The League of Nations and Europe Notes

Overview

1. The League of Nations was created after World War I as part of the Treaty of Versailles.
2. Its goal was to ensure peace through collective security, prevent future wars, and resolve conflicts through diplomacy rather than violence.
3. The League struggled to enforce its decisions, especially as the 1930s brought increased aggression from fascist powers like Italy and Germany.
4. It had limited power, no standing army, and was weakened by the absence of the USA, and later by the withdrawal or defiance of key powers like Japan, Germany, and Italy.

Successes and Failures of the League in Europe

Successes

1. The League resolved minor border disputes like the Aaland Islands (1921) between Finland and Sweden.
2. It helped settle the Upper Silesia dispute (1921) between Germany and Poland with a peaceful plebiscite.
3. The League managed the Greek-Bulgarian crisis (1925), stopping the fighting quickly and fairly.
4. It helped refugees and fought diseases through its humanitarian agencies.

Failures

1. It failed to prevent Italy's invasion of Abyssinia (1935) and Japan’s invasion of Manchuria (1931).
2. In Europe, the League could not stop Hitler’s remilitarization of the Rhineland (1936) or Germany’s expansion into Austria and Czechoslovakia.
3. It couldn’t enforce economic sanctions effectively or take military action.

The Search for Collective Security

1. Collective security meant that all members of the League would protect each other if one was attacked.
2. It was supposed to be a peace guarantee, as in no more secret alliances or military buildup.

Why it failed

1. The USA never joined, which made the League weaker from the start.
2. Britain and France disagreed on how to use force and often prioritized their own interests.
3. Countries like Germany, Italy, and Japan left the League or ignored its rulings.
4. Appeasement in the 1930s (letting aggressors get what they wanted to avoid war) undermined collective security.

Successor States of Central and Eastern Europe

1. After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian, Russian, and Ottoman Empires, new countries were created. These were called successor states. These included:
   1. Austria,
   2. Hungary,
   3. Czechoslovakia,
   4. Poland,
   5. Yugoslavia,
   6. Finland,
   7. Latvia,
   8. Lithuania, and
   9. Estonia

Key Issues These States Faced

1. Many had ethnic minorities, leading to tension and border disputes.
2. Most were weak democracies that became authoritarian during the 1920s and 1930s.
3. Many suffered from economic instability and poor international trade.
4. Some (like Poland and Hungary) revised borders by force or through alliances with larger powers (e.g., Nazi Germany).

Role of the League

1. The League often failed to stop border conflicts between these states (e.g., Poland vs. Lithuania over Vilna).
2. It had little influence when internal political struggles turned countries into dictatorships.