How Successful was the League in the 1920s? Flashcards
When was the Vilna crisis?
1920
What happened in Vilna?
-After WW1 countries that had been in Austria-Hungary’s empire were given independence , lots of new countries were created like Poland and Lithuania
-Vilna was to be the capital of Lithuania, but the majority there wanted to be Polish
-A polish army took control of the city and asked the League for help
-The League told Poland to remove its army, they refused
Was Vilna a success of failure?
A failure - the first time the League were asked to settle a dispute they did nothing, and Poland took Vilna.
Why did Britain and France not help with the Vilna crisis?
France saw Poland as a potential ally against Germany and refused to help. Britain would not send troops without the support of other countries.
When was the Upper Silesia crisis?
1921-25
Where was Upper Silesia?
On the border between Germany and Poland.
Who wanted to claim Upper Silesia?
Both Germans and the Poles living there.
When was a plebiscite in Upper Silesia?
1921
How did France make sure the voting in Upper Silesia was fair?
They sent troops to police voting stations.
What was the result of the plebiscite in Upper Silesia?
Germany won 60% of the votes, but Poland claimed that many of the people who voted for Germany were not longer living in Upper Silesia.
How did the League respond to the plebiscite in Upper Silesia?
They decided to split Upper Silesia into regions according to how people had voted.
How did the League make sure the partition went smoothly in Upper Silesia?
By ensuring rail links, water and electricity were still supplied to each side of Upper Silesia.
What did the Poles think about the final settlement in Upper Silesia?
They considered it 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.
Why were the Germans not fully satisfied with how the League dealt with Upper Silesia either?
How did the League deal with this?
They lost 3/4 of the coal mines they had owned prior to the settlement - a valuable source of income.
In 1922 the German government was given the right to import coal at a heavily discounted rate. When this agreement ended in 1925 relations between Germany and Poland worsened.
Was the League successful with Upper Silesia?
Not really.
When was the Aland Islands crisis?
1921
Who both claimed the Aland Islands?
Both Sweden and Finland.
What did the League decide about the Aland Islands?
They decided that the islands should go to Finland, however, Finland could not build forts on it, so could not be used a base from which to attack Sweden.
Was the League successful with the Aland Islands?
Yes, Sweden agreed to these terms so the League had successfully avoided war.
When was the Corfu crisis?
1923
Who did the League give the job of deciding the boundaries of Greece and Albania to?
An Italian general named Tellini.
What happened to Tellini and his team?
While surveying an area of Greece, him and his team were murdered.
What happened when Italy’s dictator, Mussolini, heard about Tellini’s murder?
He was furious and blamed the Greek government. He demanded the murderers be executed and that he should be paid compensation, but the Greeks did not know who had murdered Tellini and his team.
When did Mussolini invade and occupy Corfu?
On 31 August.
