You are viewing a free preview of this lesson.
Subscribe to unlock all 10 lessons in this course and every other course on LearningBro.
The League of Nations was an international organisation established after the First World War with the aim of maintaining world peace. It was the brainchild of US President Woodrow Wilson, who proposed it as part of his Fourteen Points. The League was founded in January 1920 and was headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. This lesson covers the aims, structure, membership, and inherent weaknesses of the League.
The League's central aim was to prevent another devastating world war. Its Covenant (founding document) set out four main aims.
| Aim | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Collective security | Member nations would act together to protect any member that was attacked. An attack on one would be treated as an attack on all |
| Disarmament | Members would reduce their armed forces to the lowest level consistent with national safety |
| Peaceful settlement of disputes | International disputes would be resolved through negotiation, arbitration, or judgement by the League, not by war |
| Improving living and working conditions | The League would address social problems such as disease, slavery, drug trafficking, and poor working conditions |
Exam Tip: The concept of collective security is the most important aim of the League. It meant that all members agreed to act together to stop aggression. If collective security worked, no country would dare attack another because it would face the combined opposition of all League members. Understanding why this concept failed in practice is crucial for exam success.
The League had several key bodies, each with a specific role.
| Body | Role | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| The Assembly | The League's "parliament" | All member states had one vote. Met once a year. Decisions had to be unanimous (every member had to agree) |
| The Council | The League's decision-making body | Met more frequently (at least four times a year). Had permanent members (Britain, France, Italy, Japan) and temporary members elected by the Assembly. Decisions also had to be unanimous |
| The Secretariat | The League's civil service | Carried out the day-to-day administrative work. Prepared reports and organised meetings |
| The Permanent Court of International Justice | The League's judicial body | Based in The Hague, Netherlands. Settled legal disputes between nations and gave advisory opinions |
| International Labour Organisation (ILO) | Social agency | Worked to improve working conditions worldwide — hours, wages, child labour |
| Special commissions | Various agencies | Dealt with specific issues: refugees, mandates, health, slavery, and drug control |
| Aspect | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original members | 42 countries joined in 1920 |
| Peak membership | 58 countries by the early 1930s |
| Notable absences | The USA never joined (the Senate rejected the Treaty of Versailles). Russia (USSR) was excluded initially as a communist state. Germany was excluded as a defeated power |
| Germany | Joined in 1926; withdrew in 1933 (under Hitler) |
| USSR | Joined in 1934; expelled in 1939 (after invading Finland) |
| Japan | Left in 1933 (after the Manchurian Crisis) |
| Italy | Left in 1937 (after the Abyssinian Crisis) |
Exam Tip: The absence of the USA is the single most important weakness of the League. Without the world's most powerful economy and military, the League lacked the strength to enforce its decisions. This is a point you should make in virtually every answer about the League's failures.
The League had significant structural and practical weaknesses that undermined its effectiveness from the start.
| Weakness | Explanation |
|---|---|
| No USA | The world's strongest nation refused to join, severely weakening the League's authority and military capability |
| No army | The League had no military force of its own. It relied on member states to provide troops, which they were often reluctant to do |
| Unanimous decisions | Every member of the Council had to agree before action could be taken. Any single member could block a decision (veto) |
| Slow decision-making | The Assembly met only once a year and decisions required extensive consultation |
| Self-interest | Member nations often prioritised their own national interests over the League's aims |
| Defeated powers excluded | Germany and Russia were initially excluded, meaning the League did not represent major world powers |
| Sanctions were weak | The League could impose moral condemnation, economic sanctions (trade bans), or theoretically military action — but in practice, economic sanctions were difficult to enforce and military action was never taken |
When a dispute arose, the League had a graduated response.
| Step | Action |
|---|---|
| 1. Moral condemnation | The League would publicly condemn the aggressor, using the weight of world opinion |
| 2. Economic sanctions | Member nations would refuse to trade with the aggressor state |
| 3. Military action | As a last resort, members could contribute military forces to stop aggression (this never happened in practice) |
The League was not the only mechanism for maintaining peace in the 1920s. Several other agreements operated alongside it.
| Agreement | Date | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Washington Naval Conference | 1921–1922 | USA, Britain, Japan, France, and Italy agreed to limit the size of their navies |
| Rapallo Treaty | 1922 | Germany and Russia established diplomatic and economic relations (outside the League) |
| Locarno Treaties | 1925 | Germany voluntarily accepted its western borders (with France and Belgium). Seen as a triumph of diplomacy and reconciliation |
| Kellogg-Briand Pact | 1928 | 65 nations agreed to renounce war as an instrument of foreign policy. Idealistic but unenforceable |
Exam Tip: The Locarno Treaties (1925) are often seen as the high point of the League era, creating a spirit of international cooperation known as the "Locarno honeymoon." However, Germany did not accept its eastern borders, which was an ominous sign.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| January 1920 | League of Nations established |
| 1920 | 42 founding members |
| 1925 | Locarno Treaties signed |
| 1926 | Germany joins the League |
| 1928 | Kellogg-Briand Pact |
| 1933 | Germany and Japan leave the League |
| 1934 | USSR joins the League |
| 1937 | Italy leaves the League |
Subscribe to continue reading
Get full access to this lesson and all 10 lessons in this course.