League of Nations Flashcards
1
Q
What, fundamentally, was the League of Nations?
A
A peace-keeping organisation.
2
Q
Why was the League of Nations set up in the first place?
A
As a result of Wilson’s “14 Points for Peace”, which came into the first 26 clauses of the Treaty of Versailles.
3
Q
What was the Covenant?
A
The League of Nations’ rulebook.
4
Q
What did all members of the League of Nations have to agree to obey?
A
The rules within the Covenant.
5
Q
What was the name given to the clauses within the Treaty of Versailles that set out the aims of the League of Nations?
A
The Covenant.
6
Q
In 1920, how many members were there within the League of Nations?
A
42
7
Q
a) How many members were there in the League of Nations in the early 1930s?
b) What does this say about the success of the League of Nations?
A
a) 60
b) 10 years earlier showed a much smaller membership of the League of Nations. This shows that the organisation was growing, which means that the League of Nations was relatively successful at this time.
8
Q
How many clauses of the Treaty of Versailles stated that the League of Nations was to be set up?
A
The first 26 clauses.
9
Q
What were the key aims of the League of Nations? (5 things)
A
- To discourage aggression from any nation
- TO encourage countries to co-operate, especially in business and trade.
- To encourage all nations to disarm
- To improve living and working conditions in all parts of the world
- To keep the peace in the world
10
Q
What made it difficult for the Assembly to come to a decision?
A
All decisions had to be unanimous - there had to be complete agreement amongst all members.
11
Q
Who could the Assembly recommend action to?
A
The Council
12
Q
Could the Assembly admit new members to the League of Nations?
A
Yes.
13
Q
How frequently did the Assembly within the League of Nations meet?
A
Once a year.
14
Q
a) How did the Assembly within the League of Nations meet?
b) What problems were there with this?
A
a) Every country (i.e. every member) sent a representative to the Assembly meetings
b) It ended up rather an expensive feat for each member to fly out from their own countries to meet in one place in the world. This is why the meetings were so infrequent.
15
Q
What is meant by the term ‘unanimous’?
A
Complete agreement amongst everyone.
16
Q
What could the Assembly decide on about the League of Nations?
A
It could decide the budget of the League.
17
Q
What was the Council?
A
A smaller group than the Assembly, made up of the world powers at the time.
18
Q
Who were the permanent members of the Council in 1920?
A
Britain, France, Italy and Japan.
19
Q
How long could temporary members be elected by the Assembly to the Council for?
A
3 years.
20
Q
What did the permanent members of the Council have to have together?
A
A veto.
21
Q
What was the purpose of having a veto for the permanent members of the Council?
A
So they could stop a course of action they agreed with.
22
Q
Why did the USA not join the League of Nations, despite it being the idea of Woodrow Wilson, the President of the USA?
A
Because the League of Nations was in the first 26 clauses of the Treaty of Versailles, which the USA were unhappy with.
23
Q
How could the permanent members of the Council having a veto affect the decisions being made?
A
It meant that members of the Council could stop a course of action they disagreed with, so not many decisions were made overall
24
Q
What is meant by the term ‘Collective Security’?
A
All for one and one for all
25
Explain what actions the Council could take in order to settle disputes among nations and obtain Collective Security. (3 stages)
1. Talking to the aggressor. Moral condemnation after arbitration. They could condemn the aggressor's action and tell them to stop.
2. Stopping trade with the aggressor. Economic sanctions. Members of the League could refuse to trade with the aggressor.
3. Military force if the member countries of the League of Nations contributed armed forces (the League of Nations had no army of its own)
26
What was the Secretariat?
Similar to the Civil Service - it did all the paperwork for the League of Nations, such as keeping records for the League's meetings and prepared reports for the agencies of the League of Nations.
27
What does the ILO stand for?
The International Labour Organisation
28
What was the aim of the ILO?
To improve working conditions throughout the world
29
What was the purpose of the ILO collecting statistics and information?
To persuade League of Nations member countries to adopt their suggestions.
30
Who made up the ILO?
Representatives of government, workers, and employers.
31
What did the Commissions do?
Tackled major problems besides disputes between countries
32
What are the 8 Special Commissions?
- Mandates (made sure that the colonies taken from countries in the Peace Treaties were looked after properly)
- Refugees
- Slavery
- Health
- Women
- Minorities
- Help for underdeveloped nations
- Drug addiction
33
The Commissions were ______ _____ and did much ____ _____ throughout the world.
- Well funded
| - Good work
34
What 6 components made up the organisation of the League of Nations?
- The Assembly
- The Council
- The Secritariat
- The ILO (International Labour Organisation)
- Permanent Court of Justice
- The Special Commissions
35
Define what is meant by a 'political success'.
Dealing with a dispute between nations to successfully maintain peace.
36
Finish the phrase.
There was a sense of...
...goodwill and co-operation between nations, given that the horrors of World War One were fresh in the memory.
37
What year did the League of Nations successfully solve the Aaland Islands dispute?
1921
38
Where are the Aaland islands situated?
Between Sweden and Finland
39
What happened during the Aaland islands dispute?
- Both Sweden and Finland claimed that the Aaland islands belonged to them, and both were prepared to fight for them.
- The two countries invited the League of Nations to settle the dispute
- The League of Nations stated that the islands belonged to Finland, and Sweden accepted this.
40
Why do you think the Aaland Islands dispute was a success on the League of Nations' part?
Because both countries were willing to accept the League's authority
41
Why do you think countries were willing to accept the League's authority?
Because they wanted to get along, so as to not start another war.
42
Was the Greek-Bulgaria dispute a success or a failure on the League of Nations' part?
A success
43
When was the Greek-Bulgaria dispute?
1925
44
What did critics say following the Greek-Bulgaria dispute?
That the League of Nations were only willing to take action in solving a dispute when only minor powers (as opposed to great powers and world leaders) were involved
45
What happened during the Greek-Bulgaria dispute?
- Greece and Bulgaria were quarreling over their border
- Greece invaded Bulgaria
- The League of Nations said the Greeks were in the wrong and put pressure on them to remove their troops
- The Greeks withdrew their forces
46
True or False:
The Upper Silesia dispute was a success on the League of Nations' part.
Trick Question - The dispute of Upper Silesia was only a partial successs.
47
What year was the Upper Silesia dispute?
1921
48
What happened in the Upper Silesia dispute?
- The industrial land of Upper Silesia was claimed by both Germany and Poland
- The League of Nations organised a vote and let the people of Upper Silesia choose who they wanted to belong to
- The people voted to join Germany but the League of Nations decided that it would be shared between the two anyway
- Most of the industrial land was given to Poland which angered Germany but both countries accepted the decision
- It was only a partial success because no matter what the outcome, someone would have been unhappy.
49
In the vote organised by the League of Nations during the Upper Silesia dispute, how many people voted to belong to Poland?
480,000
50
In the vote organised by the League of Nations during the Upper Silesia dispute, how many people voted to belong to Germany?
710,000
51
When was the Vilna dispute?
1920
52
Was the Vilna dispute a success or a failure on the League of Nations' part?
Failure.
53
What happened in the Vilna dispute?
- Vilna was a piece of territory claimed by both Poland and Lithuania
- The Treaty of Versailles said it belonged to Lithuania, however the population was mostly Polish and Polish soldiers were occupying Vilna and refusing to leave
- The League of Nations were reluctant to take strong action against a member who had broken the Covenant and shown aggression against another nation because Poland acted as a barrier against the Soviet Union
- The Polish were upset that the League of Nations was too weak to take stronger action so they confirmed Polish occupation of Vilna
54
When did the League of Nations confirm Polish occupation of Vilna?
1923
55
Complete the phrase.
In the Vilna dispute, the League of Nations followed its own...
...self-interests rather than maintaining Collective Security - all for one and one for all.
56
What did the ILO do to enhance the overall success of the League of Nations during the 1920s?
Campaigned for better working conditions, sickness benefits and pensions rights and took measures against unemployment.
57
What did the well-funded and well organised special commissions/agencies do in the 1920s to enhance the overall success of the League of Nations?
Did good humanitarian work such as they returned 400,000 refugees to their homes, economies of Austria and Hungary were saved from collapse, acts were taken against slavery, and attempts were made to prevent the production and sales of illegal drugs.
58
Complete the quote from Woodrow Wilson.
"To win the war is not enough..."
"...it must be won in such a way as to ensure the peacekeeping of the world."
59
Where were the headquarters of the League of Nations?
Geneva, Switzerland (a neutral country)
60
True or False?
The reason why the League of Nations was so successful was because the three major world powers were members.
False - This was one of the League of Nations' major weaknesses, as the 3 major world powers at the time, the USA, Germany, and the Soviet Union, were not members of the League of Nations.
61
Why were the USA not members of the League of Nations?
The US Congress did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles, as they believed that the Treaty was too harsh on Germany, so never joined the League of Nations.
62
The USA followed a policy of __________, which meant that the USA did not wish to...
- Isolationism.
| - ...be involved in European affairs.
63
Why did the League of Nations struggle to be successful without the USA?
Because as the world's most powerful nation, the USA was also the nation with the most moral force/moral authority to lead the League of Nations.
64
What is meant by the term 'ratify'?
Approve of.
65
Why was Germany not a member of the League of Nations?
As a defeated nation, Germany were not allowed to join the League of Nations.
66
When was Germany allowed to become a member of the League of Nations?
1926
67
Why was the Soviet Union not a member of the League of Nations?
They were mistrusted as a communist country and were not allowed to join the League of Nations.
68
When was the Soviet Union allowed to become a member of the League of Nations?
1934
69
Who were the two most powerful nations within the League of Nations?
Britain and France.
70
What did Britain see the League of Nations as?
A 'talking shop' (talking through things, debating disputes etc)
71
What did France see the League of Nations as?
A way to protect itself against Germany through the idea of Collective Security
72
# Fill in the gaps.
The League of Nations was seen as a '_______ club', dominated by the countries which had _____ WW1 and signed the _________________.
- Victors
- Won
- Treaty of Versailles
73
True or False?
The fact that Britain and France had different views about the purpose of the League of Nations was a contributing factor as to why the League ultimately failed - they followed their own self-interests rather than maintaining Collective Security.
True.
74
Other than Vilna, name another dispute that was a major failure on the League of Nations' part in the 1920s.
The Corfu Incident.
75
When was the Corfu Incident?
1923
76
Where is Corfu?
A Greek island.
77
What were the events that led up to the Corfu incident?
- Following WW1, the border between Greece and Albania had not been settled
- Victorious powers (Britain, France, Italy) set up a group called the conference of Ambassadors to decide where the border should be
- General Tellini (an Italian ambassador of the conference of Ambassadors) was ambushed and murdered in northern Greece, close to the border area with Albania
- Mussolini, the Italian dictator, was outraged and blamed the Greeks for the murder and demanded an apology and a compensation payment of 50,000 lire
78
What happened during the Corfu incident?
- The Greeks rejected some of Mussolinis demands so Italian soldiers invaded Corfu
- The League met to discuss the incident and decided there would be an enquiry, but in the meantime, the Greeks should pay the reparations into a Swiss (neutral) bank account
- The Greeks accepted the plan but Mussolini said the League had no right to interfere, despite Italy being one of the main members of the League and the fact he was breaking the Covenant.
- Mussolini threatened to leave the League if the enquiry continued, so the League passed the responsibility to the Conference of Ambassadoes who blamed the Greeks and gave the payment over to Italy.
79
What were the consequences of the Corfu incident?
- Italy had deliberately broken the Covenant and gotten away with it
- Aggression had triumphed.
- A powerful nation had got its own way and the interests of the weaker nation had been ignored
80
What was the conclusion made about the League of Nations following the Corfu incident?
That they were unable to handle disputes when they were being challenged or threatened by a more powerful nation.
81
When was the Manchuria Dispute?
1931
82
Where is Manchuria?
Northern China
83
What happened prior to the Manchuria dispute?
- Manchuria had lots of natural resources
- The government in China was weak
- Japan was a major power with a strong army and navy but they had been badly hit by the Great Depression and its exports had fallen by 50% between 1929 and 1931
- Japan had an army stationed in Manchuria and the Chinese resented Japan being in Manchuria
84
When Japan were hit badly by the Great Depression, they stole and exploited the raw materials of Manchuria. What was this an example of?
Aggressive nationalism.
85
Define aggressive nationalism.
Being forceful and ensuring one's own country thrived at the expense of other countries.
86
What happened during the Manchuria dispute?
- 18th September 1931 there was an incident on the Japanese-owned railway at Mukden (a small town in Manchuria)
- It was unclear as to whether it was started by the Japanese or the Chinese - either way it gave Japan an excuse to invade Manchuria
- China appealed to the League of Nations for help
87
What did the League of Nations do to sort out the Manchuria dispute?
Lord Lytton was sent to investigate but he took 12 months to report.
When he finally did, the League of Nations asked Japan to leave Manchuria. They refused and left the League.
88
a) What happened after Japan had left the League of Nations?
| b) Why did the League of Nations do nothing at this point?
a) They invaded further into Manchuria and even renamed it Manchukuo. By 1938 most important cities in China were controlled by the Japanese.
b) Because the issue was very far away from Britain and France and so had little effect on them (National Interest).
89
What was the conclusion following the Manchuria dispute failure?
Other countries and dictators could see that the League was not strong enough to act.
90
When was the Abyssinia dispute?
1935
91
What happened priro to the Abyssinia dispute?
- Mussolini wanted to expand his overseas empire and believed Britain and France would understand as they had overseas empires of their own
- December 1934 Italian and Abyssinian soldiers clashed at an oasis at Wal Wal
- This gave Italy an excuse to conquer Abyssinia, with their highly developed modern weapons (mustard gas, tanks, aircraft)
92
What is the new name of the country of Abyssinia?
Ethiopia
93
What did the League of Nations do during the Abyssinia dispute?
- Half-hearted economic sanctions were imposed upon Italy but League members continued to trade with Italy in coal, iron and oil which were all essential for the fighting of a war
- The British-controlled Suez canal was not closed which allowed Mussolini to supply his army
- A secret plan was arranged (the Hoare-Laval Plan) between Britain and France which gave away fertile Abyssinian land to Italy in exchange for Abyssinian access to the sea
94
What was the conclusion about the League of Nations once the Hoare-Laval Plan was revealed to the public?
Britain and France followed a policy of their own self-interests and were prepared to sacrifice a weaker country (Abyssinia) to remain allies with a more powerful one (Italy)
95
What were the consequences of the Abyssinia dispute?
- Abyssinia was occupied by the Italians
- The League of Nations was seen as powerless against an aggressive, powerful nation
- Britain and France maintained their own self-interests rather than upholding the aims of the League and ensuring Collective Security
- Nobody took the League seriously after this massive failure - they were completely discredited and lost all face.
