Inter War Years Review -- Peacemaking, peacekeeping—international relations 1918-1936
Aims of the participants and peacemakers: Wilson and the Fourteen Points | |||
Timeline of Key Events · November 11 1918: Armistice ending WWI is signed · January 18 1919: Paris Peace Conference begins · March 25: Lloyd George’s Fontainebleau Memorandum | Relevant Historical Facts Key People / Terms · The ‘Big Three’ dominated the Peace talks, and included US President Woodrow Wilson, British PM David Lloyd George, and French Premier Georges Clemenceau. · Wilson’s Fourteen Points called for a ‘New Diplomacy’, which constituted: open diplomacy, world disarmament, economic integration and a League of Nations. · Clemenceau wanted Alsace-Lorraine, the Saar, and the left bank of the Rhine, as well as independence of Poland and Czechoslovakia. · Lloyd George produced the Fontainebleau Memorandum in March 1919, which stressed that Germans must find the treaty to be just in order to achieve a lasting peace. · Italian representatives demanded additional territories, such as Fiume, in April 1919 and when it was denied, Vittorio Orlando walked out of the conference. | ||
Historical Context · Billions of dollars were spent on fighting WWI and it produced unparalleled levels of casualties. · The Russian Revolution of October 1917 brought the first communist government to power. · There was a fear that revolutions might spread across Europe, resulting from: the collapse of traditional empires, e.g. Turkey; unrest in Russia; and the resurgence of demands for self-determination by ethnic groups like Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. · The public of victorious nations demanded security, stability, and compensation for their war efforts. This resulted after four years of nationalistic propaganda. · Italy was initially allied with Germany but switched to the Allied side following the Treaty of London in 1915. | Key Quotes · “America is very far from Germany, but France is very near and I have preoccupations which do not affect President Wilson as they do a man who has seen the Germans for four years in his country. There are wrongs to be righted.” –Clemenceau, January 1919. · “…injustice, arrogance, displayed in the hour of triumph, will never be forgotten.” –Fontainebleau Memo by Lloyd George, March 1919. | ||
Opening Idea “It must be a peace without victory…Only a peace between equals can last.” –Wilson, Jan. 1917 | Final Thought Versailles was a “Carthaginian peace.” –J.M. Keynes | ||
Historiography · Erik Goldstein, The First World War Peace Settlements 1919-1925. 2005. - “France had historically aspired to control this region[the Rhineland], which it felt would complete its natural border. France saw control of the Rhineland as a necessary part of its fundamental objectives.” · David G. Williamson, War and Peace: International Relations 1919-39. 2003. - Lloyd George thought “that only a prosperous and peaceful Germany could pay reparations and play its part in Europe as one of the main engines of the European economy.” | |||
Inter War Years Review -- Peacemaking, peacekeeping—international relations 1918-1936
Terms of the Paris Peace Treaties 1919-1920: Versailles, St Germain, Trianon, Neuilly, Sèvres/Lausanne 1923 | |||
Timeline of Key Events · June 1919: Treaty of Versailles with Germany · September 1919: Treaty of St. Germain with Austria. · November 1919: Treaty of Neuilly with Bulgaria · June 1920: Treaty of Trianon with Hungary · August 1920: Treaty of Sevres with Turkey · 1923: Treaty of Lausanne with Turkey | Relevant Historical Facts Key People / Terms · Versailles included: Article 231 “War Guilt Clause”; £6,600 million in reparations; navy of six battleships and 100 000 men; loss of territory such as Alsace-Lorraine, the Saar, Danzig the Polish Corridor and Northern Schleswig. · Austria and Hungary became separate states after WWI. · St Germain included: recognition of Czechoslovakia; independence of Croats, Slavs, and Slovenes in Yugoslavia; loss of territory such as Galicia, Tyrol, Trentino, and Transylvania; forbidden to unite with any other country; reparations. · Neuilly included: loss of territory and access to Aegean Sea; recognize independence of Yugoslavia; reparations and disarmament. · Trianon included: loss of territory to Czechoslovakia, Romania, and the new Yugoslavia. · Sevres included: territorial losses; loss of Bosporus Straits and Dardanelles; reparations and army limited to 50 000. With Lausanne, East Thrace and the Bosporus and Dardanelles were returned and reparations and demilitarization removed. | ||
Historical Context · Billions of dollars were spent on fighting WWI and it produced unparalleled levels of casualties. · The Russian Revolution of October 1917 brought the first communist government to power. · There was a fear that revolutions might spread across Europe, resulting from: the collapse of traditional empires, e.g. Turkey; unrest in Russia; and the resurgence of demands for self-determination by ethnic groups like Serbs, Croats, and Slovaks. · The public of victorious nations demanded security, stability, and compensation for their war efforts. This resulted after four years of nationalistic propaganda. | Key Quotes · Marshal Ferdinand Foch, a French army commander, described Versailles as “an armistice for twenty years.” · A German newspaper, Deutsche Zeitung, wrote: “THE TREATY IS ONLY A SCARP OF PAPER! We will seek vengeance for shame of 1919.” | ||
Opening Idea “It must be a peace without victory…Only a peace between equals can last.” –Wilson, Jan. 1917 | Final Thought The Italians said “they had won the war but lost the peace.” | ||
Historiography · John Maynard Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace. 1919. - “Two different kinds of false statements have been widely promulgated, one as to Germany’s capacity to pay, the other as to the amount of the Allies’ claims in respect of the devastated areas.” - “A figure for Germany’s prospective capacity to pay… would have fallen hopelessly short of popular expectations both in England and in France.” | |||
Inter War Years Review -- Peacemaking, peacekeeping—international relations 1918-1936
The geopolitical and economic impact of the treaties on Europe; the establishment and impact of the mandate system | |||
Timeline of Key Events · Jan 1919: Paris Peace · Feb 1919: Weimar Republic in Germany · 1920-21: Little Entente | Relevant Historical Facts Key People / Terms · Germany lost 12 per cent of its population and 13 per cent of its territory. · Germany lost 48 per cent of its iron ore and 15 per cent of its agriculture. · Ethnic minorities were placed under foreign rule, for example: South Tyrol became a part of Italy; two million Germans were displaced by the Polish Corridor. · Between 1920 and 1921, Czechoslovakia, Romania, and Yugoslavia formed alliances to protect from Hungary or Italy. France supported these alliances and it was known as the “Little Entente”. | ||
Historical Context · The Kaiser fled Germany in November 1918 and the Weimar Republic was established in February 1919. · Members of the Weimar Republic were seen as the ‘November Criminals’ and the Versailles Treaty was seen as a “diktat” by the German people. · Post-war settlements created or restored many states in Eastern Europe, such as Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Austria and Hungary. · The mandate system was based on Wilson’s Point Five, which called for self-determination. · Wilson advocated democracy under self-determination, however many nations lacked democratic traditions and experience. | Key Quotes · Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations “To those colonies and territories… which ceased to be under the sovereignty of the States which formerly governed them… should be entrusted to advanced nations who by reason of their resources, their experience or their geographical position can best undertake this responsibility.” | ||
Opening Idea “It must be a peace without victory…Only a peace between equals can last.” –Wilson, Jan. 1917 | Final Thought The Italians said “they had won the war but lost the peace.” | ||
Historiography · Ruth Henig, The Weimar Republic 1919-33. 1998. - “The chaotic conditions in Germany over the winter of 1918-19, and the demobilization left hundreds of thousands of young men disorientated and thirsting for some sort of action.” · Martin Kitchen, Europe between the Wars. 1988. - “France sent weapons and military missions to the Little Entente and there was a clear understanding that all four states would work together to uphold the treaties. …France thus undertook not only to be the principal guarantor of the Treaty of Versailles but also of the entire peace settlement.” | |||
Inter War Years Review -- Peacemaking, peacekeeping—international relations 1918-1936
Enforcement of the provisions of the treaties: US isolationism—the retreat from the Anglo–American Guarantee; disarmament—Washington, London, Geneva conferences | |||
Timeline of Key Events · 1919: Paris Peace · 1921-22: Washington Naval Conference (Nine Power Treaty) · 1929: Kellogg-Briand Pact · 1930: London Conference · 1931: Geneva Disarmament Conference · 1933: Hitler in power | Relevant Historical Facts Key People / Terms · US Congress members were opposed to America’s involvement in the League of Nations and the US signed a separate treaty with Germany because it did not become a member of the League. · Since the US did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles, the Anglo-American Guarantee (demilitarization of Rhineland) was not binding to America or Britain. · The Washington Naval Agreements saw that fleets size ratios would be kept at 5:5:3 for the US, Britain, and Japan. The Nine Power Treaty reaffirmed the Open Door Policy in China. · Negotiations between Moscow and Berlin in the 1920s allowed German military development despite restrictions imposed by Versailles. | ||
Historical Context · Wilson’s Point Fourteen called for the establishment of the League of Nations. · Wilson’s Fourteen Points called for disarmament to secure international peace. · The Versailles Treaty restricted the German navy to six battleships and the army to 100 000 men. · Billions of dollars were spent on fighting WWI and it produced unparalleled levels of casualties. · The Russian Revolution of October 1917 brought the first communist government to power. | Key Quotes · “I am very glad that the Disarmament Conference is passing out of life into history. It is the greatest mistake to mix up disarmament with peace.” –Churchill, July 1934 · “Germany desires nothing except an equal right to live and equal freedom… The Geneva Conference, in spite of lengthy negotiations, has so far reached no practical results.” –Hitler, March 1933 | ||
Opening Idea “Europe will be secure when the nations no longer feel themselves in great danger…” –Churchill, July 1934 | Final Thought The Italians said “they had won the war but lost the peace.” | ||
Historiography · Erik Goldstein, The First World War Peace Settlements 1919-25. 2002. - “[The Washington Agreements] would prove to be only a short term solution. Within ten years, the Washington system had collapsed, largely due to the renewed Japanese bid for regional hegemony.” · Margaret MacMillan, Peacemakers – Six Months that Changed the World. 2001. - “The Americans had a complicated attitude towards the Europeans: a mixture of admiration for their past accomplishments, a conviction that the Allies would have lost without the United States and a suspicion that, if the Americans were not careful, the wily Europeans would pull them into their toils again.” | |||
Inter War Years Review -- Peacemaking, peacekeeping—international relations 1918-1936
The League of Nations: effects of the absence of major powers; the principle of collective security and early attempts at peacekeeping (1920-1925) | |||
Timeline of Key Events · 1920: First meeting of the League · 1922: Mussolini becomes PM in Italy · 1922: Treaty of Rapallo · 1923: French occupation of the Ruhr · 1926: Germany joins League · 1934: USSR joins League | Relevant Historical Facts Key People / Terms · Decisions in the League required unanimity and Permanent members had the power of veto. Action would be taken in the order of: moral sanctions, economic sanctions, and lastly, military sanctions. · The US was unharmed territorially and economically by WWI. Sanctions would be more powerful if the US was involved. · The Treaty of Rapallo was disguised as a trade agreement between Germany and the USSR. It addressed military co-operations between the two nations. · Early peacekeeping in the Vilna (1920) and Corfu (1925) showed weakness in the League. · Early peacekeeping in the Aaland Islands (1920-1), Upper Silesia (1921) and Bulgaria were successes because solutions were accepted by all parties involved, | ||
Historical Context · Wilson chaired the committee that produced the Covenant of the League of Nations in April 1919. · Ultimately the US did not ratify the Versailles Treaty and did not become a member of the League. · The Kaiser fled Germany in November 1918 and the Weimar Republic was established in February 1919. · Members of the Weimar Republic were seen as the ‘November Criminals’ and the Versailles Treaty was seen as a “diktat” by the German people. · Wilson’s Point Five advocated for self-determination. · The Russian Revolution occurred in 1917, and a Bolshevik government took over in Russia. | Key Quotes · “Beware of throwing a hungry Russia and an angry Germany into each other’s arms.” –Lloyd George, 1922. · “Both the Soviet Union and Germany gained… Germany had an ally to the East and the USSR broke its isolation.” –Zara Steiner, The Lights that Failed, 2005. | ||
Opening Idea The Italians said “they had won the war but lost the peace.” | Final Thought “Europe will be secure when the nations no longer feel themselves in great danger…” –Churchill, July 1934 | ||
Historiography · John Spencer Bassett, The League of Nations – A Chapter in World Politics. 1930. - “…the Covenant was prepared in an academic way and adopted by the Conference without serious debate. In no stage of the process did it have the benefit of criticisms by a clear-headed opponent.” · Xenia Joukoff Eudin, Soviet Russia and the West, 1920-27: A Documented Survey. - “On the one hand [the Soviets] denounced the League as a coalition of predatory imperialist powers; on the other, they demanded to take part in such conferences of the League as affected Russian interests.” | |||
Inter War Years Review -- Peacemaking, peacekeeping—international relations 1918-1936
The Ruhr Crisis (1923); Locarno and the “Locarno Spring” (1925) | |||
Timeline of Key Events · 1920: First meeting of the League · 1922: Treaty of Rapallo · 1923: French occupation of the Ruhr · 1925: Locarno Spring · 1926: Germany joins League · 1934: USSR joins League | Relevant Historical Facts Key People / Terms · Reparations on Germany were set at £6,600 million and 2 billion gold marks were to be paid each year. In December 1922, Germany failed to pay so French and Belgian troops invaded the Ruhr. · The Germans responded with ‘passive resistance’ and halted production. · French and Belgian troops rose to 100 000 in response to ‘passive resistance’. · The Dawes Plan ended occupation in the Ruhr and gave 800 million marks to Germany as a loan from the US. The Young Plan reduced total reparations. · With Locarno, Gustav Stresemann agreed to accept western borders with France and Belgium in exchange for the withdrawal of foreign troops in the Rhineland. | ||
Historical Context · Wilson chaired the committee that produced the Covenant of the League of Nations in April 1919. · Ultimately the US did not ratify the Versailles Treaty and did not become a member of the League. · The Russian Revolution occurred in 1917, and a Bolshevik government took over in Russia. · Members of the Weimar Republic were seen as the ‘November Criminals’ and the Versailles Treaty was seen as a “diktat” by the German people. · Wilson’s Point Five advocated for self-determination. · The Russian Revolution occurred in 1917, and a Bolshevik government took over in Russia. | Key Quotes · German tasks include “the solution of the Reparations question in a sense tolerable for Germany… the protection of Germans living abroad… readjustment of our eastern frontiers.” –Gustav Stresemann, 1925. | ||
Opening Idea “Europe will be secure when the nations no longer feel themselves in great danger…” –Churchill, July 1934 | Final Thought “It must be a peace without victory…Only a peace between equals can last.” –Wilson, Jan. 1917 | ||
Historiography · Lionel Kochan, The Struggle for Germany, 1914-1945. 1963. - “[The Ruhr crisis] brought to a climax the Anglo-French conflict over the treatment of Germany and the application of the Treaty of Versailles; it signified the defeat of France and its slow subordination to British policy…” - The Ruhr Crisis was a “turning point in the history of post war Europe.” End of French attempts to enforce Versailles, and beginning of revision of Versailles itself. · Anthony Adamthwaite, The Lost Peace – International Relations in Europe, 1918-39. 1977. - “By guaranteeing the Franco-German frontier Britain implicitly repudiated responsibility for any other European frontier.” · Martin Kitchen, Europe Between the Wars. 1998. - “Britain believed that France had been given sufficient reassurance so as not to be tempted to act foolish as they had done in 1923. - “Germany saw the way open for revision for the eastern frontiers, by force if necessary.” | |||
Inter War Years Review -- Peacemaking, peacekeeping—international relations 1918-1936
Depression and threats to international peace and collective security: Manchuria (1931-1933) | |||
Timeline of Key Events · 1921-2: Washington Naval Treaties · 1922: Mussolini comes to power · 1928: Kellogg-Briand · December 1931: Lytton investigation begins · October 1932: Lytton investigation ends · March 1933: Japanese withdraws from League of Nations | Relevant Historical Facts Key People / Terms · Manchuria produced almost half the world’s supply of soya beans and has a large supply of coal and iron. · The League of Nations sent a Commission of Enquiry, led by Lord Lytton (Great Britain), to investigate the event. · In March 1932, Manchuria became the Japanese puppet state called Manchukuo. It was under the direct control of the Japanese military. · The Commission began its research in December 1931 and ended in October 1932. · The Japanese withdrew from the League of Nations in March 1933. | ||
Historical Context · Japan had a sphere of influence in Manchuria because after the Russo-Japanese War (1904-5) Japan gained control of the South Manchurian railway and Port Arthur. · Japan was an original member of the Washing Naval Treaties and signed the Kellogg-Briand Pact. · Japan received former German colonies in the Pacific following the end of WWI. · Wilson chaired the committee that produced the Covenant of the League of Nations in April 1919. · The Russian Revolution occurred in 1917, and a Bolshevik government took over in Russia. · There was turmoil in China due to the rise of Marxism. The Chinese Communist Party confronted the nationalist Kuomintang in a civil war. | Key Quotes · “Read your history. We recovered Manchuria from Russia. We made it what it is today. –Yotsuke Matsuoka, February 1933. · “The pathway to the beaches of Dunkirk lay in the waste of Manchuria.” –Sir Geoffrey Manders | ||
Opening Idea “Europe will be secure when the nations no longer feel themselves in great danger…” –Churchill, July 1934 | Final Thought “It must be a peace without victory…Only a peace between equals can last.” –Wilson, Jan. 1917 | ||
Historiography · J.P. Walters, A history of the League of Nations Vol. 2, 1952. - “Russia was more directly concerned with the fate of Manchuria than any other power except China and Japan.” · David Williamson - “The Abyssinian crisis was to play a far more important part to the destruction of collective security.” | |||
Inter War Years Review -- Peacemaking, peacekeeping—international relations 1918-1936
Depression and threats to international peace and collective security: Abyssinia (1935-1936) | |||
Timeline of Key Events · 1934: Italian troops clash in Abyssinia · 1935: Stresa Front · 1935: Anglo-German Naval Agreement · May 1935: Arms embargo placed on Germany by League · October 1935: Italian troops invade Abyssinia · 1936: Rome-Berlin Axis | Relevant Historical Facts Key People / Terms · Arms embargos were placed on Italy and Abyssinia in May 1935, aimed at preventing further escalation of the conflict. · Great Britain did not close the Suez Canal to Italian shipping and the US and Germany did not impose any sanctions. There were no sanctions on oil. · Britain and France indecently acted to offer territorial concessions in the region to Mussolini to prevent war, but Mussolini rejected. · Italy took over all of Abyssinia in May 1936. | ||
Historical Context · Covenant of the League of Nations in April 1919. · The Russian Revolution occurred in 1917, and a Bolshevik government took over in Russia. · Mussolini led Italy through the Corfu incident of 1923. · Italy was included in the Locarno Pact and the Kellogg-Briand Pact. · In 1931-3, the League of Nations failed to address the Manchurian Crisis when it was invaded by Japan | Key Quotes · “I refuse to believe that the real people of Great Britain… run the risk of hurling Europe along the road to catastrophe for the sake of defending an African country universally branded as a country without the slightest shadow of civilization.” --Benito Mussolini, 1935. | ||
Opening Idea “Europe will be secure when the nations no longer feel themselves in great danger…” –Churchill, July 1934 | Final Thought “It must be a peace without victory…Only a peace between equals can last.” –Wilson, Jan. 1917 | ||
Historiography · Sir Anthony Eden, Facing the Dictators: Memoirs of Anthony Eden, Earl of Avon. 1962. - “The oil sanction was the crucial question… Some Ministers feared that imposition of the oil sanction would drive the Duce to war with us.” | |||
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