between Germany and Poland worsened.
1921- The Aland Islands
Who claimed the islands?
Both Sweden and Finland claimed the Åland Islands, which were between the two countries, and threatened war on each other. The League investigated each country’s claim.
What did the League decide on The Åland Islands
The League decided the islands should go to Finland. However, Finland was not allowed to build forts on the islands, so that they could not use it as a base from which to attack Sweden.
Sweden agreed to these terms, so the League had successfully avoided a war.
1923: Corfu
After the war which two countries boundaries still had to be decided which involved Corfu?
Greece and Albania
Who did the league appoint to oversee the boundary assessment?
Italian general named Tellini. but while he was surveying an area in Greece, he and his team were murdered.
Who was the ruler of Italy at the time of Tellini’s murder and how did he react?
Dictator - Benito Mussolini. When he heard about the murder he was furious and blame the Greek govt. He demanded the murderers be executed and he be paid compensation, but the Greeks didnt know who carried out the murder.
What did Mussolini do after Bellini’s murder and Greece’s failure to identify the murderers?
on 31 August 1923, Mussolini invaded and occupied Corfu, killing 15 people.
What did Greece do after Mussolini’s invasion of Corfu?
Greece appealed to the League of Nations, who condemned Mussolini’s act of aggression, but agreed that Greece should pay the compensation. League would look after the money and it would be paid to Italy once the killers were found.
Was Mussolini satisfied with League’s response to Greece’s complaint ?
No. He complained to the Conference of Ambassadors, a group of powerful countries in including Britain, France and Japan and persuaded them to undermine the League.
Green was forced to apologise and pay compensation directly to Italy. Mussolini then withdrew his troops from Corfu.
Was the League successful in Corfu?
No. When a large country had threatened a smaller one with military action, the league proved they could be ignored and overturned by other international groups.
1925: Bulgaria
Why did Greece invade Bulgaria
Greek soldiers were killed on the border, so Greece invaded Bulgaria.
Bulgaria appealed to the League for help.
What did the League do win response to Bulgaria’s appeal for help after Greece invaded?
League condemned the Greeks and ordered them to withdraw troops and pay compensation.
Greece thought League was being hypocritical , as Mussolini got away similar actions in Corfu in 1923.
But Greece small country and didn’t want to risk poor relations with powerful members of the League eg Britain and France so they obeyed.
1929: The Wall Street Crash
Where and when did it occur
1929 the American economy crashed.
What was the result of the Wall Street Crash
America was plunged into a devastating depression which lasted throughout the 1930s.
How did the Wall Street crash impact other nations?
America traded with countries across the world and lent a lot of money during and after the war, so global economies were also affected. The whole world faced economic depression.
What was the impact of depression in some countries?
People lost faith in their countries and turned to extremist parties such as the Nazi party in Germany which promised to make Germany strong again by overturning the Treaty of versailles.
The League was powerless to do anything to help people or to control these new party leaders who were willing to resort to violence to get their own way.
