League of Nations

Question 1

Why USA didn’t join LON

Answer 1

• TOV (some hated it)
• Economic (if sanctions were imposed, American trade/ businesses would suffer the most
• WW1 (believed American soldiers would have to solve international issues )
• Anti-Empire (thought B + F would rule LON)

Question 2

Vilna (1920) dispute

Answer 2

• Poland and Lithuania
• FAILURE
• Poland invaded Lithuanian capital (Vilna), LON ordered them to leave but they refused, B + F weren’t prepared to act

Question 3

Upper Silesia (1921) dispute

Answer 3

• Germany and Poland
• SUCCESS
• fought over Upper Silesian settlement
• fair vote = region was divided

Question 4

Aaland Islands (1921) dispute

Answer 4

• Finland and Sweden
• SUCCESS
• threatening war
• Sweden accepted League’s decision that Sweden should have it

Question 5

Corfu dispute year

Answer 5

1923

Question 6

Corfu (1923) dispute

Answer 6

• Greece and Albania (border)
• FAILURE
• Italian Gen. (Tellini) was surveying and him and his team were sabotaged and killed
• Mussolini demanded compensation
• Mussolini bombarded and invaded Corfu
• League condemned Mussolini + demanded money from Greece
• France supported Italy and British were against (they should’ve cooperated)

Question 7

Geneva protocol (1924)

Answer 7

• Britain and France pact
• FAILURE
• ‘if 2 members fought, LON would decide and decision should be accepted’
• but, elections in Britain, new gov. rejected it

Question 8

Bulgaria (1925) dispute

Answer 8

• Greeks invaded Bulgaria
• SUCCESS
• LON ordered them to leave, B + F agreed

Question 9

Manchurian Crisis

Answer 9

• Chinese (allegedly) attacked South Manchurian Railway
• japan used as excuse to invade Manchuria (claims China was an anarchy and invaded in self-defense)
• china appealed to league
• LON investigates and tells Japan to leave
• Japan leaves league and invades more of China
• league was powerless

(sanctions wouldn’t work (USA was japan’s main trading partner)/ Britain wanted good relationship/ ban arm sales= war/ only USA or USSR could remove them but they weren’t in LON)

Question 10

failure of disarmament conference

Answer 10

• no one wanted to disarm to germany’s level
• germany left LON
• agree to treat germany equally
• hitler becomes chancellor and begins secretly rearming
• germany leaves league again

Question 11

Abyssinian Crisis (1935)

Answer 11

• Mussolini invaded Abyssinia
• 1896= tried to invade but defeated by tribesmen
• 1934= Italian vs Abyssinian soldiers
• Abyssinia appeals to LON
• league tried to give some of abyssinia to mussolini (he rejected it)
• mussolini ready for war
• LON banned all imports, loans and arm sales to italy
• B + F didn’t close Italy’s main supply route canal
• Hoare - Laval pact (1936, B+F foreign ministers, pact leaked, they were fired)